Screw thread

helical part of screw

A screw thread, often shortened to thread, is a helical structure. It is a ridge wrapped around a cylinder or cone in the form of a helix, with the former being called a straight thread and the latter called a tapered thread.

A piece of threaded rod
Nuts, bolts, and screws all have screw threads

The tightening of a nut to a bolt is like driving a wedge into a gap until it sticks through friction and plastic deformation (how the surfaces of the two objects slightly squash together).

A screw thread is one of the six simple machines which give mechanical advantage.

The mechanical advantage of a screw thread depends on its lead, which is the linear distance the screw travels in one turn or revolution.[1]

Two screw threads with the same pitch and diameter, but a different lead


References

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  1. Burnham, Reuben Wesley (1915). Mathematics for Machinists. John Wiley & sons, Incorporated. p. 137.