Hi,
I want to purchase some "Robertson #2" screwdriver bits.
Can anybody recommend a UK supplier for these? I'm having no luck.
D
Not sure about hand screwdrivers - but Screwfix
Hope this helps Adrian Suffolk UK ======return email munged================= take out the papers and the trash to reply
In message , Vortex writes
I can't recommend them, never having used them but this was the top link when searching Google UK on 'Robertson Screwdriver'
Or the aptly named:
Or:
Though these might lack the taper of kosher Robertson ones.
Trend UK seem to list them,. maybe a dealer could order them in.
I happen to have some in cheapo screwdriver/bit set that I bought once, I suspect some of the bit sets around have them in.
Me too, always wondered what they were ;-)
Having worked with both slotted and socketed (philips, pozi, hex, spline) screws / bolts over the years I do now feel that our ould slotted screw is very 'crude', especially in the smaller sizes. The fact that it won't 'easily' hold a screw on the bit and is pretty specific about the bit size wrt the slot all makes it more akward.
But once Pozi etc get 'quite big' (or very small like watches / glasses etc) then I think the old slotted screw seem to come back into their own?
I think it's a 'human' thing .. like inches .. (I still have to try hard to use metric measurements)? ;-)
So, for those that have used these Robinson screws / bits .. what are the pro's n con's please? They do look like a good idea and in this country (where they aren't commonly used) could provide a bit of mild security on 'publically' accessable things?
All the best ..
T i m
I have a screwdriver set from Maplin, Pro'sKet SD-205
john2
They are now becoming more common here in NZ and most hardware shops have them. What I want to know is, why were all the other kinds of screw head ever invented? They are all stupid compared with the Robertson. Maybe before 1908 it was hard to make them, but there is no excuse now. I prefer to use nothing else.
Can anyone explain this statement, which apparently explains why they are fairly unknown: "Robertson had licensed the screw in England but the party with which he was dealing intentionally put the company under and purchased the rights from the trustee thus circumventing Robertson."
I like the look of good quality countersunk screws with slot heads. I have severl boxes I am gradually using up of the higher quality ones bought from a shop where the man wore a grey overall coat and kept a pencil behind his ear. They have very sharp threads and will cut through soft wood. Just make sure there is enough of a clearance hole drilled. They work very well into rawplugs because they get thicker towards the head end unlike a lot of the modern screws.
You can put a Robinson screw on the bit in an electric drill, hold that horizontally and the screw won't fall off as you screw it in. And the bit never slips and messes up the screw head.
PROs Good and positive - though quality of screw does vary and I have encountered a batch of poor screws. You can't use the wrong size driver and not realise it. They always work and work well. There is a minor aspect of security.
CONs It's not always easy to get hold of drivers - esp drivers of the style you like. It's not possible to buy screws everywhere so you need to get a stock in when you find a good supply. If you make a pig's ear of a piece of work using the screws you can't then blame it on the 'previous owner' because all Robinson Screw work in the house is undoubtedly your own!
They're brilliant. Why anyone uses slotted, Phillips, or so-called Pozidrive is beyond me.
It seems to suggest that he signed away the rights to a company in England to make the things, the owner of which then intentionally put the company into receivership so that he could purchase the rights to the screw from his company, but at the same time leave all the obligations that originally came with those rights behind in the defunct company. He was then free to make the things without paying the license fees.
The description in the wiki does not quite ring true however. Since granting a license to a firm to manufacture something does not usualy deprive you (the owner) from either revoking that license or granting another to someone else... (unless it was a very badly worded "exclusive" licence). Most contracts are worded to become void should either party be placed into receivership (other than for reorganisation purposes)
Problem solved: some Googling found me this:
It's great news that they screws are easily available at
Thanks for the comments/hints.
David
Because the sheds don't push em and / or I've never knowingly seen them anywhere (and I do like to lurk in a good tool shop) ;-)
Another 'con' I thought of is if the hole get's blocked with paint etc? Because a std X head is set at a good angle it's fairly easy to clean it out (same with a slotted screw) but I'm not sure how easy this would be with a Robertson?
Also, wuth X head screws you can push them with a bit of an angle if needbe, can you do that with a Robertson (or do they do a 'ball ended' Robertson like they do with 'hexes') ;-)
All the best ..
T i m
Same place as you bought your Robertson screws (which are practically unheard of in the UK).
If you're using square drive screws rather than genuine Robertsons, then Screwfix do them. If you want real Robertsons, with all the not-falling off advantages they convey, then try Lee Valley in canada (good mail order, even trans-Atlantic). Or else buy them in Ireland, where I got mine. They seem commoner there than in the UK.
I'd thought you could have drilled it out lightly or poked it out with a sharp implement.
You can get a good purchase on it even if the handle is at 90 degrees. No pressure required as there is with Pozi - and even slotted.
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