Metallics DWS5M 6 x 2 in. Bugle Head Phillips Drywall Screws - Steel Black Phosphate - Fine Threads - Each

Yes. The DWS5M is an 18 threads-per-inch fine thread screw with a sharp point, and Metallics lists its field application as hardwood, light gauge steel and light gauge aluminum. Fine thread with a sharp point is the correct choice for light gauge steel framing. If you are fastening into wood studs, a coarse thread drywall screw is the usual pick.

No. Black phosphate is a dry interior finish, and the DWS5M is a black phosphate coated AISI 1018 steel screw. It will corrode in wet, exterior, or high humidity work. For exposed or damp areas use a corrosion resistant fastener such as a hot dip galvanized or stainless screw instead.

No. The DWS5M is listed as not Buy American compliant and not ARRA compliant, with country of origin recorded as multiple. If your project carries a domestic sourcing clause, this screw will not satisfy it.

They take a #2 Phillips bit, and a free #2 drive power bit ships with the jar, so you do not need to order one separately. The recess is 0.106 inch deep with a 0.176 to 0.201 inch diameter, which is standard #2 Phillips geometry.

The DWS5M is packaged in a jar of 1,000 screws, and 1,000 is also the order minimum, so it is bought by the thousand rather than by the handful. The filled jar weighs 5.52 lbs. Metallics does offer other sizes and quantities in the DWS series by request.

That is what the bugle head is for. On the DWS5M the head is 0.315 to 0.347 inch across with a head height of only 0.020 to 0.031 inch, so the curved underside pulls the board tight and seats just below the surface for taping instead of cutting through the paper. Metallics notes there is no single industry standard for bugle head dimensions, so slight deviations from those figures are normal.

The DWS5M is heat treated to Rockwell C44 with a sharp point, and Metallics rates it for light gauge steel and light gauge aluminum as well as hardwood. That hardness is what lets the point pierce light gauge track without the head shearing. For heavier structural steel you want a self drilling point screw, not a sharp point.

UNF, at 18 threads per inch. That is the fine pitch version of the DWS series. Coarse thread drywall screws in a #6 run a wider pitch and bite better in soft wood framing, so if your studs are standard SPF lumber, order the coarse thread version instead of this one.