M12 snap off nut, the security fixing for fencing and gates. The head shears away as it is tightened, leaving nothing at all for a spanner to take a grip on it.

An ordinary nut can be undone by anyone with a spanner, which rather defeats the point of a security fence. A snap off nut, sometimes called a shear nut, is tightened until the driving collar breaks away by design. What is left is a smooth cone with no flats, so the fixing cannot be wound off without cutting or drilling it out.

Where it is used

Panel to post fixings on security mesh and palisade, gate fittings, and anywhere on a boundary that faces the public side and would otherwise be an easy target for a hand tool.

Key points

• Shears at the right torque — no special tool needed, an ordinary socket does it.
• One way fixing — removal means cutting or drilling, so treat installation as permanent.
• M12, priced individually.

What else you might need

See the full nuts and bolts range, our gate accessories, and the posts and panels they fix: steel palisade, mesh fencing and railings.

Delivery and trade pricing

Fixings go out by courier, or collect from our Liverpool yard with the rest of your order. Trade accounts get bulk pricing across the range.