Screws and things.

K

kevin barrett

New member
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Iv'e recently been struck with the difficulty of buying screws in Canada .
As a machinist of a certain age ,,,I know what screws are available . I wonder why we are not allowed anymore
to buy a box of 6/48 socket head screws.when I contacted my local Bolt Supply
House , they called me back a day later to say they could only source 6/32 which is the
coarse pitch.

Also I tried direct to Spaenaur ,a manufacturer and they said 6/40 that's it.

This definitely seems to be a pattern now , or in the last 2 or 3 years .

Does this mean we have to buy these items US ?

this is kind of mysterious actually as 8/40 is also a problem.It seems as if these requests
turn a light on somewhere and they say "no screws for you"

Does anyone else find this a problem and what did you do about it?
 
The 6-48 and 8-40 screws are unique to firearms an so not carried by the normal suppliers since the demand is so low. I think Western gun parts carries them or else the goto source is Brownells from the states , but make sure you choose the cheapest shipping rate or a big surprise could await you at checkout.
 
kevin barrett said:
Iv'e recently been struck with the difficulty of buying screws in Canada .
As a machinist of a certain age ,,,I know what screws are available . I wonder why we are not allowed anymore
to buy a box of 6/48 socket head screws.when I contacted my local Bolt Supply
House , they called me back a day later to say they could only source 6/32 which is the
coarse pitch.

Also I tried direct to Spaenaur ,a manufacturer and they said 6/40 that's it.

This definitely seems to be a pattern now , or in the last 2 or 3 years .

Does this mean we have to buy these items US ?

this is kind of mysterious actually as 8/40 is also a problem.It seems as if these requests
turn a light on somewhere and they say "no screws for you"

Does anyone else find this a problem and what did you do about it?
Click to expand...

6x48 and 8x40 are unique to the gun trade and they are a National Special thread size so it is much easier to simply buy them from a company like Brownell's Inc. who specializes in these parts. The same for taps and dies of these sizes.
 
guntech said:
6x48 and 8x40 are unique to the gun trade and they are a National Special thread size so it is much easier to simply buy them from a company like Brownell's Inc. who specializes in these parts. The same for taps and dies of these sizes.
Click to expand...

Similar situation for the threads used on microphone stands and clips: 5/8-27. (What genius thought ultrafine thread was necessary for this?). Not easy to get taps & dies. (KBC Tools probaly has them.)
 
I researched the NRA, life member, on m14 rifle use in target shooting. Great help to do simple stuff
to make them better. I had to buy the nuts and screws to do some of the stuff in America. Took
awhile to fine a manufacturer who would ship here. Then had to buy the small lots required, then
the courier service had to make it cost more because it's Canada. But, I guess stainless costs, didn't
want steel because it rains here.
 
I don't think that these sizes are entirely unique to guns. But they are certainly far from standard and will only be found in items that are somewhat unique in some way.

And you think you have issues with finding screws? I was just rebuilding a 100 year old Steven's boys rifle that had a bad case of "gun cancer". The take down screw that holds the barrel to the receiver appears to be 3/16 or #10 with a 27.5 TPI thread. Or it may be that it is actually 27 TPI but has deformed a little over the last 100 years.

I was going to just make a new one to replace the bent screw. But instead I had to painstakingly straighten the old one up since it is a totally non standard size.

Describing this on another machining forum brought up modern versions of really odd threads. For example, did you know that Singer, the sewing machine company, has plants in three countries and that each plant has a line of unique thread sizes used in the machines they make? And that these sizes do not follow the Unified thread sizes by any stretch?

There were numerous examples of other odd ball sizes that are way outside the normal Unified or ISO thread sizes. Standard threads are simply not all that standard even today......
 
Magellann said:
It would make more sense if the manufacturers switched to a common readily available thread pitch.
Click to expand...

If you mean firearms mfrs., I think the problem is that often screws have to go through pretty thin metal (think sideplates on lever-action rifles or blind holes for front sight ramps on sporter-weight barrels) and the extra-fine threads ensure a higher % of contact. Mind you, this doesn't explain/excuse really weird threads like 0.150" x 50 TPI used for 1911 grip bushings where something less arcane would surely do the job just as well.
 
kevin barrett said:
Iv'e recently been struck with the difficulty of buying screws in Canada .
As a machinist of a certain age ,,,I know what screws are available . I wonder why we are not allowed anymore
to buy a box of 6/48 socket head screws.when I contacted my local Bolt Supply
House , they called me back a day later to say they could only source 6/32 which is the
coarse pitch.

Also I tried direct to Spaenaur ,a manufacturer and they said 6/40 that's it.

This definitely seems to be a pattern now , or in the last 2 or 3 years .

Does this mean we have to buy these items US ?

this is kind of mysterious actually as 8/40 is also a problem.It seems as if these requests
turn a light on somewhere and they say "no screws for you"

Does anyone else find this a problem and what did you do about it?
Click to expand...

Where do you live? May have what you need.
 
josquin said:
If you mean firearms mfrs., I think the problem is that often screws have to go through pretty thin metal (think sideplates on lever-action rifles or blind holes for front sight ramps on sporter-weight barrels) and the extra-fine threads ensure a higher % of contact. Mind you, this doesn't explain/excuse really weird threads like 0.150" x 50 TPI used for 1911 grip bushings where something less arcane would surely do the job just as well.
Click to expand...

^^^^ Makes sense,,
 
Had a buddy in California send me a couple screws for an old scope mount and went across to the U.S. to pick them up. When I got back to Canada customs the girl asked me what I was bringing back and I told her about the screws and that I couldn't find them in Canada. She wrote out a yellow slip and had me pull in under the canopy so they could check it out. Thought I was gonna get a body cavity search the way they were drilling me with questions. He had the two screws in his hand and asked me what they were for, I said whats the difference what the heck they're for, it's a pair of screws! Who cares if it's for a scope mount or my wife's hairdryer, 2 screws never killed anyone that I know of.
 
I appreciate the suggestions made ,many of them I've used before except McMaster- Carr,they don't like little customers even though I AM a business(though struggling)
I buy fairly often from KBC but didn't think of sourcing screws from them. Brownell's is a good company and I have mostly good experiences with them.

The comment about oddball threads reminded me about my lathe.The spindle nose is an A6 and so the chucks are held on with 1/2 inch socket head
capscrews , BUT they are 1/2 -12 tpi??? The lathe is a real nice Okuma 540 and my books and drawings show a 1/2-13 NC however they are without question 12 threads per inch.
weird isn't it?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom