1. Home
  2. ⚙ Mechanical Engineering
  3. Using sheet metal, particleboard, or drywall screws in wood, and help finding a source for black finished wood screws

Using sheet metal, particleboard, or drywall screws in wood, and help finding a source for black finished wood screws

Hi everyone,

Can anyone please recommend a source for some black finished flat head # 6 wood screws? I need them to be about 1" to 1.5" long. I am having trouble finding black finish wood screws. The drive type is not really important, but I prefer phillips over straight slot.

I found the black finished screws listed below at

formatting link
However, they are either sheet metal, particleboard, or drywall screws. The screws are used inside the home and never get wet so I think I just need moderate rust protection. I have a thin walled section so I don't want the wood to split. However, I can drill a pilot hole so I doubt splitting will be a problem. I want the screws to hold as strong as possible. I am using a flat head because I want to "lock" the part down on the wood best as possible, and avoid any wiggle or movement under load. Flat heads seem to work well for this.

I really like the "High performance serrated thread" screws from Mcmaster carr, but they only come in a silver zinc finish.

Of the three black finish screws below, which would you recommend ?

Black Finish:

Mcmaster Carr Part # 90033A160 Flat Head Phillips Sheet Metal Screw Black-Oxide Finish Steel, No 6 Size, 1" Length

Mcmaster Carr Part # 90252A106 Flat Head Phillips Particleboard Screw No. 6 Size, 1" Length

Mcmaster Carr Part # 90305A112 Premium Cntr-Sunk Head Phillips Drywall Screw Sharp Point, 6-18 Thread,

1" Length

Silver / Zinc Finish:

I prefer the following screws, they seem to work well but they are going on a black oxide finished part and the shiny zinc finish seems to stand out. It's just a matter of looks, I am not sure what people would think of it, and the black screws would seem to look better to me, so I would like to use black if I can.

Mcmaster Carr part # 91550A153 Hi-Performnce Serrated Thrd Flat Hd Wood Scrw Combination Drive, Znc-Pltd Stl, No.6 Sz, 1" Length

Thanks for your help. John

Reply to
John2005
Loading thread data ...

Hi everyone,

I just found out that the head size of the drywall screws make them inconvenient for my application. The diameter of the drywall screws is larger than the other screws and it would force me to relocate my screws, which is undesirable. Mcmaster makes a drywall screw with a smaller head diameter, but then it lists the head height as .150" and the thickness of my part (a flat steel plate) is only .156". I suppose it could work, but I tend to think I should not countersink through the entire material thickness.

I am currently countersinking for a .127" diameter head, and I cannot go much bigger than that due to space constraints.

The particleboard screw head height is .120" and the sheet metal screw head height is .083". Both the particleboard and sheet metal screws have head diameters almost exactly the same as the silver zinc plated serrated thread screw I am currently using.

The sheet metal screw seems to have almost the exact same head dimensions as the part # 91550A153 serrated thread (silver zinc plated screw) I am using now. If the sheet metal screw will not work well enough, I guess I will use the particleboard screws.

I would appreciate any further feedback.

Thanks again, John

John2005 wrote:

Reply to
John2005

I decided to go with the sheet metal screw, I don't see why it would not work well with the right size pilot hole.

John

John2005 wrote:

Reply to
John2005

I don't see why you can't get whatever screw you want...and then dip the head in a durable black paint...

Reply to
<beard6801

all my sheet metal & wood screws are mixed in together in my workshop. they can be interchanged all right, though for some applications, like a swing set, i would use "belt & braces" approach.

i suggest Home Depot, if you have one. huge selection. good chance they have the black oxide durable finish you're probably looking for.

John2005 wrote:

Reply to
wwswimming

PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.