Metallics JDS166 7 x 3/4 in. 1/4 Indented Hex Head Slotted Sharp Point Tapping Screws - Steel Zinc - Each

The JDS166 is a #7 x 3/4 inch Type A sheet metal tapping screw with a gimlet (sharp) point, made for light metal assembly: electrical outlets and device boxes, light framing, and other sheet metal work. The sharp point starts in thin steel without a pilot hole, and the 16 threads per inch coarse thread pulls in fast.

Either one. The head is an indented hex measuring 0.244 to 0.25 inch across the flats, so a standard 1/4 inch nut driver or hex bit seats on it. It is also slotted, with a slot 0.039 to 0.048 inch wide and 0.04 to 0.054 inch deep, so a flat blade works when you can't get a driver square to the work. Across corners the head measures 0.272 inch, which is what you need to clear in a tight box.

No. The JDS166 is not Buy American compliant and is not ARRA compliant; country of origin is listed as multiple. If your project carries a domestic sourcing requirement, you need a domestically produced fastener instead.

Yes, there is an integral washer under the hex head with an outside diameter of 0.302 to 0.328 inch and a thickness of 0.017 to 0.029 inch, so it spreads the load on thin sheet and over slotted or oversized holes. Overall head height is 0.08 to 0.093 inch, so it sits nearly flush against a device plate or box wall.

The JDS166 is rated at 30 lb-in minimum torsional strength and case hardened to Rockwell C28-38, which is adequate for driving into light gauge sheet metal. That is a light-duty number, so back the clutch off on a drill driver and don't use an impact gun on them. For heavy gauge or structural steel, a Type A sharp point screw is the wrong fastener.

They ship in a jar of 100 pieces, and 100 is the order minimum. The packed jar weighs 0.43 lbs. Other sizes and quantities in this line are available by request.

Head and drive dimensions are built to ASME B18.6.3-2010 and the thread conforms to ASME B18.6.4. The steel is AISI 1016-1024. Note the manufacturer states that dimensions for the #9 diameter in this family fall outside ASME B18.6.4, which does not affect the #7 size.

A Type A sharp point like the JDS166 pierces and taps thin sheet metal on its own and is intended for light metal assembly such as outlet boxes, light framing, and general sheet metal. Once the material gets thick enough that the gimlet point walks or stalls, switch to a self-drilling (Type TEK) screw with a drill point, which cuts its own hole in heavier gauge steel.

These are carbon steel with a zinc plating, which handles interior and protected locations. Zinc plated steel is not a corrosion resistant finish for sustained exterior exposure or wet environments; use stainless fasteners there.