The only difference I can think of would be where you are screwing
through a clearance hole into something - the 'old fashioned' type
screw had a shank that would prevent it biting into the topmost piece.
In every other respect the 'Supascrew' genre are vastly superior.

I tend to like using chipboard screws in ordinary wood because they
are narrow and seem to have a sharp thread which lets them go in more
easily.

I use them all the time. Quite frankly, if its got a thread, a pointed tip
and a posidriv head, then I'll use it!

Christian.

On Thu, 19 May 2005 16:13:21 +0100, Bill Woods
wrote:

But now I am tending to prefer these Supadrive/Pozidrive headed
chipboard screws.

What's a "chipboard screw" ? If you mean the Screwfix Goldscrews (if
they're still available), then they're perfectly adequate on anything. A
_real_ chipboard screw though has an even finer pitch, usually by being
a twin start thread (Screwfix's Quicksillvers). These are OK for most
timber, but you'll get problems with the softest ones, such as western
red cedar or hemlock.

The ones to avoid are drywall or plasterboard screws. They're brittle.

Andy Dingley wrote:
On Thu, 19 May 2005 16:13:21 +0100, Bill Woods
wrote:

But now I am tending to prefer these Supadrive/Pozidrive headed
chipboard screws.

What's a "chipboard screw" ? If you mean the Screwfix Goldscrews (if
they're still available), then they're perfectly adequate on
anything. A
_real_ chipboard screw though has an even finer pitch, usually by
being
a twin start thread (Screwfix's Quicksillvers). These are OK for
most
timber, but you'll get problems with the softest ones, such as
western
red cedar or hemlock.

The ones to avoid are drywall or plasterboard screws. They're
brittle.

I use those too, and self tappers. And occasioanlly flat ended ones
with the coarse wood type thread (not sure what theyre called)

Any coarse thread screw can be used successfully in wood. PB screws may
suffer a low level of breakages if you dont use a pilot hole, so I use
them where Im doing a pilot hole, or less often in place where the
occasional broken scrwe will be ok.


NT

You can even use old drill bits in wood, hammer them in to use em as
fixings, thats how tolerant softwood is.

NT

bigcatmeeow.co.uk wrote:
Andy Dingley wrote:
a twin start thread (Screwfix's Quicksillvers). These are OK for most
timber, but you'll get problems with the softest ones, such as
western red cedar or hemlock.

Hemlock is as hard as hell.

wrote in message
oups.com...
You can even use old drill bits in wood, hammer them in to use em as
fixings, thats how tolerant softwood is.
Pitch pine is a softwood......


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Quite frankly, if its got a thread, a pointed tip
and a posidriv head, then I'll use it!

Christian.


Go on, admit it. You'll screw anything ;-)

Andy Dingley wrote:


The ones to avoid are drywall or plasterboard screws. They're brittle.

Is there a quick way to find out what is brittle, ie hit the side with a
hammer etc

Dave

On Thu, 19 May 2005 18:29:41 +0100, Chris Bacon
wrote:

Hemlock is as hard as hell.

Like hell it is. It's harder than WRC and the Abies firs, or even
poplar, but in a comparative scale of timbers commercially common in the
UK, it's at the soft end of things. Even the pines are harder.

Pitch pine is a softwood......

Yes!

From an engineering materials course, taken many years ago, I remember that
the terms *hardwood* and *softwood* do not define the density or hardness of
the wood. Rather, they indicate that the parent tree was deciduous
(hardwood) or coniferous (softwood). Since this industry standard
definition differs from common concepts, confusion abounds.

SJF

"SJF" wrote in message news:X2pje.211$tp.19@fed1read05...
Pitch pine is a softwood......

Yes!

From an engineering materials course, taken many years ago, I remember
that
the terms *hardwood* and *softwood* do not define the density or
hardness
of
the wood. Rather, they indicate that the parent tree was deciduous
(hardwood) or coniferous (softwood). Since this industry standard
definition differs from common concepts, confusion abounds.
Yep. Balsa is a hardwood, but not a hard wood.


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Hemlock is as hard as hell.

Like hell it is. It's harder than WRC and the Abies firs, or even
poplar, but in a comparative scale of timbers commercially common in the
UK, it's at the soft end of things. Even the pines are harder.

I use a lot of square hemlock stair spindles from Wickes in a regular job I
do. I've never noticed it being especially hard. Machines beautifully -
cheap source of decent hardwood.

Dave

On Sat, 21 May 2005 09:45:36 GMT, "David Lang"
wrote:

I use a lot of square hemlock stair spindles from Wickes in a regular job I
do.

Installing stair spindles as a regular job ?

I have this wonderful image of you as carpenter in residence to the
Deadwood Saloon Bar and Cathouse, putting new spindles in every Saturday
night, after someone throws Lee Marvin down the stairs again. 8-)

I've never noticed it being especially hard. Machines beautifully -
cheap source of decent hardwood.

Hemlock is a softwood. I'm rather surprised to see it as turnery too.
Most of the stuff we see is the very lowest grade of "white pineywood".


Softwoods are coniferous (gymnosperms) and are defined as those timbers
which don't have internal vessels. Mostly these are evergreens with
needle-shaped leaves, but the overlap isn't perfect. There are
broadleaved and deciduous (shed leaves in winter) softwoods, as well as
evergreen or needle-leaved hardwoods.

Hi Andy

Installing stair spindles as a regular job ?

No, just using them! I'm a magician with a love of woodwork. This has lead
to me making a lot of magic props for other magicians, because (a) I know or
will keep the secret of how they work and (b) I know what the magician wants
to achieve.

I build quite a few head choppers or guillotines and I've found 900mm x 41mm
x 41mm square hemlock stair spindles in Wickes. These are just the right
size for the frame & mechanism (I don't have a thicknesser). Sorry, yes it
is a softwood, but it does machine very well indeed and is much better
quality than pine.

The quality and stable nature is crucial - warping can lead to large steel
blades hitting spectators necks :-) Or even worse - the trick not working
:-)

I used to buy mahogany (alledgedly), PAR to 40 x 40 but the cost was
horrendous. The stair spindles are £1:99 each!

I have this wonderful image of you as carpenter in residence to the
Deadwood Saloon Bar and Cathouse, putting new spindles in every Saturday
night, after someone throws Lee Marvin down the stairs again. 8-)

That sounds like more fun! Carpenters in the wild west must have made a
fortune!

Dave

David Lang wrote:
I build quite a few head choppers or guillotines ...
The quality and stable nature is crucial - warping can lead to large steel
blades hitting spectators necks :-)

Must be fun renewing your public liability insurance every year ;-)

Owain

Owain wrote in message

Must be fun renewing your public liability insurance every year ;-)

Not if you belong to Equity :-)

Dave