Cool bit for Phillips screws

[Gramps' shop]

I could have used this so many times before I switched to square bits.

[-MIKE-]

I love my square bits and they were a vast improvement over Phillips. But since I started using the newer Torx heads screws/bits I'm totally sold. I'm slowly converting to 100% Torx.

[jloomis]

Torque Drive. The better drive. I was not thrilled with the first part of the video that showed the screw driver being held sideways. Either way though, phillips are tough screws to use, although I use them for concrete forms, and throw away. Yes, his bit does look like it really works. Different head than what he had shown in the beginning with the sleeve. john

I could have used this so many times before I switched to square bits.

[Unquestionably Confused]

John, wasn't the original, sleeved bit a standard Phillips head like we all swear at?

[Leon]

That is pretty cool, and looks to be a better design, one you would use all of the time, than the style with the 3 bit set for removing damaged screws.

[Leon]

Torx is great but I doubt I could ever convert 100% as I probably have

3000 or so assorted screws, and I use fewer and fewer screws these days.

[Jack]

I'm not a fan of square bits. Torx works better, and to me, looks better. I don't mind "quality" Phillips either, and they look the best in most applications. Torx is the way to go though, but like you, it's a slow conversion.

One big disadvantage of both square and torx, is for a very long time, Phillips (and yuck slotted) have been used by everyone in the US, so if you are half way with square and torx, you always need an assortment of drivers to repair stuff, and both square and torx are picky with size of driver, unlike Phillips where you often can get away with the wrong size driver, you certainly can't with square bits.

My Swiss army knife that is always with me has a Phillips bit that I have used to tighten up everything from doors, chairs, even pool tables. That one bit works fine on a large variety of different size Phillips screws.

[-MIKE-]

The only thing keeping me from already being near 100% is Kreg. :-)

[Leon]

Yeah! lol... I probably have 2000 of those.

[-MIKE-]

And I JUST bought another "re-fill" kit because they're 50% off this month.

[Leon]

Fortunately pocket hole screws are not unique to pocket holes. they tend to be excellent quality screws for other uses. I hat the new silver finish, I don't want to bring attention to the screw.

[jloomis]

John, wasn't the original, sleeved bit a standard Phillips head like we all swear at?

[-MIKE-]

Yep, I was using them for probably 90% things other than pocket holes. Now, with Spax and other specialty fastener brands being fairly ubiquitous around here, I'm using fewer pocket hole screws.

[John McCoy]

"Gramps' shop" wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Somehow that whole presentation strongly reminds me of the ads on a low-budget cable station: "our product does everything for the home handyman! It caulks and seals windows! It penetrates and loosens stuck bolts! It's a pet shampoo! Buy now and we'll throw in a second can free!"

Given that a properly fitting phillips driver can pass enough torque to snap a typical screw, I'm not really seeing where this thing has any real advantages. Especially when the typical screw head is some bastard hybrid of two or more of the dozen "standard" phillips-like designs.

John

[John McCoy]

Jack wrote in news:mqd37b$i33$ [e-mail]:

For looks, you can't beat straight slotted brass screws. That's the way to go if you want the classical craftsman appearance.

The huge advantage of Torx is the bits are self-centering. In a production enviroment, where some low-skill worker with an air driver is trying to drive hundreds per day as fast as possible, that's a big thing. That's why you see Torx everywhere, and not Robertson or Allen head screws.

John

[-MIKE-]

They help my high-skilled ass, too! :-)

[Electric Comet]

just another gimmick

[G. Ross]

I ran into something different on a little trailer I bought used. The screws looked like Torx but none of my bits would fit. I wanted to replace a few that were starting to rust. On very close inspection they were 8 point. I emailed the manufacturer and they confirmed they were "double square" screws. They suggested using a #2 square drive bit. It fit perfectly.

[-MIKE-]

Now THAT might keep me in the square drive business. One of pet peeves with square drives is the polarized positioning (same with phillips and most worst with slotted). This double square concept is genius! You probably didn't drive enough of them to offer an opinion, but I wonder how they do in the long run with stripping out, etc.

[whit3rd]

Yeah, the driver-not-straight was a jarring note. If one uses a mixture of bits (Philips #1, Philips #2, Pozidrive, JIS, Reed and Prince, ...) for crosspoint screws, it's inevitable that the heads will get damaged (and the tips as well) because mismatch of shapes makes for excessive stress and deforms the metal.

If one always uses the correct screwdriver tip, there's less damage, until someone wags the screwdriver axis around. With the correct tip, and good seating and alignment, (i.e. operator skill), heads don't get damaged and tips last a long time.

Torx, Robertson, Bristol spline, and Allen socket screws are better because they keep the bit on-axis; Bristol spline has the lowest stress on its driving surfaces (because of the shape - driving faces are nearly parallel to radius), with Torx close behind. Torx is apparently easily mass-produced.

This tip design probably has some kind of 'tooth' (structure or texture) that keeps the tip seated, and purports to substitute for operator skill and allow reuse of damaged fasteners. I'm not interested in that - it's probably better to use standard tip designs, hone skills, and discard damaged fasteners. As for removing recalcitrant fasteners... it's just another sometimes-it-might-work gimmick. *yawn*