Used them to assemble a bunk bed for my daughters. Runs great with the included racket. I tested a few in scrap with no pilot holes and they broke in very well. If you are only a few inches from the final grit I would recommend a pilot hole. Personally, I drilled pilot holes for each just to be on the safe side. They are a golden bronze color and go well with the opaque whitewash stain my daughters chose.