Is it still possible buy a proper ratchet screwdriver that doesn't have interchangeable tips and a handle that rips skin after the third screw? I don't want a powered tool either. I can see some antiques on eBay but nothing new even from a junk maker like Draper.
proper ratchet screwdriver
Apr 05, 2012
26 Replies
Why not get an antique.
NT
You might do better buying an old but good one anyway. It's not like there will have been developments since they were common.
What is wrong with interchangable bits?
Brian
They fall out and get lost and you can never get the same turning force on them. When the right antique turns up on eBay, I will buy it. It is much easier to work on old things, like houses and furniture, with the tools that made them in the first place (accepting that ratchets are only 75 years old).
Even the old style have interchangeable bits
That's a new fangled one. The real ones are like this and he wants US $99 for it. Doubt if my old one's worth anything though.
That's what I call a "Barry Becknell" who remembers him?
I've got one of those, and still use it occasionally.
Mike
I'm all for tradition, but I'd never go back to one. Do you stick with traditional slotted screws? (Permitted for antique repair, of course, but then I'd use a normal screwdriver).
Since I never throw anything away I must have a Yankee somewhere, and a couple of loose bits. Hands up who else remembers Barry Bucknell.
Almost nobody, sadly, largely because even when he was active he was totally overshadowed by his much more famous imitator, Barry Bucknall.
Bert
Do you mean this?
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hardware stores near me are purported to be suppliers: check the dealers list and see if there is anyone near you.
Nick
...or even Barry Bucknell. Damn!
Bert
That's it - many thanks.
Barry Bucknell provided much work for many as we remove the lunacies he purveyed - the hardboard cover on a nice panelled door, for example. Held with panel pins - what else.
Be grateful - if he lived in this century, it would have been "no more nailed" on - think of the fun...
He was my inspiration to get my hands on my Dad's engine. He had a program on TV apart from DIY, that showed you how to take the engine out of a Morris Minor 1000 and strip it down. And yes, before anyone asks, Dad did let strip his engine down and put it back together without any spare screws (bolts) left over and it worked first time. Would even consider doing it to a modern car now. Jim G
What would you like to pay for a pair of old Yankees in vgc with cross and flat screwdriving bits?
NT
Ten dollah!
If the Yankee is pump action then nothing. Sorry.
Why not?
Andy
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