Hex Head screws with flange St tempered black M8x18 mm

The wrench sizes for hexagon bolts and nuts are specified in ISO 272: 1982-01. The nominal wrench size on the workpiece (e.g. bolt, nut) is the same as that on the tool. However, there is some play between the two to allow the tool to be fitted without difficulty. The relationship between the nominal diameter d of the thread and the wrench size s is standardised in EN ISO 4014 and EN ISO 4017 for hexagon bolts, and in EN ISO 4032 for hexagon nuts (dimensions in mm).

Compared with smooth contact surfaces, the locking teeth on these screws have a significant influence on the tightening torques and thus on the preload forces. With soft mating materials, such as aluminium alloys or structural steels, into which the teeth cut, considerably higher coefficients of friction are to be expected. Ultimately, the optimum tightening torques can only be determined by conducting tightening tests that take real-world conditions into account.

Steel is an iron-carbon alloy with a maximum carbon content of 2% by mass. The steels achieve their intended physical and mechanical properties through various hardening, annealing and tempering processes. It is also possible to harden the edge zone by surface hardening, case hardening or nitriding. Well-known steel grades are structural steels, free-machining steels, case-hardening steels, nitriding steels, tempering steels, tool steels and stainless steels.

The tempering process of screws and nuts (heating - holding - quenching - tempering) results in a thin baked oxide layer, which is referred to as tempered black. This surface condition is not a surface coating and therefore offers no corrosion protection.