My Screwdrivers ( mostly yesterdays)

[formariz 11,849]

Incredibly once one starts to inventory one’s collection of screwdrivers there are many more than one realizes. 

 Hand tools are the norm here and driving screws is no exception specially when it comes to wood screws. I drive more screws by hand in one year that most will in a lifetime . I am also a big fan of slotted wood screws,my screw drivers reflecting it.  They are easier to drive by hand and better suited to wood than any other. There is a lot to know about a screw perhaps a subject deserving of another thread. 

  For slotted screws I use dedicated screwdrivers  of all sizes. I believe in long screwdrivers which make it easier to keep them at the correct angle and allows more torque and pressure to be applied . Most are cabinetmakers screwdrivers also of the flat type allowing a wrench to be used for additional torque. 

  For Phillips head screws with the exception of #3 heads I don’t use dedicated screwdrivers. They get ruined too quickly. I prefer to use yankee drivers with screw tips which are easier to fit to a particular head and much more durable. As I mentioned in another thread not all Phillips of same size are the same, in reality varying quite a lot. 

   Contrary to common practice screwdrivers do require maintenance. Tips need to be kept clean , flat and straight.  Precise careful touchup with a file is routine here. Even a slightly damaged Phillips can be touched up and returned to as new.

  I am not averse to using a mechanical means of driving screws which is essential if one is to make a living . I have always stocked every type  of wood screw there is and the means to drive them correctly and efficiently. In important custom work however I always resort to slotted true wood screws most times brass or bronze. 

My woodworking screwdrivers 

 

The slotted ones used constantly 

 

This one is blacksmith made and it has been in family for over 150 years. 

 

The smallest one homemade. “Ball” is filled with lead . Great feel and balance one of my favorites to use.

 

Custom ground #3+/- to fit a particular type of brass screw I use frequently.

 

 

Any other type of head besides slotted interchangeable tips are used with Yankees. 
Most of the time I use them as a regular screwdriver and not using “push” feature. The length and heftiness provide great balance and torque. Heads are also magnetic.

Another versatile one. Every type possibly needed right in it . Great feel to it also.

 

 

These are essential for places otherwise impossible to get to such as in some drawer/case locks.

 

All the ones above only used in wood shop.

 These are used on everything else.

 

Last but a very handy set to have for the unusually small stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

[Pullstart 59,658]

Amazing Cas!  I could have used a tiny right angle #2 Phillips today, to get a screw out of a 72” French Door that was installed with the shipping screw still in the top!  

Edited March 24, 2023 by Pullstart

[formariz 11,849]

15 hours ago, Pullstart said:

Amazing Cas!  I could have used a tiny right angle #2 Phillips today, to get a screw out of a 72” French Door that was installed with the shipping screw still in the top!  

You should get one of these. Essential for situations like that.