Screws are available in many different styles. While most feature a uniform shape consisting of a cylindrical body with exterior threading, others feature a smooth tip that extends out from the threaded body. Known as dog set screws, they are commonly used in machining and industrial applications. What are dog set screws, and how do they work exactly?
The Basics of Dog Set Screws
Dog set screws are fasteners with a threaded body and a smooth, unthreaded tip. The tip extenders partially out from the body. Also known as dog point screws, they are used to secure multiple parts together.
How Dog Set Screws Work
Dog set screws are designed for use in precut holes — similar to how dowel rods. They don’t feature a pointed tip like traditional screws, so you can’t just drive them into a piece of wood or other object. Instead, you can install a dog set screw by inserting the protruding tip into a precut hole.
Most dog screws are used in machines where they permanently hold two objects together. A common application for dog set screws, for instance, is connecting a rotating machinery gear to a shaft. The protruding tip is placed in a precut hole of the same size, after which the threaded body is fastened to a threaded hole of the opposing part.
Because they are used in machining and industrial applications, dog set screws are designed with fine tolerances. They are available in specific sizes and threading. When shopping for dog set screws, you’ll need to choose a size and threading to match the application for which you intend to use them.
Half Point vs Full Point Dog Set Screws
You can dog set screws in two primary styles: half point and full point. They both feature a threaded body and a protruding, unthreaded tip, but they aren’t necessarily the same.
Half-point dog screws feature a shorter protruding tip than their full-point counterparts. The tip on a half-point dog screw is roughly half the length of a full-point dog screw’s tip. With a shorter tip, half-point dog set screws are ideal for fastening applications in which clearance is limited.
In Conclusion
Dog set screws essentially function as dowel rods by holding the parts with which they are used together. While dowel rods are completely smooth, though, dog set screws are mostly threaded. They feature a long threaded body that’s capped with a protruding and unthreaded tip. The tip is inserted into a precut hole, and the threaded body is fastened to a threaded hole.