M5-3 Self Clinching Nut (qty x10)

The M5-3 is an M5 clinch nut with a -3 shank code, Blue Alpine part F00107-00. A bag of ten is $2.50. If you’re replacing one that has pulled out or stripped, look up the code in your parts list first, because the shank length matters as much as the thread.

Why thin sheet needs an M5 clinch nut

Sheet metal can’t hold a useful thread on its own. M5 coarse has a 0.8 mm pitch, so tapping a 1.5 mm panel leaves you under two full turns of engagement. That can strip the first time someone leans on the screw. A loose hex nut and washer on the back is the other route, but it needs access to both sides and a wrench every time the screw comes out.

A press-in M5 clinch nut gets around both. It goes into the panel once, stays there, and gives a full-height thread on one face. Screws go in from the other side with a single tool. Nothing rattles loose or falls down behind a panel when you take a cover off.

Reading M5-3

M5 means a 5 mm nominal thread at 0.8 mm coarse pitch. The 3 is the shank code. It describes shank length, which fixes the minimum panel thickness, and it’s matched to a hole size in the maker’s spec. In the usual numbering a -3 has a longer shank than a -1 or -2 of the same thread, so it wants heavier sheet.

Press an M5 clinch nut into sheet thinner than that minimum and the clinch is weak. We don’t publish a dimension table for these, so the code in your parts list is the thing to go by. Don’t pick by eye.

What it’s made of

The listing for this M5 clinch nut doesn’t name the material, unlike the M3 and M4 clinch nuts we sell, which are listed as stainless. The photo shows a bright finish. If material matters for your repair, ask us and we’ll check before you order.

Fitting an M5 clinch nut

• Check the hole against the maker’s spec. A hole that was drilled out to free an old, spinning nut is often too big for a new one of the same size.
• Use a press with flat, parallel faces. Hammering tilts the nut and fills the undercut unevenly.
• Squeeze until the shoulder seats flat, square to the panel and level all round.
• Start the M5 screw by hand and run it a few turns before picking up a driver.

Watch the torque on the screw. An M5 lets you put a lot more twist through the thread than an M3 or M4 will, and enough of it can spin the nut out of its seat. Snug it up firmly and stop there.

When the M5 clinch nut hole is already damaged

A nut that spun out usually leaves the hole slightly bigger, with torn edges. A fresh nut pressed into that hole may not hold. One repair people use is a rivet nut, which sets from one side with its own tool. That’s a different part with its own hole and sheet requirements, and we don’t sell them, so don’t treat it as a drop-in swap. Where you can reach the back, a screw through to an M5 hex nut and washer is the plain alternative.

Either way, describe the damage to us before you buy anything to fix it. Phone +1 (443) 514-5708, or use the support form and attach a photo.

PEM nut, clinch nut, self clinching nut

Different names, same idea. “PEM” comes from PennEngineering’s brand of this hardware, and it’s become shorthand for the whole type. The generic term on Wikipedia is swage nut. Whatever you call it, an M5 clinch nut has the knurled collar and undercut shank you can see on this one. Other thread sizes are in fasteners and tools.