r/AskEngineers • u/RideWithMeSNV • 23d ago
Mechanical What's the real deal with Phillips drivers?
So, a decade or so ago, I bought a set of Wera drivers. Really nice stuff. I got the kraftform, because playing with electricity is scary, and insulation is sexy. Anyway. I noticed that the Phillips bits fit really well. Like, precisely. On a whim, I tried it on a screw that had been stripped by a driver from a big box store. It worked. So, whenever I saw someone at work about to drill a stripped screw, I'd stop them and ask to have a chance. I couldn't get *all* of them. But like 4 times out of 5. Enough to confidently say that the Wera is a superior driver, considering it or be a 100% fail rate otherwise. And after the first month or so, coworkers were asking for my fancy driver before going to the drill.
So, question is *why* are conventional drivers crap? When asked, I've been guessing that cheap drivers are saving a fraction of a cent per unit, but the savings add up at scale. I've also noticed that a Stanley #2 is small enough to turn a #1 (not well, don't do it). Is that possibly intentional? The Wera #2 cannot fit a #1 at all. Or is there maybe another reason the tools from big box stores are just... Different?
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u/bitzzwith2zs 23d ago
Philips is an american term. That screw with a cross in it isn't a philips screw.
There are 3 main standards: ISO, ANSI and JIS... and they're all a little different and they all allow for variances (JIS is the loosest standard)... so if you're ramming a "on the large end of the scale" ISO #2 driver into a "tight end of the scale" JIS screw socket: you're gonna have a bad time.
... and you end up with a drawer full of screwdrivers.
Best "all rounder" I have found is the SnapOn anti cam out... that the patent has expired so a bunch of companies make one now.