A screw gun is similar to a power

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

, but designed specifically for driving

screw A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to fa ...

s. A screw gun looks like a

, but has a "nose" instead of a chuck. The nose holds an interchangeable shank bit, commonly known as a tip. The most common types of tips are #2 phillips, T25 Torx, and flatheads. The nose on either type of screw gun can be adjusted to

countersink A countersink (symbol: ⌵) 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 ...

screws to the desired depth. The user must apply pressure to the bit to engage the clutch and drive the screws.

Types of screw guns

Some screw guns drive one screw at a time; the user manually places each screw on the tip. Screw guns also exist with autofeed mechanisms, with which each time one finishes driving a screw, another screw gets automatically loaded onto the tip. The most common autofeed mechanism uses collated screws, which means a strip of screws held together by plastic. A screw gun that uses collated screws is known as a collated screw gun. Some screw guns can be set to stop driving the screw at a certain depth, which may be up to two inches below the surface. It is possible to drive a series of screws with the motor running continuously, and many manufacturers recommend doing this to install

drywall Drywall (also called plasterboard, dry lining, wallboard, sheet rock, gypsum board, buster board, custard board, and gypsum panel) is a panel made of calcium sulfate dihydrate (gypsum), with or without additives, typically extruded between thick ...

. Screw guns of all these types are available in corded and cordless variants.

Screw gun vs power drill and impact driver

Power

s are used to drill holes into materials and attach multiple materials with a variety of fasteners.

Impact driver An impact driver is a tool that delivers a strong, sudden rotational force and forward thrust. The force can be delivered either by striking with a hammer in the case of manual impact drivers, or mechanically in the case of powered impact drive ...

s are used to tighten or loosen fasteners with a hammer that provides greater torque for more power. Significant features for driving screws that they lack are the ability to set depth and autofeed.

References

Sources

* Lee Jesberger (2010). '' Pro Remodelinging Tips.com''. Hand-held power tools {{tool-stub