Collated drywall screwdriver: strips, gauges and jams
Updated: 23 October 2026
Loose screws are slow once you are past a few sheets, and a collated drywall screwdriver looks like the cure until the magazine jams. The strip is still an ordinary plasterboard screw, fifty of them on a tape or a plastic collation. It pays when the length you set on the gun is the length in the strip, and the stud gauge matches that screw. It wastes the afternoon when those three disagree, which is already what the ONEMANA reviews in our [cordless drywall screwdriver comparison](/hub/hand-tools/cordless-drywall-screwdriver) describe. Peter F., DIY and tools editor, wrote this on 22 October 2026 from British Gypsum’s collated-screw data, Jewson’s 50 mm box, and those listing notes. A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Loose screws are slow once you are past a few sheets, and a collated drywall screwdriver looks like the cure until the magazine jams.
Loose screws are slow once you are past a few sheets, and a collated drywall screwdriver looks like the cure until the magazine jams. The strip is still an ordinary plasterboard screw, fifty of them on a tape or a plastic collation. It pays when the length you set on the gun is the length in the strip, and the stud gauge matches that screw. It wastes the afternoon when those three disagree, which is already what the ONEMANA reviews in our cordless drywall screwdriver comparison describe. Peter F., DIY and tools editor, wrote this on 22 October 2026 from British Gypsum’s collated-screw data, Jewson’s 50 mm box, and those listing notes. A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Feed | Screw range | In the box | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Einhell Einhell TE-DY 18 Li-Solo | Loose screws; magazine is extra | n/a | Tool, case and belt clip | 7.6 | about £83.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  ONEMANA ONEMANA magazine gun | Collated magazine, can come off | n/a | Charger listed; battery unclear | 3.9 | about £89.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  ONEMANA ONEMANA 20 V collated gun | Collated, detachable magazine | 25–57 mm in the bullets | Charger only on the included line | 3.5 | about £104.99 | View offer |
On this page
A strip is 50 screws, not a different screw
British Gypsum collated drywall screws are sold as strips of 50. Jewson’s 50 mm box is 1,000 screws, which is 20 strips, with a countersunk cross head, for C studs, I studs and timber, and the screws are tied to EN 14566. The head is the same family you would pick up loose. Collated means the screws are joined so a magazine can present the next one.
The stockist list runs 25, 35, 40, 45, 50 and 55 mm for standard collated drywall screws, and 25, 35 and 41 mm for collated Jack-Point. Those steps are not a promise that every gun’s nose is marked the same way. One room rarely needs a thousand screws. A 50 mm strip is the wrong length for 12.5 mm board on a light metal stud, where the minimum is only just over 22 mm, and it can be the right length for thicker board into timber. Buy the length the sum requires. The best cordless drywall screwdriver page names which of our five listings even have a magazine.
Metal gauge still decides the screw
The collation does not change the metal. On the British Gypsum collated sheet, the standard screw suits C studs under 0.8 mm and I studs under 0.6 mm, and timber. Jewson’s 50 mm page follows that pattern. The site-book line puts a normal drywall screw up to about 0.79 mm and Jack-Point once the metal is over 0.8 mm. A specified heavy stud is a Jack-Point problem. Loading a standard 50 mm strip will not turn the screw into the right point.
Length is the same rule as for loose screws. Board thickness, then at least 10 mm into metal or 25 mm into timber. A 40 mm strip on 12.5 mm board gives 27.5 mm beyond the board, which covers the timber minimum and is more than the metal minimum. A 25 mm strip on that board gives 12.5 mm beyond it, which covers metal and does not cover timber. Set the gun to the length printed on the strip you loaded. Centres and edge distances stay on the how to use a drywall screwdriver page.
The two magazine listings in this set
Two of the five kept listings are magazine guns, and neither states that strips are in the box. The ONEMANA at £89.99, ASIN B0D14FHKGF, is titled machine only. Bullets describe a magazine and tool-free length adjustment. Reviews say you can take the magazine off and drive one screw at a time, and that the battery was not in the box. The included-components line lists a charger. The specification also says corded electric and item type attachment, which fights the cordless title. The 3.5 kg weight is not stated as the bare tool. German reviews are the whole saved text sample behind the 3.5 from 16.
The ONEMANA at £104.99 claims 25–57 mm, which is not the same list as British Gypsum’s 25–55 mm steps. A printed range does not mean every merchant strip will feed. The included line is a charger only, the table lists 2 Ah, and the speed lines say both 4,200 rpm and 5,000 rpm. The Einhell at £83.99 has no magazine. One UK review says the collated feed is a separate accessory. These boxes do not arrive as a ready strip system. Body-only kits and plugs are in the buying guide.
Why the feed jams
A jam starts when the length on the nose, the length of the strip and the bit do not match. A FLEX magazine manual, which is not a gun in this set and which marks length in inches, says to set the length before you load and to feed the strip until the first screw sits under the bit. If the length is wrong, the next screw does not advance. Milwaukee’s own note says not to pull a strip out of the bottom. Use those as the idea of the mechanism. Do not copy the inch marks onto a UK nose, and do not treat either manual as the ONEMANA instructions.
On the £104.99 gun a UK buyer returned it after it jammed within minutes and drove screws through the head. On the £89.99 gun the slide jammed, and the nose was about 2 mm too long for a standard bit. A worn PH2 does the same, because the screw leaves the strip crooked. Match the length, seat the strip, and use a bit the nose accepts. If a scrap strip will not feed, loose screws are the workable route for one room.
Common questions
Are collated screws worth it for one room?
Often they are not. One room is a few hundred screws at most, and loose screws on a magnetic PH2 finish it without a strip to match. A magazine starts to earn its place when you are fixing many sheets and the same length repeats all day. In this set the magazine listings already have jam reports, so one room is the wrong place to learn that feed.
What lengths do British Gypsum collated screws come in?
The stockist list shows standard collated drywall screws at 25, 35, 40, 45, 50 and 55 mm, and collated Jack-Point at 25, 35 and 41 mm. Jewson sells the 50 mm standard screw in a box of 1,000, as 20 strips of 50. Pick the length from the board-plus-penetration sum. A longer strip is not a stronger fixing if it is the wrong point for the stud.
Which stud gauge is a standard collated screw for?
On the British Gypsum sheet, C studs under 0.8 mm and I studs under 0.6 mm, plus timber. The site-book puts a normal drywall screw up to 0.79 mm and Jack-Point over 0.8 mm. If the specification names a thicker stud, order the Jack-Point collation in a length that still gives 10 mm into the metal. A standard strip will not grow a drill point because the gun is fast.
Why does the magazine jam?
The usual causes are a length setting that does not match the strip, a strip that is not seated with the first screw under the bit, a worn bit, or a nose that is too long for the bit you have. The £104.99 ONEMANA has a UK return for a jam that sent screws through the head within minutes. The £89.99 ONEMANA has a slide that jammed and a nose described as about 2 mm too long for a standard bit.
Can I put loose screws in the magazine?
The magazine wants the collation it was built for. Loose screws are what you drive with the magazine off, which one review says the £89.99 gun will do, or with a loose-screw gun such as the Einhell. Forcing single screws into a strip feed is how the next screw fails to advance. Do not assume every brand of strip fits every nose. Nothing in these listings proves a universal magazine.
What length rule still applies once the screws are on a strip?
The same rule as for loose screws. Add at least 10 mm into metal or 25 mm into timber on top of the board thickness. A 40 mm strip is not the collated length. It is one step on the list, and it is long enough for 12.5 mm board into timber and longer than you need for a light metal stud. Gauge and length still come from the stud and the board, then the magazine is set to that strip.
Related pages
Sources
Sources from the research digest, last checked on 22 October 2026.
- British Gypsum, screw fixing centres (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- British Gypsum, screw lengths for metal and timber (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- British Gypsum, Gyproc WallBoard data sheet (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- British Gypsum, collated drywall screws (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- HSE, hand-arm vibration regulations (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- HSE, noise for employers (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- HSE, PUWER overview (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- GOV.UK, Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 (retrieved 22.10.2026)