Metallics BLS48B Bolts 3/8 x 4-1/2 Hx Lag Blt St-zn (Box 250)

No. The BLS48B is a zinc plated steel lag bolt specified for use in wood in non-corrosive environments only. Zinc plating handles dry interior service and incidental moisture, not sustained exposure, treated lumber, or coastal air. For wet or corrosive work you want a hot dip galvanized or 18-8 stainless lag of the same 3/8 x 4-1/2 size instead.

For wood-framed support work, yes, within its rating. The bolt is carbon steel to AISI 1006-1022 with a 60,000 psi minimum tensile strength and Rockwell B70-B100 hardness. That is standard commercial lag screw material, not a Grade 5 or Grade 8 machine bolt, so pull-out of the wood rather than the bolt is normally what governs. The 4-1/2 inch length gives real embedment into joists or blocking once you subtract the thickness of what you are fastening through.

Metallics lists the BLS48B as Buy American compliant and ARRA compliant. Country of origin is recorded as multiple, which is normal for a fastener line produced across more than one plant, so if your specification requires a documented origin per shipment, ask for the mill paperwork on the lot you receive.

Measure off the actual shank: the BLS48B runs 0.360 to 0.388 inch outside diameter over the threads with 7 threads per inch, and it has a gimlet point so it draws itself in once started. In softwood a 1/4 inch pilot is the common starting point and in hardwood 5/16 inch, drilled to the full 4-1/2 inch embedment depth so the hex head seats without snapping the shank. Drive it with a wrench or socket, not an impact driver run hard.

250 pieces to the box, and 250 is also the order minimum, so it sells by the full carton rather than by the each. Boxed weight is listed at 25.45 lbs. If you need a different size or a smaller count, Metallics offers other sizes and quantities by request.

The hex head measures 0.544 to 0.562 inch across the flats, which is a 9/16 inch socket or wrench. That is the standard head size for a 3/8 inch lag to ASME B18.2.1, so a 9/16 impact socket on a low-speed driver or a ratchet both work.

A lag bolt is a one-sided fastener. The BLS48B is full-bodied with spaced threads and a gimlet point, so it cuts its own thread in the wood and holds without access to the back side, which is what you want fastening into a joist, header, or blocking you cannot reach. A through bolt with a nut and washers gives higher and more predictable tension but needs a drilled clear hole and access to both faces. Pick the lag when only one face is reachable.