"RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht" (ramblininexile)
10/12/2018 at 11:03 • Filed to: far side friday

DISCUSSION (37)

OPPOsaurus WRX > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:13

flat head screws / screw drivers are the worst type of screws / screwdrivers.

Tekamul > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:13

Counterpoint : No one should learn this, beca us e flat heads are the devil and should be banned. Cheap ass garbage.......

You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:15

I see their problem. First off they’re using a flathead screwdriver. Secondly slotted screws have the slot going all the way across. That makes it much easier for the screwdriver to slip out and gouge your fingers and/or the irreplaceable finish on whatever thing you’re trying to disassemble.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > OPPOsaurus WRX
10/12/2018 at 11:16

I have had probably at least as much total suck from Philips. Mostly because they always get used in places where being tight was actually important, and Philips driver/screw size mismatches are more subtle until it’s too late - not even counting the whole camming out thing.

For Sweden > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:16

That’s a junior-level class at the University of Georgia

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Tekamul
10/12/2018 at 11:19

You sound like somebody who has never used a really good slot driver in a quality fastener in new installation. Sure, not self centering, but Philips tip erosion and camming out are high enough on my shit list...

Shitty flatheads with a uniform taper to the tip are the devil, though.

The Ghost of Oppo > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:19

Torx bit wood screws are way better than philips . I hear people like the square bit ones too

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > For Sweden
10/12/2018 at 11:20

I rate this as true.

/GT

For Sweden > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:22

The University of Georgia: It’s Accredited!

Kinja'd!!!

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > The Ghost of Oppo
10/12/2018 at 11:23

The only real beef I have with torx, other than some Philips-like tip wear, is that there aren’t very granular size breaks in common use. I shouldn’t have to paw through four tools to get the one that fits right instead of “maybe good enough”.

Robertsons are good, but seem often to be very angle sensitive. Torx too, but Robertson has less ability to cheat.

The Ghost of Oppo > OPPOsaurus WRX
10/12/2018 at 11:24

Most new flat head screw drivers are pure garbage. I had a set of the last “Made in USA” Craftsman screw drivers, and the flat heads warped at the slightest bit of resistance from the screw.

If you want quality flat heads, find yourself some old perfect handle screw drivers

Kinja'd!!!

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much
10/12/2018 at 11:25

It looks kind of like what’s on the whiteboard is the comparatively rare screw with a closed-end slot. Which things are great and ought to be more common.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > The Ghost of Oppo
10/12/2018 at 11:27

Square heads actually are pretty great.

Such a solid connection.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much
10/12/2018 at 11:27

Also that screw head is completely off-center...

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > The Ghost of Oppo
10/12/2018 at 11:29

Yeah, a flathead with a proper arced face and reverse taper at the tip is so vanishingly uncommon that it doesn’t surprises me when people haven’t ever had a good one.

The closest it’s easy to get is with a quality slot impact bit in a bit screwdriver, but then the ergo goes to shit and it doesn’t have an arced face.

Discerning > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:36

All this screwdriver talk in the comments is riveting.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Discerning
10/12/2018 at 11:46

Kinja'd!!!

Just Jeepin' > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:49

What did the desperate nut say to the bolt?

“I’m hanging on by a thread!”

Chariotoflove > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:50

Kinja'd!!!

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Just Jeepin'
10/12/2018 at 11:50

What did the angry stud say to the acorn nut?

“SCREW OFF!”

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Chariotoflove
10/12/2018 at 11:51

That looks like a school with mild inclines.

Chariotoflove > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 11:52

Depends on your point of view.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/12/2018 at 11:54

Kinja'd!!!

I FIXED IT FOR YOU ARE YOU HAPPY NOW

Actually, now I think about it, the thread profile isn’t accurate and consistent. Might even be reverse thread.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 12:10

No, it’s just a stack of rounded disks.

Tekamul > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
10/12/2018 at 12:16

Correct, I have never used a really good flat head fastener

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/12/2018 at 12:17

I’d fix that too, but Paint doesn’t have a skew tool. The struggle is real.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Tekamul
10/12/2018 at 12:35

A good fastener has a sharply square slot. Shitty ones have taper in the slot. A good driver has a convex face along the width and a straight or slightly convex face along the length. Shitty drivers are tapered - like with the fasteners, it’s easy to make and pieces sort-of-working even with size mismatch is easier.

So with bad you have this:

Kinja'd!!!

Light contact somewhere on the not-matching tapers, lack of sufficient pressure to hold in place, and camming out.

A good combo is like this:

Kinja'd!!!

The contact patches are larger, deeper into the head, under uniform normal pressure, and 1:1 tight with one another. Because the top profile is this:

Kinja'd!!!

It’s only “tight” on insertion at the center, so the driver can be the full width of the slot there and stay centered, and on twisting, it closes the gap on the sides, making a flat face to flat face contact. Since it’s tighter overall, it doesn’t slip out as easily. Also, if the driver tip has a little bit of convex grind to it, as a good one does, it can make contact even when the angle isn’t perfect. Ideally, you’re using a driver that is the correct width for the slot, which most people don’t do.

All this is to say, there’s an art to good slotted fastener design, and most people have never had a good fastener and a good tool at the same time - mostly it’s the tool that’s shitty because it’s harder to get right, and if it wears, it turns into a taper: a good tool can become a bad one.