Drive Pin with Red Washer (PDW27 / PDW32)

A drive pin with washer is a hardened steel pin with a washer under its head. It is fired into concrete or steel by a powder-actuated tool and holds track, channel, cable tray and battens in place. Falcon Link TR supplies drive pins with red washer, listed as PDW27 and PDW32, from Sharjah.

What is a drive pin and how does it work?

A drive pin is not hammered in. A powder-actuated tool uses a small cartridge to push the pin into the base material at speed. The pin hardness and the speed together let it enter concrete or steel without a pre-drilled hole. The washer stops the pin head pulling through the thin material being fixed, such as a metal track or a batten.

Site crews also call these pins concrete gun nails, powder-actuated pins, PAT pins or simply drive pins. The tool is often called a nail gun or cartridge gun, which causes confusion with ordinary gas or air nail guns. The table further down separates the two.

What do PDW27 and PDW32 mean?

PDW27 and PDW32 are the codes used in our product list. In the fastener trade, a code like this often reads as pin, drive, washer, followed by the pin length in millimetres. On that reading, PDW27 is a pin about 27 mm long and PDW32 about 32 mm long. We treat this as the likely meaning, not a certain one.

Before you order, confirm the exact length, shank diameter and washer size with our sales team, and check them against what your tool maker lists as compatible.

Lengths are shown as "likely" because the client code has not been matched to a datasheet yet. The washer colour is part of the product name. It does not tell you the tool power level.

Drive pin vs gun nail vs wire nail vs masonry nail: which is which?

The easy rule: if a cartridge is involved, it is a drive pin. If it is hit with a hammer, it is a nail.

Which base materials can you drive into?

For plugs and cavity fixings see fischer plug and butterfly fischer. For heavy anchoring into concrete see through bolts.

Safety and site practice

• Only trained operators should use a powder-actuated tool, following the tool maker's manual.
• Wear eye and ear protection. Keep other people clear.
• Never fire close to an edge, a corner or an old crack. Concrete can spall.
• Test-fire on a spare patch to set the power. A pin that bounces back or bends is the wrong pin or the wrong power.
• Store cartridges away from heat. Sharjah summer temperatures inside a closed container or vehicle are high.

How do you choose and count drive pins?

1. Identify the base: concrete or steel. If it is block, brick or board, pick another fixing.
2. Add up the thickness of what you are fixing. The pin must pass through it and still enter the base to the depth the tool maker asks for.
3. Check the washer size suits the track or batten. A washer that is too small can pull through.
4. Count fixings: run length divided by the fixing spacing in your drawing or track data sheet, plus one at each end. Add an allowance for bent or misfired pins.

A common mistake is using a pin that is too long for thin steel, or too short for concrete. Another is ordering by washer colour alone. Send us the tool model and a sample pin.

UAE site conditions

Most pins are used indoors for dry-fixed items such as ceiling track and cable tray, where a zinc-plated finish is usual. Humid, damp or coastal locations are harder on small steel parts. For external or wet-area work, ask us whether a corrosion-resistant option exists, and do not assume the standard pin will last.

What to buy together with drive pins

Buyers usually also need gun nails for the gas or air gun, wall plugs for block walls, and threaded rod for hung services. Browse the full fasteners, anchors and fixings range.

How to request a quote

Send the code (PDW27 or PDW32), quantity, the base material, your tool model and your delivery area through the contact page or by phone. A photo of a current pin helps us match it.