Square Drive Screws

[Mike Leonard]

I have been thinking about purchasing some screws from McFeely's. I am undecided on whether to buy the Square Drive or the Combo Drive screws. They have a Square Drive "Do-It-Yourself Dozen" (1200 screws in various sizes) that seems fairly reasonable. But, that is a lot of screws if I am not going to be satisfied with them. Any experience out there using these screws? Square Drive or Combo Drive? Unplated Hardened Steel or Stainless Steel?

TIA

[Keith Outten]

Mike,

I have used the regular and the combo drive screws for years, either one will work better than you can imagine. I've probably used over 100,000 of these screws and not one has ever broken...even the 3" long screws. I have never had a head strip either, these are the only screws I order now.

[Dan Bundy]

I love 'em. I don't think you'll be disappointed at all.

[Bob Lasley]

Mike,

Once you try square drive screws you'll be ready to retire your phillips drivers for good! McFeelys has great products and great service. You won't be disappointed.

Bob

[Rusty Hughes, Indy]

Hello,

I am extremely pleased with the square drive screws, especially the ones from McFeely's. I am currently out of the 1 1/4" ones and I went to the big box and bought some that I thought were just like them. But they aren't. The McFeely screws seemed to go in much easier, maybe they are coated with a lubricant.

I have also used the combo screws and have found them to be just as good.

Rusty

[Ted Shrader]

Mike -

McFeely's square drive screws are great! I keep a bunch of unplated for general use. If your need other metal (SS, brass, etc.) or a specialty head for a custom use, order them when you need them.

The square drive really works well. If you use an electric screwdriver, they bit <u>won't</u> back out.

I built a deck a couple years ago (before I tried McFeely's screws) with big box plated screws. I wish I would have ordered from McFeely's. They would have been much easier to drive.

Oder the "D-I-Y Dozen" then replace the ones you use most frequently.

Ted

[Mike Leonard]

Thanks for the great responses. I just ordered the D-I-Y Dozen.

[Mac McAtee]

Ditto on McFeely's square drive. Don't know how many times, since I started using them, I have cussed Phillips head screws that I have run across.

I am currently changing all the windows in my house and the new ones have an adjusting/centering screw on each side that you use to get the track straight with the sashes. They are phillips head and are "special" screws. They are located in the tracks of the frame in a location that does not allow you to get a straight shot at the screw head with a screw driver. The Phillips driver slips, my knuckles are all scarred up and two or three of them I never got set properly because the head stripped out. These are $150 windows. Why in the heck they don't use square head or hex key screws is beyond me.

[John Wadsworth]

Mac,

I don't know if this applies to your window frustration, but I think it's pretty well documented that the reason Henry Ford did not adopt the Robertson screw (a.k.a. "square drive") was that automatic machinery could drive Philips-type screws better. Seems that the tendency of a Philips screwdriver to "cam out" of the screw when it's tight (which can be a pain for us) was actually seen as a benefit on an assembly line, preventing over-tightening and consequent thread stripping or breakage.

There may well have been financial reasons, as well. Mr Robertson, a Canadian, held the patent rights. See, by comparison, the checkered history of the Ford-Ferguson tractor relationship, another cross-border one.

Ain't history fun!

John

[Glenn Clabo]

Very interesting...just today I had to explain why I had a socket-head cap screw application on all submarines replaced by philip-head screws many years ago. We couldn't stop the mechanics from twisting them off so I wanted them to cam out before it broke or yielded. It ain't nice to have water coming into the people tank on submarines.

[John Schreiber]

Originally posted by Glenn Clabo
Very interesting...just today I had to explain why I had a socket-head cap screw application on all submarines replaced by philip-head screws many years ago. We couldn't stop the mechanics from twisting them off so I wanted them to cam out before it broke or yielded. It ain't nice to have water coming into the people tank on submarines.
When there are stories like that out there, how is it that people think that engineering is boring? I'll bet more people have die every day from improperly torqued fasteners than have ever been eaten by sharks. And people think engineering is boring.

For this you had to change to a system which is worse, by any technical measure, so people would use it properly. And people think engineering is boring.

[Dave Avery]

Glenn,

Electric Boat in Groton? Dave

[Glenn Clabo]

NUWC, Newport... Sub Launchers Program Manager.