Fastener Training

3.30.10

FASTENER TRAINING
Cap Screws | Hex Nuts | Flat Washers

Presented by Kevin Connolly

Applications Engineer
kfc@earnestmachine.com

Fastener Training

Fastener Terms and Abbreviations

Fastener Markets
Transportation / Manufacturing
- SAE Grades (2, 5 & 8)

Structural Market
- ASTM Grades

Aerospace / Military
- Mil Spec Grades

Fastener are described by the:

Thread Diameter, Thread Pitch, Length, Description, Grade and Plating

Ex: 1/2 13 x 3 Hex Head Cap Screw, Grade 8, Plain

Below are three ways of describing the same fastener:
1. 1/4 20 UNC Class 2A x 1 Hex Head Cap Screw per ASME B18.2.1,
Grade 5 per SAE J429, Zinc/Clear plated per ASTM B633
2. 1/4 - 20 x 1 Hex Cap Screw, Gr 5, Zn
3. 1/4 x 1 Hex Bolt, NC, 5, Z

Here are several more common fastener descriptions

and what they mean.
Description: 1/2-20 Hex Nut, 8, ZY
What it means: They want a 1/2 diameter full hex nut with a fine thread (20 TPI)
that is made from grade 8 steel and is plated zinc with yellow chromate.

Description: M10 x 50 Hex Bolt, Property Class 8.8, Y

What it means: They want a 10mm diameter hex head cap screw with a
coarse thread (1.5mm) that is made from a property class 8.8 steel and is
plated zinc with yellow chromate.

The last three pages of this slide show and your hand out contains a
list of common abbreviations used when describing fasteners.

Fastener Training
Cap Screw Features

Thread Length =
2 x Diameter + 1/4
(for lengths up to 6)

Fastener Training

Fastener Training

Cap Screw Sizes Coarse and Fine Threads

Shaded metric sizes are bigger than corresponding Inch size
Inch Size
Coarse (UNC)
Fine (UNF)
1/4 - 20

Decimal

Closest

Decimal

Equivalent

Metric Size

Conversion

.250"

M6 x 1.0

.236"

- 28
5/16 - 18

x 0.75
.3125"

M8 x 1.25
x 1.0

.315"

.375"

M10 x 1.5

.394"

- 24
3/8 - 16
- 24
7/16 - 14

x 1.25
.4375"

- 20
1/2 - 13

.500"

- 20
9/16 - 12

.5625"

M14 x 2.0
x 1.5

.551"

.625"

M16 x 2.0
x 1.5

.630"

M18 x 2.5
x 1.5

.709"

M20 x 2.5
x 1.5

.787"

M22 x 2.5

.866"

- 18

3/4 - 10

.472"

x 1.25

- 18
5/8 - 11

M12 x 1.75

.750"

- 16

7/8 - 9

.875"

- 14

x 1.5

1-8
- 12 SHCS

.945"
1.000"

M24 x 3.0
x 2.0

- 14 HHCS
1 1/8 - 7

1.125"

- 12

1 1/4 - 7

M30 x 3.5
x 2.0

1.181"

M36 x 4.0
x 3.0

1.417

1.250"

- 12

Fastener Training

Fastener Training
Inch Cap Screw Strength
Designations
Inch

Tensile
Strength
(min)

Material

180,000 psi

Alloy Steel

Grade 8

150,000 psi

Alloy Steel

High Strength and

Toughness

Grade 5

120,000 psi
to 90,000 psi

Carbon Steel

Medium Strength
(standard)

Grade 2
Grade 1

74,000 psi
60,000 psi

Carbon Steel

A490

150,000 psi

Alloy Steel

High Strength
and Toughness

A325

120,000 psi

Carbon Steel

Medium Strength

B7 (A193)

125,000 psi

Alloy Steel

Medium Strength
with Excellent Toughness

A307

60,000 psi

Carbon Steel

Low Strength

Strength
Designation
s

Grade 9

Properties

Highest Strength
Excellent Wear and
Abrasion Resistance

SAE Grades

Low Strength

ASTM Grades

Metric Cap Screw Strength Levels

Metric
Strength
Designations

Tensile
Strength
(min)

Material

Properties

Highest Strength
Excellent Wear and
Abrasion Resistance

Property Class 12.9

1220 MPa
(177,000 psi)

Alloy Steel

Property Class 10.9

1040 MPa
(150,800 psi)

Alloy Steel

High Strength and

Toughness

830 MPa
(120,350 psi)

Carbon Steel

Medium Strength
(standard)

400 MPa
(58,000 psi)

Carbon Steel

Low Strength

Property Class 8.8

Property Class 4.6

Fastener Training
Head Markings Inch & Metric

Fastener Training

Types of Applications

Fastener Training
Platings & Coatings
Zinc Yellow

Hot Dip Galvanized

Zinc Plated (Zinc/Clear)

Fastener Training

Furnace Black (Plain)

(black oxide from heat treatment)

Plain
(non-heat treated)

Corrosion Protection
Coating

Salt Spray Hours

Hot Dip Galvanized

240 hrs

Zinc Yellow

96 hrs

Zinc Plated (Zn/Clear)

72 hrs

Furnace Black

4 hrs

Plain

0 hrs

Fastener Training
Hex Nuts

Fastener Training

Fastener Training

Hex Nut Grade Markings

Fastener Training

Flat Washers

Fastener Training

Flat Washers are not graded.

There is no grade 8 or grade 5 washer
Three Types
! Carbon Steel (aka, low carbon steel or steel)
For Grade 1, 2 or 5
! Case hardened steel
For Grade 5
! Through Hardened
For Grade 8

Fastener Training

Fastener Training

!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!

Common Abbreviations used with Fasteners

18-8
Stainless Steel with 18% Chrome and 8% Nickel
2, 5 or 8
Strength grade of screw or nut
2A (3A)
Class of Thread Fit for inch screws
2B (3B)
Class of Thread fit for inch nuts
2H
Nut strength level designation (ASTM A194 Grade 2H Heavy Hex Nut)
6g
Class of thread fit for metric screws
6H
Class of thread fit for metric nuts
A325
Heavy Hex Structural Bolt (ASTM A325), similar to Grade 5
A490
Heavy Hex Structural Bolt ASTM A490), similar to Grade 8
A574
Strength grade for Socket head cap screws (ASTM A574)
AISI
American Iron and Steel Institute, specifies chemical composition of steels
ANSI
American National Standards Institute
AS
Alloy Steel
ASME
American Society of Mechanical Engineers
ASTM
American Society for Testing and Materials
B
When followed by a number (ex B-90) hardness measured on the Rockwell B Scale
or an abbreviation for Boron
Bake (Bake-Out)
Heat Treat process used in plating to prevent Hydrogen Embrittlement
Bevel
Style of washer (square with a taper) used with I beams
Belleville
Style of lock washer, also called conical spring washer
BHCS
Button Head Cap Screw
BHN
Hardness measured with a Brinell Hardness Tester
BS
British Standard
C
When followed by a number (ex C-35) hardness measured on the Rockwell C Scale
or an abbreviation for Carbon
CH
Case hardened (type of heat treatment)
C/R
Cross Recess Drive (typically Phillips style) or Chamfer/Radius
Cad
Cadmium Plating
CAD
Computer Aided Design/Drafting
Cad/Wax
Cadmium Plating with a topcoat of Wax
COO
Country of Origin
CRES
Corrosion resistant steel (usually refer to 18-8 or 316 stainless steel)
CS (cs)
Carbon Steel or Countersunk
DAC (Dac 320)
Dacromet Coating (Registered Trademark of Coatings International)
D/C Nut
Double Chamfered Nut (distinguish from washer faced)
D/E
Double Ended Stud
DIN
German Standards Organization
Deltaseal
Magnigard coating (registered trademark of Magni Engineered Coatings)
Dorrltech
Magnigard coating (registered trademark of Magni Engineered Coatings)
Driseal
Pipe Thread (registered trademark of Parker Hannifin)
ET
External Thread
FB
Flange Bolt
F436
Hardened flat washer with dimensions per ASTM F436
FHCS
Flat Head Cap Screw
FIM
Full Indicator Measurement
Flng
Hex Flange Bolt or Nut
FW
Flat Washer
galv
Galvanized, typically refers to Hot Dip Galvanized
Gr
Grade, refers to strength level of screw or nut (ex: Grade 2, Grade 5 or Grade 8)
Hardened
A product that has been heat treated
HB
Hex bolt or Hardness reading measured on the Brinell Scale
H.T
Heat Treated

Fastener Training

!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!

HCS
H.D.G.
Hex Bolt
HHCS
HRB
HRC
HWH
ID
IFI
IH
in.
ISO
ISIR
IT
J429
J995
k
Keps
Kips
ksi
lb (lbs)
Lb
LCS
Lg
LH
L/W
M
Magnigard
Mfg
mm
MS
MTR
#3 (or #7)
NC
NE (NU, NTE, NTU)
NF
Nom
NPT
p
P/B
Ph Dr
Pl
P/N
Phos (P & O)
Pozi Drive
PPAP
psi
PZ
R
Rb (RB or HRB)
Rc (RC or HRC)
RT
SAE

Hex Cap Screw or High Carbon Steel

Hot Dip Galvanized
Can refer to either a bolt or a cap screw
Hex Head Cap Screw (also an abbreviation for Heavy Hex Cap Screw)
Hardness measured on the Rockwell B scale
Hardness measured on the Rockwell C scale
Hex Washer Head
Identification (usually refers to manufacturer logo)
Industrial Fastener Institute
Indented Head
Inch
International Standards Organization
Initial Sample Inspection Report
Internal Thread
SAE standard that specifies strength levels of screws
SAE standard that specifies strength levels of nuts
Short hand for the number 1,000
Nut with a permanently attached washer
1,000 pounds
Thousand of pounds per square inch
Pounds
Body Length on screws
Low Carbon Steel
Grip Length (distance from head to full threads) on screws
Left Hand Thread
Lock Washer
Metric or short hand for the number 1,000
Magni Coating (Registered Trademark of Magni Engineered Coatings)
Manufacturer
Millimeter
Machine screw
Material Test Report
Refers to head design of a plow bolt
Unified National Coarse Thread
Designations that define the thickness of Nylon Insert Lock Nuts
Unified National Fine Thread
Nominal (reference dimension)
National Tapered Pipe Thread
Thread Pitch
Plow Bolt
Phillips Drive (cross recess)
Plain finish
Part Number
Phosphate and Oil Coating (typically Zinc Phosphate and Oil)
Special cross recess (registered trademark of Camcar Textron)
Production Part Approval Process
Pounds per square inch
Pozi-Drive style of cross recess
Radius
Hardness measured on the Rockwell B scale
Hardness measured on the Rockwell C scale
Rolled Threads
Society of Automotive Engineers,
when used with washers it means small OD
when used with screw or nuts means fine thread

Fastener Training

!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!

Screw
screw
Sems
Serrated
SHCS
Sl
SMS
Sq
SS or S/S
St
Taptite
T.H.
TIR
T/S
Torx
TPI
TT (TR)
TTH
Type 1 (23, 25)
Type AB (F, T)
UNC
UNRC
UNF
UNRF
UNJ
UNR
USS

!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!

UTS
WAC
WAF
W/F
Whitworth
Y
YS
Zn
Zn/C (ZC)
Zn Phos
Zn/Wax
Zn/Y (ZY)

Can refer to any type of externally threaded fastener but typically a sheet metal
Screw with a permanently attached washer
Locking serrations on bearing face of screw or nut
Socket Head Cap Screw
Slotted Drive
Sheet Metal Screw
Square, can refer to square head bolt or square nut
Stainless Steel
Steel
Special triangular thread forming screw (registered trademark of Reminc)
Through Hardened (type of heat treatment)
Total Indicator Reading
Tapping Screw
6 Lobe Drive (Torx Drive, registered trademark of Camcar Textron)
Threads per Inch
Taptite thread (registered trademark of Reminc), also called Tri-Roundular
Threaded to Head
Special thread forming or cutting tapping screws
Special thread forming or cutting tapping screws
Unified National Coarse Thread
Unified National Coarse Thread with Radius Root (standard rolled thread form)
Unified National Fine Thread
Unified National Fine Thread with Radius Root (standard rolled thread form)
Unified National Thread with Large Radius Root (special fatigue resistant thread)
Unified National Thread with radius root
United States Standard
when used with washers it is for large OD
when used with screws or nuts it means coarse thread
Ultimate Tensile Strength
Width Across Corners
Width Across Flats
Washer Faced (can refer to a Nut or Cap Screw)
British Thread Standard (not the same as UN threads)
Yellow Chromate
Yield Strength
Zinc, usually referencing zinc plating (assumed to be zinc with clear chromate)
Zinc Plating with Clear Chromate topcoat
Zinc Phosphate and Oil (same as Phos and Oil)
Zinc Plating with a topcoat of wax
Zinc Plating with Yellow Chromate topcoat