Metallics JQK16V 8 x 1-1/4 in. 1/4 Hex Head Slotted Sharp Point Self-Piercing & Tapping Screws - Steel Zinc - Each

No. The JQK16V is a sharp point self-piercing and tapping screw, so it pierces and forms its own thread in sheet metal as it drives. Twin lead threads cut the driving torque, and the undercut under the head lets more thread length engage the material. For thicker or harder stock a pilot still helps, but for typical sheet metal work no pre-drilling is needed.

The JQK16V is flagged compliant for both Buy American and ARRA, which is what a government, school district, or healthcare procurement office typically needs on the submittal. Country of origin is listed as multiple.

Either works. The JQK16V has a hex washer head measuring 0.244 to 0.25 inch across, so a 1/4 inch hex driver or nut setter seats on it, and it also has a slotted drive (slot width 0.045 to 0.054 inch, depth 0.052 to 0.074 inch) if you need to run it by hand or finish it with a flat blade.

Head height runs 0.096 to 0.11 inch, so it sits low and tight. The integral washer is 0.322 to 0.348 inch outside diameter with a thickness of 0.019 to 0.031 inch, which gives you a bearing surface wider than the hex itself for clamping sheet metal and strap without pulling through.

It is a #8 diameter screw, 1-1/4 inch long, with 15 threads per inch. The coarse twin lead thread is what grips light gauge sheet metal, and the undercut beneath the head means more of that 1-1/4 inch length is actually engaging the material rather than being wasted under the washer.

The JQK16V is case hardened to Rockwell C28-38 and made from AISI 1018-1022 steel, which is the normal hardness range for a self-piercing tapping screw working in sheet steel. Combined with the sharp point it forms its own hole in sheet gauge material. It is not a self-drilling screw for structural plate thicknesses.

Because there is no single industry standard for self-piercing screw dimensions, and head dimensions on self-piercing screws differ from standard tapping screws. The published figures for the JQK16V, such as the 0.244 to 0.25 inch head width and 0.096 to 0.11 inch head height, are guides and small deviations can occur. If you are matching an existing hole pattern or a driver already in the toolbox, work from those ranges rather than a generic tapping screw table.

The screw is steel with a zinc finish. Zinc plating handles indoor and protected electrical work, interior stud and raceway fastening, and general MRO use. For sustained outdoor exposure, washdown areas, or coastal sites, specify a stainless or heavier coated fastener instead.

They ship in a jar of 500, and 500 count is the order minimum. The packed jar weighs 3.1 lbs. That makes it a shelf item for a van or a shop crib rather than a small blister pack.

The JQK series hex head slotted sharp point self-piercing screws are made in other sizes and quantities, available by request. The JQK16V itself is the #8 by 1-1/4 inch zinc plated version in a 500 count jar.