Fastener for attaching electrical boxes to steel studs

For use in rigidly attaching a sheetmetal electrical box to a sheetmetal stud of generally channel shape, said stud including a pair of parallel flanges, each having an inner extremity and an outer extremity, the inner extremities of the two flanges being connected by a web lying generally at right angles thereto, and the outer extremities of each flange having a short lip portion turned toward the outer extremities of the other flange and terminating in an edge, the electrical box including a plurality of sidewalls and a backwall;

• an improved fastener that attaches only to the flange and short lip portion without engaging the web, comprising:
• a blanked and formed piece of sheetmetal, said piece of sheetmetal including an electrical box attachment portion and spaced therefrom a metal stud attachment portion,
• said electrical box attachment portion having a pair of parallel surfaces spaced apart approximately the thickness of the electrical box sidewall for snugly slipping thereover,
• said stud attachment portion including two appendages in the form of a pair of relatively widely spaced fingers which are generally U-shaped in cross section and which slip over the outer extremities of the stud flange, said electrical box attachment portion also including another appendage in the form of an angled arm having midportions that bear both on the inner surface of the flange and also simultaneously against the lip edge in a direction to draw the fingers into the stud and thereby lock the fastener thereto.