Self-tapping screw

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Two thread-forming self-tapping screws with different heads. The countersunk head has a Pozidriv recess. Schroef.jpg
Two thread-forming self-tapping screws with different heads. The countersunk head has a Pozidriv recess.

A self-tapping screw is a screw that can tap its own hole as it is driven into the material. More narrowly, self-tapping is used only to describe a specific type of thread-cutting screw intended to produce a thread in relatively soft material or sheet materials, excluding wood screws. Other specific types of self-tapping screw include self-drilling screws and thread rolling screws.

Contents

Mechanism

Self-tapping screw with flute and type B (blunt) tip Vis-auto-taraudeuse.jpeg
Self-tapping screw with flute and type B (blunt) tip

Self-tapping screws have a wide range of tip and thread patterns, and are available with almost any possible screw head design. Common features are the screw thread covering the whole length of the screw from tip to head and a pronounced thread hard enough for the intended substrate, often case-hardened. [1]

For hard substrates such as metal or hard plastics, the self-tapping ability is often created by cutting a gap in the continuity of the thread on the screw, generating a flute and cutting edge similar to those on a tap. Thus, whereas a regular machine screw cannot tap its own hole in a metal substrate, a self-tapping one can (within reasonable limits of substrate hardness and depth).

For softer substrates such as wood or soft plastics, the self-tapping ability can come simply from a tip that tapers to a gimlet point (in which no flute is needed). Like the tip of a nail or gimlet, such a point forms the hole by displacement of the surrounding material rather than any chip-forming drilling/cutting/evacuating action.

Not all self-tapping screws have a sharp tip. The type B tip is blunt and intended for use with a pilot hole, often in sheet materials. The lack of a sharp tip is helpful for packaging and handling and in some applications may be helpful for reducing the clearance necessary on the reverse of a fastened panel or for making more thread available on a given length screw. [2]

Thread-forming vs. thread-cutting

Self-tapping screws can be divided into two classes: [3] those that displace material (especially plastic and thin metal sheets) without removing it, known as "thread-forming" self-tapping screws, and self-tappers with sharp cutting surfaces that remove the material as they are inserted, termed "thread-cutting" self-tapping screws.

Thread-forming screws may have a non-circular plan view, such as the five-fold symmetry of the pentalobular or the three-fold symmetry of Taptite screws, while thread-cutting screws may have one or more flutes machined into their threads, yielding cutting edges.[ citation needed ]

Self-drilling screws

A self-drilling screw and three thread-cutting screws SelfDrillingScrewsx4.png
A self-drilling screw and three thread-cutting screws

Some self-tapping screws such as the Tek screw brand, are also self-drilling, which means that in addition to the thread-forming section there is also a fluted tip much like the tip of a center drill. These screws combine hole drilling, threading and fastener installation into one driving motion (instead of separate drilling, tapping, and installing motions); they are thus very efficient in a variety of hard-substrate applications, from assembly lines to roofing. [4] [5] Some types incorporate a sealing washer, for fastening roofing sheets to purlins. [6]

Sheet metal screw

Sheet metal screws (sometimes called "sheet-metal self-tappers", P–K or PK screws from the brand name Parker Kalon, the company which pioneered [7] the manufacture of, but did not invent, these screws) are a type of screw which can form a thread in thin sheet metal. Pan-head self-tapping screws are common in metal cases for electrical equipment, [8] while flatter-headed truss or flat countersunk headed self-tapping screws are found in aviation applications. [9]

Winged self-tapper

Winged self-drilling have thin wings wider than the thread formed just behind the self drilling head. These cut a clearance hole in soft materials (such as wood or plastic), but are destroyed by more robust materials (such as metal). Thus, to clamp some material to metal, the clearance drilling, tap drilling, thread tapping, and fixing itself can happen in a single operation from one side, with the materials in their final position. [10]

Wood screw

Wood screws are technically self-tapping, but are not referred to as such.

Applications

Self-tapping screws are used in a variety of applications ranging from DIY carpentry to surgery.

Surgical

Dental implants and orthopedic bone screws are both examples of self-tapping screws used in surgery. Different thread profiles are used for either denser cortical bone or the spongy cancellous bone. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drill</span> Tool used to create holes

A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a bit, either a drill or driver chuck. Hand-operated types are dramatically decreasing in popularity and cordless battery-powered ones proliferating due to increased efficiency and ease of use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tap and die</span> Tools to create screw threads

Taps and dies are tools used to create screw threads, which is called threading. Many are cutting tools; others are forming tools. A tap is used to cut or form the female portion of the mating pair. A die is used to cut or form the male portion of the mating pair. The process of cutting or forming threads using a tap is called tapping, whereas the process using a die is called threading.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drill bit</span> Type of cutting tool

A drill bit is a cutting tool used in a drill to remove material to create holes, almost always of circular cross-section. Drill bits come in many sizes and shapes and can create different kinds of holes in many different materials. In order to create holes drill bits are usually attached to a drill, which powers them to cut through the workpiece, typically by rotation. The drill will grasp the upper end of a bit called the shank in the chuck.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rivet</span> Permanent mechanical fastener

A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the tail. On installation, the deformed end is called the shop head or buck-tail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drilling</span> Cutting process that uses a drill bit to cut a circular hole into the workpiece

Drilling is a cutting process where a drill bit is spun to cut a hole of circular cross-section in solid materials. The drill bit is usually a rotary cutting tool, often multi-point. The bit is pressed against the work-piece and rotated at rates from hundreds to thousands of revolutions per minute. This forces the cutting edge against the work-piece, cutting off chips (swarf) from the hole as it is drilled.

A reamer is a type of rotary cutting tool used in metalworking. Precision reamers are designed to enlarge the size of a previously formed hole by a small amount but with a high degree of accuracy to leave smooth sides. There are also non-precision reamers which are used for more basic enlargement of holes or for removing burrs. The process of enlarging the hole is called reaming. There are many different types of reamer and they may be designed for use as a hand tool or in a machine tool, such as a milling machine or drill press.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Screw thread</span> Helical structure used to convert between rotational and linear movement or force

A screw thread is a helical structure used to convert between rotational and linear movement or force. A screw thread is a ridge wrapped around a cylinder or cone in the form of a helix, with the former being called a straight thread and the latter called a tapered thread. A screw thread is the essential feature of the screw as a simple machine and also as a threaded fastener.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Countersink</span> Conical hole cut so a fastener can be inserted flush with the surface

In manufacturing, a countersink is a conical hole cut into a manufactured object, or the cutter used to cut such a hole. A common use is to allow the head of a countersunk bolt, screw or rivet, when placed in the hole, to sit flush with or below the surface of the surrounding material. A countersink may also be used to remove the burr left from a drilling or tapping operation, thereby improving the finish of the product and removing any hazardous sharp edges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turning</span> Machining process

Turning is a machining process in which a cutting tool, typically a non-rotary tool bit, describes a helix toolpath by moving more or less linearly while the workpiece rotates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Set screw</span> Type of screw

In American English, a set screw is a screw that is used to secure an object, by pressure and/or friction, within or against another object, such as fixing a pulley or gear to a shaft. A set screw is normally used without a nut, being screwed instead in a threaded hole drilled in only one of the two objects to be secured. A set screw is often headless and threaded along its entire length, so that it will sit entirely inside that hole; in which case it may be called a grub screw or blind screw.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Screw mechanism</span> Mechanism that converts motion, and forces, from rotational to linear

The screw is a mechanism that converts rotational motion to linear motion, and a torque to a linear force. It is one of the six classical simple machines. The most common form consists of a cylindrical shaft with helical grooves or ridges called threads around the outside. The screw passes through a hole in another object or medium, with threads on the inside of the hole that mesh with the screw's threads. When the shaft of the screw is rotated relative to the stationary threads, the screw moves along its axis relative to the medium surrounding it; for example rotating a wood screw forces it into wood. In screw mechanisms, either the screw shaft can rotate through a threaded hole in a stationary object, or a threaded collar such as a nut can rotate around a stationary screw shaft. Geometrically, a screw can be viewed as a narrow inclined plane wrapped around a cylinder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pocket-hole joinery</span>

Pocket-hole joinery, or pocket-screw joinery, involves drilling a hole at an angle — usually 15 degrees — into one work piece, and then joining it to a second work piece with a self-tapping screw.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Threaded insert</span> Fastener element inserted into a hole to provide threading for screws

A threaded insert, also known as a threaded bushing, is a fastener element that is inserted into an object to add a threaded hole. They may be used to repair a stripped threaded hole, provide a durable threaded hole in a soft material, place a thread on a material too thin to accept it, mold or cast threads into a work piece thereby eliminating a machining operation, or simplify changeover from unified to metric threads or vice versa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pilot hole</span> Small hole drilled into a workpiece to guide a larger drill or other tool

In construction, a pilot hole is a small hole drilled into a piece of construction material. Its purpose may be:

  1. to guide a larger drill to the appropriate location and ease the job of the larger drill,
  2. allow the insertion of another hole-making tool, such as a knockout punch, that will produce the final-sized hole, or
  3. locate, guide, and provide clearance for a self-threading screw in wood or plastic to prevent damaging the material or breaking the screw.
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swage nut</span> Type of fastener

A swage nut or self-clinching nut is a type of nut or threaded insert that is used on sheet metal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Screw</span> Type of fastener characterized by a thread wrapped around a cylinder core

A screw is an externally helical threaded fastener capable of being tightened or released by a twisting force (torque) to the head. The most common uses of screws are to hold objects together and there are many forms for a variety of materials. Screws might be inserted into holes in assembled parts or a screw may form its own thread. The difference between a screw and a bolt is that the latter is designed to be tightened or released by torquing a nut.

In manufacturing, threading is the process of creating a screw thread. More screw threads are produced each year than any other machine element. There are many methods of generating threads, including subtractive methods ; deformative or transformative methods ; additive methods ; or combinations thereof.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentalobular screw thread</span>

A pentalobular screw thread is a form of self-forming thread used for screws. Self-forming screws are used in ductile materials, such as aluminium and plastics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bolt (fastener)</span> Threaded fastener with an external male thread requiring a matching female thread

A bolt is an externally helical threaded fastener capable of being tightened or released by a twisting force (torque) to a matching nut. The bolt has an external male thread requiring a matching nut with a pre-formed female thread.

References

  1. "Fastenerdata" . Retrieved 10 November 2017.
  2. "Self Tapping Screws" . Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  3. Troughton, Michael J., ed. (7 October 2008). Handbook of Plastics Joining: a Practical Guide (in Plastics Design Library Handbook series) (2nd ed.). William Andrew. p. 107. ISBN   978-0-8155-1581-4. OCLC   212375843.
  4. Arkless, Dave. "How Do Self-Drilling Screws Work?". Trade Warehouse.
  5. "Self-Drilling vs. Self-Tapping Screws" . Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  6. Huth, Mark (7 February 2019). Residential Construction Academy: Basic Principles for Construction (5th ed.). Cengage Learning. p. 210. ISBN   978-1-337-91382-9.
  7. Modern Plastics Encyclopedia. Vol. 33. New York: Breskin & Charlton Publishing Corporation. 1955. p. 41.
  8. "PK-Self Tapping Screws". Archived from the original on 28 September 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  9. "Sheet Metal Screws" . Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  10. Burlem, Eddie (3 April 2024). "How do I Choose the Correct Self-Drilling and Self-Tapping Screws?".
  11. Perren, S. M. (1991). "1: Basic Aspects of Internal Fixation". Manual of INTERNAL FIXATION. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer. p. 108. doi:10.1007/978-3-662-02695-3_1. ISBN   978-3-642-08091-3.