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+86 13143444311
Email：sst@szsst88.com
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Address：Building 9, First Industrial Zone, Tantou Industrial City, Songgang Street, Baoan District, Shenzhen 518105, Guangdong, China
Type:Camera Tripod Mount Screw
Materials:Carbon Steel
Surface treatment:Nickel Plated
Head Type:Cap Head
Drive:Slotted
Thread:1/4-20 UNC Machine Thread
Point:Blunt
Forming:Single Die Heading
Size:M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9 M10 M14
Number:71
We make camera tripod mount screws in nickel plated carbon steel to the 1/4-20 UNC standard, with a cap head, a single slot and an optional captive shoulder. Thread standard, head height, projection above the plate and finish come from your drawing, and the first article is fitted to your plate and a camera socket.
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ISO 9001:2015 · Manufacturing since 1998 · 8,678+ customers · 89 countries and regions
Made to order – there is no stock catalogue. Each part is produced to your drawing, and production starts after drawing review and first-article approval.
A camera tripod mount screw is the captive or plain screw that pulls a camera, a plate or an accessory onto a tripod head, cut to the 1/4-20 UNC thread that the camera industry has used as its standard. The recorded item on this page is nickel plated carbon steel with a cap head and a single slot, quoted from M1 to M14 with Number 71.
1/4-20 UNC thread. A quarter-inch coarse thread, twenty turns to the inch. It is the thread in the bottom of almost every camera and in the top of almost every tripod, and it is specified by the mounting standard rather than chosen by the designer.
Cap head, single slot. A short cylinder with a flat top and a straight slot across it. It is turned with a coin, a screwdriver, or by hand when the head is knurled around its side, and it sits low on a mounting plate.
Captive version. In a plate-mounted build the screw is often retained in the plate by a shoulder or a clip, so it cannot be lost when the camera comes off. The retaining feature is a step on the plain shank, not a separate part.
Nickel plated steel. A hard barrier deposit over a carbon steel body, giving a bright, wear-resistant surface where the screw is handled every time a camera is mounted.
The head is a short cylinder, and on this form the side is as important as the top. A knurled side lets the screw be turned by hand for the last turn, which is how most cameras are actually mounted; the slot in the top is the fallback when fingers are not enough or the plate is too close to the body.
The slot is cut across the full diameter and its depth is set by the head height. On a deliberately low head there is not much material, so the slot is shallow and a driver that is not fully seated will climb out of it. That is why a cap head camera tripod mount screw is usually turned by hand first and only finished with a driver.
The thread is the part that carries the standard. A 1/4-20 UNC is not interchangeable with an M6, even though the diameters are close, and a 3/8-16 UNC belongs to the larger heads and the heavier plates. The thread is gauged against the UNC specification, not against a metric approximation, because the camera’s socket is the reference.
On a captive version the plain shank carries a step or a groove where the retaining clip or the plate bore holds it. That step is a functional diameter: too small and the screw falls out; too large and it will not enter the plate. On a page like this it is the dimension that separates a screw from a captive screw, and it is drawn rather than assumed.
Nickel is plated after the thread is rolled and after the slot is cut. It adds a few microns to the thread and to the slot; on the 1/4-20 thread those microns are well inside the tolerance, but the slot is where the coating is most visible, because that is the face the tool touches.
The family is quoted from M1 to M14, with M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M6, M7, M8, M9, M10 and M14 in the recorded range for the metric variants; the camera mount itself is cut to 1/4-20 UNC or 3/8-16 UNC. Custom lengths up to 2,000 mm are subject to DFM review after drawing submission.
| Item | How it is defined | What we control |
|---|---|---|
| Thread | 1/4-20 UNC, or 3/8-16 UNC for large heads | Gauged to the UNC specification |
| Head | Cap head, knurled side, slotted top | Diameter, height and slot depth |
| Retention | Shoulder or groove for a captive build | Step diameter and position |
| End | Blunt, chamfered | Chamfer cut, not deburred |
| Finish | Nickel plate, or stainless plain | Thickness range and slot clearance |
| Length | Over the whole screw, or over the thread | Measured on the shop plate |
Length is the dimension that causes damage. A camera tripod mount screw that is too long runs to the bottom of the camera’s socket, and tightening it after that pushes the socket outwards rather than pulling the camera down. On a light body that can crack the base; on any body it leaves the camera sitting off its seat.
For a plate-mounted screw the usable length is set from the plate face, not from the top of the head. The important number is how much thread projects above the plate when the screw is fully down, because that projection is what enters the camera and it is the only figure worth writing on the drawing.
Three features define a camera tripod mount screw: the standard thread, the low head and the retention. The first is fixed by the camera, the second by the plate, and the third by how the screw is kept with the plate.
| Feature | What it gives | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| 1/4-20 UNC | Fits the camera standard directly | Cannot be approximated with a metric thread |
| Cap head with slot | Low profile, driven by coin or driver | Shallow slot; tool must seat fully |
| Knurled side | Turned by hand for the last turn | Knurl wears with handling |
| Captive shoulder | Screw stays with the plate | Step diameter becomes functional |
| Nickel plate | Bright, hard, wears well | A few microns in the slot |
The retention is what makes the part practical. A loose screw on a shoot is a screw that gets lost in a bag, and a plate without its screw is useless. A captive camera tripod mount screw stays in the plate between mounts, which is why the plain shank of the captive version is turned with a step rather than left straight.
The head is a compromise between leverage and clearance. A taller head gives a better grip and a deeper slot; a lower head clears the camera base and the plate profile. On a quick-release plate the head is usually as low as the slot allows, because anything taller fouls the clamp when the plate is slid in.
The recorded finish is bright nickel over carbon steel. Nickel is hard, holds a bright tone and takes the repeated handling that a mount screw sees, and it does not blacken the fingers the way an oxide finish does on a part that is turned by hand.
| Option | How it protects | Effect on slot and thread | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickel plated steel | Hard barrier deposit | A few microns; slot re-checked | General camera plates and heads |
| Stainless 304, plain | Passive chromium oxide film | None; gauged as cut | Outdoor and marine use |
| Black oxide | Thin conversion film, oiled | Almost no change | Dark plates, indoor rigs |
| Zinc plated steel | Sacrificial zinc | A few microns; slot re-checked | Cost-driven accessories |
| Black nickel | Dark nickel deposit | A few microns; slot re-checked | Black rigs and cages |
Stainless is the right answer for a rig that goes outdoors, and it introduces one behaviour worth knowing: stainless on stainless galls. A stainless mount screw into a stainless insert, tightened by hand on a cold morning, can seize hard enough that the camera has to be cut free. A lubricant on the thread, or a plated steel screw, avoids it.
Nickel, by contrast, is a barrier coating and not a sacrificial one. On a part that is handled that matters less than on a part that is wet, but a scratch on the head will rust at the scratch, and a mount screw that has been dropped on concrete will show it.
Three assemblies where a camera tripod mount screw is the fixing:
| Where it sits | The screw pulls a camera body onto a quick-release plate, a cage or a ball head, and it is turned by hand at every setup. |
| When it goes wrong | A screw that is too long bottoms in the camera socket, and one that is too short leaves the body rocking on the plate. |
| Why it happens | The mounting standard is fixed, the plate is thin, and the joint is made dozens of times a day. |
| What we control | Thread gauged to UNC, head height and slot depth checked, projection above the plate verified. |
| Where it sits | The screw mounts a camera or an adapter on a stand or a boom where the thread is the same camera standard and the load is carried by a small plate. |
| When it goes wrong | A long screw presses on the inside of the adapter, and a soft head deforms under repeated mounting. |
| Why it happens | The mount is fixed, the accessory is heavy, and the joint is adjusted often. |
| What we control | Head hardness and slot depth checked, thread gauged, plating held to the drawing. |
| Where it sits | The screw fixes a sensor, a light or a fixture to a standard camera mount where the part has to be removed and refitted in the same position. |
| When it goes wrong | The screw is lost when the fixture comes off, and a replacement of the wrong length damages the socket. |
| Why it happens | The mount is standard, the fixture is swapped, and the screw must stay with the plate. |
| What we control | Captive step diameter and position checked, thread gauged. |
Four reasons that matter on a standard-thread mount screw, each tied to what the drawing has to prove:
|
Thread standard and projection reviewed
The UNC thread, the head height and the projection above the plate are reviewed as one set, so a screw that would bottom in the socket is raised before the tool is set. Basis: Thread standard and projection reviewed as one set. |
Heading, slotting and plating in one route
The cap head is formed, the slot is cut, the thread is rolled and the parts are nickel plated in one route, so the slot and the thread stay related. Basis: One route from wire to plated screw. |
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UNC gauged, not approximated
The thread is checked against the UNC specification rather than a metric equivalent, and the projection is measured on the first article in the plate it goes into. Basis: Thread gauged to UNC on every batch. |
First article fixes the setting
The first article fixes the wire heat, die set, slot cutter and plating; repeat orders are compared against that record. Basis: First article signed off before the batch is released. |
Shi Shi Tong forms these camera tripod mount screws from carbon steel wire on single-die headers that upset the cap head, cuts the slot across the top, rolls the 1/4-20 UNC thread to a blunt chamfered end and nickel plates the parts. The first part of every run is measured on the head, entered into a UNC thread gauge and checked for projection in a sample plate before the batch continues.
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The slot is cut after heading and before plating, and its depth is the number that decides how the screw is used. Too deep and the head has no material left at the centre; too shallow and a coin will not turn it. On a head this low the window is small, and the first article is where the production driver — or the coin the customer actually uses — proves it.
What decides whether camera tripod mount screws pass is the thread, the head and slot, the retention step and the plating. The inspection agreement covers those, and the criteria come from the drawing.
Head and slot on the projector |
Thread gauged to the UNC specification |
Hardness checked on the formed head |
Salt-spray testing of the nickel plate |
The thread is gauged to UNC and then run into a sample camera socket or the equivalent insert. The gauge proves the form; the socket proves the fit, and on a standard thread the camera is the authority rather than the drawing.
The head is checked for diameter and height, and the slot for width and depth. Projection above the plate is measured with the screw fully seated in the plate, because that is the figure that decides whether the screw bottoms in the camera.
On a captive version the step diameter and its position along the shank are checked on the first article, and the screw is fitted to the plate to confirm it turns freely and does not come out. A captive screw that is a few hundredths too large will not enter the plate at all.
Every shipment of camera tripod mount screws is traceable to the wire it was made from and to the plating batch. The grade and heat number are recorded on the material certificate supplied with the parts, and the inspection records follow the criteria agreed on the drawing.
ISO 9001:2015 |
RoHS test report |
Registered trademark |
Patent: security screw and driver |
With each batch we supply the material certificate, the inspection record for the criteria on the drawing and, where it is listed, the third-party report for the material or the plating. The documents carry the drawing revision and the batch number, so the paperwork can be matched to the parts.
More than 8,678 customers in 89 countries and regions have ordered from Shi Shi Tong; 87% of orders come from repeat customers and 56% through referrals. Most projects follow the same route: drawing review, first-article approval, then batches checked against that sample. On a mount screw the first article is also tried in the plate and in a camera socket, so the projection and the fit are proved together. Buyers visit during the process to review samples and to see how the heads and threads are produced.
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8,678+
customers served
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87%
of orders from repeat customers
|
56%
of orders through referrals
|
89
countries and regions shipped to
|
Buyers and quality engineers visit for sample review, process discussion and supplier audits; the visit is arranged around production so the headers, the slotting operation and the plating line can be seen on the day the parts run.
Customer group visit – sample review |
Customer group visit – process discussion |
Customer group visit – factory tour |
Customer visit – project kick-off |
Danish customer – drawing review |
Industry exhibition – meeting customers |
1/4-20 UNC for almost every body, and 3/8-16 UNC on large heads and heavy plates. The two are not interchangeable with metric threads of a similar diameter.
It bottoms in the camera socket, and tightening after that pushes the socket outwards. On a light body that can crack the base, and on any body it leaves the camera sitting off its seat.
Long enough to engage the socket fully and short enough to leave clearance at the bottom. The figure that matters is the projection above the plate face, not the overall length.
The screw stays in the plate when the camera comes off, held by a shoulder or a clip on the shank. It stops the screw being lost on a shoot.
Nickel plated steel for general use and a bright hard finish; stainless for outdoor and wet rigs, with a lubricant to stop galling in a stainless insert.
Thread standard, head diameter and height, slot width and depth, retention step if captive, projection above the plate, and the finish.
How a camera tripod mount screw project runs from drawing to repeat delivery:
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1
Send the drawing and the plate it fits
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→ |
2
Thread, head and projection review
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→ |
3
First article fitted to the plate
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→ |
4
Batch production and repeat orders
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Each step is confirmed with you before the next one starts; the drawing revision from the first article is what repeat orders are checked against.
For a quotation, send the drawing with the thread standard, the head diameter and height, the slot width and depth, any retention step, the projection above the plate, and the finish.
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Thread standard
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Head diameter
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Head height
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Slot size
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Projection
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Finish
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Sending a drawing? The form below does not take attachments. Email the PDF, DXF or STEP file to sst@szsst88.com with the part name and quantity in the subject line – the drawing is reviewed and a quotation follows.
+86 13143444311
sst@szsst88.com
