Custom Coloring Cabinet Installation Screws

If the colored-head screws you need don't come in the right size, here are suggestions on how to color the heads of off-the-shelf screws in the right size.November 14, 2014

Question
We use that large #14x3" white truss head for installing of our casework - to screw it to the wall. When we attach just a workstation bracket and use the same fastener we risk hitting plumbing and electrical in the wall. Does anyone have a source for #12 - #14 x 1 5/8" or so long with some kind of a white painted head, truss head or otherwise?

Forum Responses
(Architectural Woodworking Forum)
From Contributor H:
Have you considered painting the screws yourselves? I know this sounds like a big task but it really isn't that much trouble. I often need colored screws and just shoot a bunch into a stick or foam board. Spray them with primer and then top coat and done. Even a hundred can be done in a few minutes.


From contributor M:
McFeeley's has a huge assortment.

From contributor B:
For small quantities, I have used nail polish successfully.

From contributor C:
Gutter paint works great. Can't remember the brand name but I have used the one that has a drawing of a guy carrying a gutter on his shoulder. It’s very durable and pretty widely available. I think it is called Gutterman's Choice? CR Laurence has a paint that is probably comparable but I have not used it.

From contributor L:
Try Woodworkers Supply they are online as well three physical locations in the US.

From contributor E:
As an alternative to sourcing white screws or painting our own, we opted for a ProDec screw cap. They work well on panhead screws and provide a sharp, finished look. They are low cost enough, customers love it and the installers don't have any complaints. Plus it allows me to stick with a more readily-available screw for each application, and cap only the screws that show.

Our standard cabinet installation screw is a #12 x 3" panhead that we get from Mesa Fasteners (their p/n TAPTRT12487) and for workstation brackets we generally use a smaller 2" x #10 panhead TAPPN1032Z. I will say that the snap caps only barely fit over the #14 screws and take a moment of care just as you snug up the screw, but they do fit.

Snapcaps are also available in black, which comes in handy for open black melamine casework as well as for black under-counter workstations brackets that we sometimes encounter. One screw, two colors of optional plastic cap seems easier than three screws (white, black, zinc) for different applications.

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