Using sheet metal, particle board, or drywall screws in wood, and help finding source for black 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 ...

Regardless of what kind of screw you are needing, you should be buying them from here.

formatting link

Reply to
Leon

G'day John, I only use particle board screws these days. They are designed for use with an electric driver and hold like a man hanging on for dear life. Just my 2 bob's worth regards John

Reply to
John B

Which screws are for particle board? I did a search and could only find furniture inserts for particle board.

Jack

John B wrote:

Reply to
mywebaccts (at) PLUGcomcast.ne

Reply to
Wilson

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your replies.

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

Wils> I get trim head screws near the drywall screws at the Borg.

Reply to
John2005

Reply to
Mike Berger

Hi Mike,

I'm thinking ahead, and If I get to the point where I make alot, I don't want to have to paint the screws. I think i'm just going to go with a black oxide finished sheet metal screw.

Thanks John

Mike Berger wrote:

Reply to
John2005

Here's a chemical process the turns stainless steel black:

formatting link
take a look at this process for gun bluing:
formatting link
have you considered power-coating? I've used powered paints on small parts in my shop with good results.

Mort

John2005 wrote:

Reply to
Mort Stevens

Hi Mort,

Thanks for your reply.

Mort Wrote:

John: My parts are very small. Is it possible powder coating could be as cost effective as a black oxide finish ? I don't have experience with powder coating.

Since the parts are so small I have also thought that perhaps stainless steel could be used without a finish, then the silver zinc plated screws would match fine. It's just a matter of whether the higher cost of purchasing and machining the stainless will be offset by not having to finish it. A couple of thin walled parts that need to be hardened and have good dimensional stability during heat treatment will still probably have to be made from tool steel or bearing steel.

I tend to think it must be cheaper to make the parts out of a black finished, free machining steel or tool steel, rather than unfinished stainless. It seems to me that more things would be made from stainless if this were not generally the case.

Anyway, I think the black oxide finished sheet metal screws will work OK in wood, but If powder coating is comparible with black oxide with respect to cost, it may be the way to go on the parts themselves. I think powder coating tends to look better and probably protect much better than black oxide.

Thanks again, John

Mort Stevens wrote:

formatting link
> Also, have you considered power-coating? I've used powered paints on

Reply to
John2005

and both have black finished #6 wood screws.

I wouldn't go with any of those, personally.

I believe that Rockler has a similar screw in black, however the smallest they list appears to be a number 8.

Reply to
J. Clarke

HomeOwnersHub 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.