Captive Screws

Captive screws are fasteners which remain attached to a panel or parent material, even after they are disengaged from the mating panel or part. They meld with the parent via cold forming, and then fuse with the panel or part into a single entity. Captive screws are available in a variety of materials and sizes, but may not be interchangeable with each other. Often, they attach to the panel, part or parent materials with split washers that clip-on after the captive screw is inserted into the panel. Other methods of attachment include threaded panel holes and flared or swaged ferrules. In terms of applications, captive screws can help speed assembly and disassembly operations, and prevent screws from getting loss or falling into moving parts or electrical circuits.