Screwfix Prices Then And Now

morqthana · Monday at 9:01 PM

robinbanks said:
Not so; I think you may be confusing Pozi and Phillips. Phillips are designed to cam out because they have angled sides and are found in industrial application where a machine is driving the screw, so pressure and angle are consistent and the robot needs the screw to separate easily from the bit when it's done driving

Ah - OK - thanks.

robinbanks said:
Keep a stock of PZ2 bits and swap em out if they've bounced around inside too many screws or look visibly propellered

I do know I'd much rather have soft bits which get bollixed when they slip, and can easily be tossed, than hard bits which bollix the screwhead.

JBR · Monday at 9:37 PM

morqthana said:
Pozidriv is designed to cam out. It's a feature.

Well, lucky old Pozidriv users! It certainly works.

Brigadier · Monday at 9:37 PM

I saw an article some time ago, that claimed Phillips was designed to chew up - rather than the screw snap - as early machines had poor / no torque clutches.

Sacrifice the screw head during the assembly process, rather than the screw itself (buggering up the assembly itself).

blup · Monday at 9:53 PM

I purchased a corded sds drill in the late 90”s from Screwfix, it’s cheaper now, presumably because Bosch shifted production to the far east

Dec27 · Monday at 10:01 PM

Riveting conversation

JBR · Tuesday at 11:44 AM

Dec27 said:
Riveting conversation

No. Torx is better than rivets. You can get the buggers out again!

robinbanks · Tuesday at 8:57 PM

Dec27 said:
Riveting conversation

Truly trans-fixing

(Is that the politically correct way to refer to a reverse threaded.. ?)

Ivor Windybottom · Tuesday at 9:03 PM

Think they're called ******* screws.

I mean the fixings, not the people.

morqthana · Tuesday at 11:13 PM

Brigadier said:
I saw an article some time ago, that claimed Phillips was designed to chew up - rather than the screw snap - as early machines had poor / no torque clutches.

Sacrifice the screw head during the assembly process, rather than the screw itself (buggering up the assembly itself).

Who knows.

I do know that China appears to have perfected the design of cross-head screws which neither Phillips nor Pozidriv screwdrivers fit properly.

Ivor Windybottom · 2025-12-31T08:51:31+0000

I think there's a Japanese cross-head that's probably used in China a lot. It's just the same but different, and just compatible enough to make you think it fits, then you chew the head off the screw.

JBR · 2025-12-31T10:54:08+0000

I have, of course, seen the advert for a 'new' cross-head screwdriver (or a collection of different sizes) but I can't remember the name. It claims that there is never any cam-out and the video shows that unscrewing the screw it remains 'attached' to the screwdrive as if magnetic.
Of course, I have now reached the age when I don't believe anything unless I try it for myself and, being from Yorkshire, I have no intention of paying good money to buy these just to find out.

Ivor Windybottom · 2025-12-31T11:52:31+0000

Has someone re-invented magnetism?

morqthana · 2025-12-31T16:50:19+0000

Ivor Windybottom said:
I think there's a Japanese cross-head that's probably used in China a lot. It's just the same but different, and just compatible enough to make you think it fits, then you chew the head off the screw.

That's the behaviour.

PITA.

Ivor Windybottom · 2025-12-31T17:02:07+0000

It's a load of JIS...

Phillips Head vs JIS Screwdriver - Japanese Industrial Standard Screwdrivers

Screwdrivers are one of the most widely used tools around. Even if you’re not into DIY, you’ve probably got a screwdriver somewhere in your home. They’re the first tool that most people get, and often, they’re the start of a lifelong hobby in craft, carpentry, electronics, or DIY. Screwdrivers...

daitool.com

JBR · 2025-12-31T17:50:43+0000

Ivor Windybottom said:
It's a load of JIS...

Phillips Head vs JIS Screwdriver - Japanese Industrial Standard Screwdrivers

Screwdrivers are one of the most widely used tools around. Even if you’re not into DIY, you’ve probably got a screwdriver somewhere in your home. They’re the first tool that most people get, and often, they’re the start of a lifelong hobby in craft, carpentry, electronics, or DIY. Screwdrivers...

daitool.com

I wonder whether the cross-head screws and driver I mentioned a short while ago are actually JIS types.
If they work as well as they sound, it might be a good idea for us all to adopt the Japanese type.
For the present, though, I shall stick to Torx.