Wheeler 89 piece screwdriver set
- Thread starter Reeferman
- Start date
freezer filler
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Windsor, Ontario
Check out Wiha...german made. There is a Canadian distributor that does free shipping over $100.
I finally bought a Weaver set at Cabela's a couple of years ago. Had a small Chapman set from years ago. I keep a little brass punch set, a good hook & pick set, and a couple of toothbruses in the Weaver kit. I also added the torx bit that fits my CZ rimfires. I also splurged and bought a torque wrench - Fat something? FWIW 
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I checked it out and found that most of the tips were ok but several of the smallest flat blades were not finished very well on the tips and actually had bumps on them and no way I would use those tips on any screws. I guess will give them a try as most of the other tips looked to be fine. The Brownells Magna bits look like the way to go though very pricey.
gunrunner100
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- NW Ontario
I've had many different screwdrivers in the past and finally settled on the Brownells Magn-Tip set about 15 years ago. Bits are guaranteed for life and Brownell's is really good at replacing them when they do break or bend.
You know one of the most used/abused tools most people inflict upon their firearms are screwdrivers.
I cringe every time I pick up a used and sometimes a new firearm with galled slotted screws. It devalues your firearm by more than what a properly fitting screwdriver would cost.
Those galls happen because of poorly fitting screwdrivers as well as improper use of screwdrivers.
Slotted screws are the worst method used as a retaining device. Many years ago it was understandably about the only practical design other than a square head screw that would always be proud. The advent of counter sunk and even thin head slotted screws was a great advance. Today they just aren't necessary. Philips, Allen, Torx, Robertson are among the best suited for firearms. Even those need to have properly fitted drivers.
I am anal about properly fitting screwdrivers. I go to yard sales and public markets to pick out the best used screwdrivers they have at dirt cheap prices. I have at least 30 different widths and thickness flat screwdrivers. Even that isn't always enough and another custom driver needs to be ground. Every one of these drivers has cost less than a dollar. There are at least another couple of dozen in a bin awaiting their turn to become a custom fit driver. A loose fitting or to narrow or to wide driver is a recipe for a galled and sometimes broken or chipped screw head. Often, especially on antique firearms those screws just can't be replaced. Making them up is impossible if you don't have a lathe because often the threads are proprietary and made on a special hand made screw making machine or even hand filed. Standardized taps and dies just weren't available back in the day.
I loved it when Remington and others went to allen head torqueing screws. I prefer the allen head screws to torx. Small torx head screwdrivers are very positive but often the bits are brittle or weak and if they are to strong can be over torqued and break off the contact flanges.
Screwdrivers need to be chosen carefully and ground to fit as needed. Anything else cries amateur.
Don't get me wrong. I understand where you are coming from with those sets and they do have their uses if used sparingly and properly. The one good thing about them is that they are ground with "flat" surfaces. Other types are ground on a bias. The thing is the bits in those sets are either to narrow, to wide, to tight, to sloppy to do really good work. On the other hand they take up very little space in a drawer or on the bench. My screwdrivers take up a lot of room in my shop and space is getting to be at a premium. I have allowed it to become cluttered with to many projects, tools, tooling, machines, loading equipment etc. My New Years resolution is to clean it up and find a place for everything that is tagged and easily accessible. That will be a major chore.
Remember, the commercial mass produced screwdrivers we have available on the cheap need to be used and purchased with discretion. Mind you if that is all you have available????
A couple of small tricks to release over torqued screws. Clamp the part or firearm to be worked on in a vice or rifle work bench. This frees your hands and stops the drivers from slipping out and leaving an unsightly scratch on the metal or stock surfaces because the work is held in one hand and the other is on an angle to the screw.
The next is to apply a tight fitting driver to the opening of the screw head whichever shape it requires and give it a sharp rap with a hammer. Then, use a wrench as close to the screw head as possible to carefully turn out the screw. Be careful though sometimes they are lacquered in place or rusted. The rap you give the driver with a hammer will likely cause the rust to break up a bit and allow some Kroil or other penetrant to get in there and free things up after some soak time. Sadly, not always. That is where a tight fitting screwdriver comes to the fore. It can be heated up with a butane torch and the heat will transfer to the screw and soften the lacquer or loc tite. The heat will even help the rust to break up and allow more penetrant to get in.
Be very careful with those screw drivers and screws. I will discount the price of replacement screws from the value of the firearm when buying or doing an appraisal. So do most people that deal with buying and selling.
I cringe every time I pick up a used and sometimes a new firearm with galled slotted screws. It devalues your firearm by more than what a properly fitting screwdriver would cost.
Those galls happen because of poorly fitting screwdrivers as well as improper use of screwdrivers.
Slotted screws are the worst method used as a retaining device. Many years ago it was understandably about the only practical design other than a square head screw that would always be proud. The advent of counter sunk and even thin head slotted screws was a great advance. Today they just aren't necessary. Philips, Allen, Torx, Robertson are among the best suited for firearms. Even those need to have properly fitted drivers.
I am anal about properly fitting screwdrivers. I go to yard sales and public markets to pick out the best used screwdrivers they have at dirt cheap prices. I have at least 30 different widths and thickness flat screwdrivers. Even that isn't always enough and another custom driver needs to be ground. Every one of these drivers has cost less than a dollar. There are at least another couple of dozen in a bin awaiting their turn to become a custom fit driver. A loose fitting or to narrow or to wide driver is a recipe for a galled and sometimes broken or chipped screw head. Often, especially on antique firearms those screws just can't be replaced. Making them up is impossible if you don't have a lathe because often the threads are proprietary and made on a special hand made screw making machine or even hand filed. Standardized taps and dies just weren't available back in the day.
I loved it when Remington and others went to allen head torqueing screws. I prefer the allen head screws to torx. Small torx head screwdrivers are very positive but often the bits are brittle or weak and if they are to strong can be over torqued and break off the contact flanges.
Screwdrivers need to be chosen carefully and ground to fit as needed. Anything else cries amateur.
Don't get me wrong. I understand where you are coming from with those sets and they do have their uses if used sparingly and properly. The one good thing about them is that they are ground with "flat" surfaces. Other types are ground on a bias. The thing is the bits in those sets are either to narrow, to wide, to tight, to sloppy to do really good work. On the other hand they take up very little space in a drawer or on the bench. My screwdrivers take up a lot of room in my shop and space is getting to be at a premium. I have allowed it to become cluttered with to many projects, tools, tooling, machines, loading equipment etc. My New Years resolution is to clean it up and find a place for everything that is tagged and easily accessible. That will be a major chore.
Remember, the commercial mass produced screwdrivers we have available on the cheap need to be used and purchased with discretion. Mind you if that is all you have available????
A couple of small tricks to release over torqued screws. Clamp the part or firearm to be worked on in a vice or rifle work bench. This frees your hands and stops the drivers from slipping out and leaving an unsightly scratch on the metal or stock surfaces because the work is held in one hand and the other is on an angle to the screw.
The next is to apply a tight fitting driver to the opening of the screw head whichever shape it requires and give it a sharp rap with a hammer. Then, use a wrench as close to the screw head as possible to carefully turn out the screw. Be careful though sometimes they are lacquered in place or rusted. The rap you give the driver with a hammer will likely cause the rust to break up a bit and allow some Kroil or other penetrant to get in there and free things up after some soak time. Sadly, not always. That is where a tight fitting screwdriver comes to the fore. It can be heated up with a butane torch and the heat will transfer to the screw and soften the lacquer or loc tite. The heat will even help the rust to break up and allow more penetrant to get in.
Be very careful with those screw drivers and screws. I will discount the price of replacement screws from the value of the firearm when buying or doing an appraisal. So do most people that deal with buying and selling.
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I bought the smaller Wheeler set about 6 years ago. The tips have held up superbly. None have twisted or snapped even when dealing with screws that felt like they were welded in place. And more importantly I've not had any of the tips cam out of even damaged screws when used with some care.
And in fact it's been such a good product I'm going to buy the 89 piece with the multiples in each size so that I can custom trim the width of them to suit the different guns.
And in fact it's been such a good product I'm going to buy the 89 piece with the multiples in each size so that I can custom trim the width of them to suit the different guns.
- Location
- Calgary, AB
Pretty decent, but the tips seem a bit soft and some have deformed.
bearkilr
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nowhere, ......just past the middle
x2. I've had mine for years and use it a lot. There are tons of different hollow ground slotted screw bits and I have yet to come across a gun where one doesn't fit snug.
