Pass the screwdriver please.

[crowski]

There’s nothing more aggravating than having 200 screwdrivers and it’s still not satisfactory.

 I wish they were air guns. 

I’\m soon going to be setting up a gun room, I would prefer a gunsmith’s set. I know it makes a difference.

What set would anyone suggest? Crow 

 

[Moog]

You should be able to find a nice gun smithing screw driver set at brownells.com. Also check out this thread.

airgunnation.com/topic/help-me-find-a-good-set-of-screwdrivers-to-work-on-airguns/?

 

[jkingrph]

I got a set from Brownells about 15-18 years ago, The one that has a long collet type handle and a short magnetic handle, both use insertable tips. I cannot at the moment remember how many, but from narrow and thin to wide and thick. They are numbered and a chart is applied inside the box so you can look at number on the tip to see where it goes, and if any are missing and what size.

 

[Exitpupil]

There is not a perfect "set". If it is flat head none of the common wedge ground tips like most in your photo are satisfactory. Get hollow ground tips and be prepared to custom grind to a perfect fit. Brownells has a good set. Phillips- buy the best steel you can get and use the right size. I have had good luck with Klein. Airguns use a lot of Allen head screws. Get top quality steel. I am still using good old made in USA Allen wrenches inherited from my dad without ever regrinding them after 50 years. Most frequently I use on on air guns are Allen head drivers for RC toys that have high quality replaceable bits with good longevity. If you are working on guns all day long you will grow tired of exchanging bits on universal drivers but don't discount a good set like from Midway for the hobbyist. I seldom have need for magnetic tip either, although when the real need arises I use them.

 

[Guest]

Maybe these. They have 3 different sets depending what or how much you want, all hollow ground: https://chapmanmfg.com/pages/gunsmith-screwdriver-sets

 

[bubblerboy64]

Once every couple years I go thru and throw away those old screw drivers. Keeping worn out tools just leads to trouble. Buggered up screws or worse. The gun smith screw drivers kits are nice but I’m not a fan of magnetic bit replacements although I use them. If I did more of it I’d get individual screw drivers for at least the common sized screws. One thing I have learned is use the right sized screw driver and make certain it’s the exact fit not close exact 

 

[bubblerboy64]

Yes. Buy the best quality you can find. If you use a worn screw driver on a tight screw your going to strip the screw head and then a good quality screw driver will probably not work or if it does it will likely damage the screw more. No excuse for having worn out screw drivers. Not that much money and it saves easy jobs from becoming hard ones.

 

[bltefft]

Made me think of a joke:

A taxi driver was driving a lady somewhere when he had a flat tire.

After trying for half an hour, he was getting frustrated because he couldn't get the tire off.

The lady leaned out of the car and asked, "Wanna screwdriver?"

He replied, "Might as well, can't get the stupid tire off."

 

[Twinkees_n_Pb]

Set of Vessel (JIS spec) screwdrivers (not exactly this set here but more or less same); made in Japan.

Works awesomely on my guns and vehicles; around the house. Relatively expensive, but you get what you pay for. And will last beyond my existence

 

[Fischer]

Go hex screws with anything you value to keep longer than a year.

 

[bubblerboy64]

Go hex screws with anything you value to keep longer than a year.

Ain’t that the truth 

 

[crowski]

Exitpupil makes sense. I’ll dig through, I’m sure I’ll find partial sets, enough to be satisfactory. My dad was a machinist back in 50’s to 70’s, I have his U.S.A. made tools. 
Now R.C. I got totally addicted for two years. Had own track six ft. high banks. 105’ x 45’. 12 cars 48 batteries 9 chargers Raced 60 hrs weekly. Absolutely one of the best times of my life. I kept all those tools. 
Will those small Allen head drivers fit internal parts of the air guns?

 These are them, look too small to me. I have never had a springer apart so I don’t know. Those are number 8 inch and a quarter wood screws nearby. 32 yrs. old. Probably that long since I used them. I will check Brownells. I started writing this nine hours ago. Thanks for the tips. Crow 

 

[crowski]

I asked on another post about hex screws. I’m open for that .Where do you get them?
To be honest, slotted screws should have been banned decades ago. Could have used a couple more adjectives but I’m trying to hold back. Crow 

 

[Guest]

Your local Ace or Valu in the hardware aisle. They have a whole section of metric screws, just take yours and match them up. Only screw I've never found there so far was the rear stock screw for an HW95 because of the oddball size. Got that one from TW Chambers.

 

[Hummer57]

Between these two, I have everything covered but hex heads and I have two quality sets of those also.

 

[jkingrph]

Go hex screws with anything you value to keep longer than a year.

Not airguns, but I have some rather nice old shotguns, Parker, Winchester 101, Ithaca, and Husqvarna double barrels and some nice rifles. We are talking about some finely made slotted screws, and hex heads would not look right on these guns, There is nothing quite as good as a properly fitting screwdriver for a particular screw. As I said I have the Brownells set with interchangeable bits. I have taken a closely fitting bit and finish ground to fit a paticular screw so as to reduce any chance of buggering the screw slot. I keep good bits in my set and when one gets worn it is ground to a slightly thicker size and replaced in my set. The little magnetic holder is short and handy, but nothing beats the longer handle with a collet to secure the bit, makes it feel more like a standard screwdriver.

What I like about this set is how little room it takes up, I can grab the small box and take to a table without taking up a lot of room. The Grace screwdrivers are top notch, but a set that would come close to matching the replaceable bit set would probably take o 2 foot or maybe larger area to store so you could see and access quickly. plus being much more expensive, I would love to have a large set but cannot justify the expense or space for them.

this is the set I have, 58 bits. My long handle has a collet, this one is magnetic, I do not think they offer the collet handle any longer. I have probably had this set over 20 years now.

 

[MDriskill]

I'm just an amateur tinkerer and not a pro gunsmith, but as already stated, the key is parallel-sided blades whose thickness and width fit exactly.

I have a small Chapman set, including Allen head bits. These are the best quality I have personally seen. The bits are well made, snap into the handles with a detent ball, and are further secured by a set screw to eliminate wobble. The set includes a useful small ratchet handle. My only complaint is that they don't make many different bit sizes. 

So I bought the biggest Brownell's set years ago. I use it the most and am very happy with it. It was the obvious choice at the time, but there's a lot of other nice sets out there today - Wheeler has a top reputation, and there's others under the Grace, Lyman, Weaver, Winchester, and probably other names.

 

[JayJay]

Or Torx. 

 

[crowski]

Thanks for all the great advice. Although I could probably find here and there drivers to do the job, I’m going to try go hex screws. I will still need a fixed set and a Wheeler set to keep it clean. I can’t see all my guns in hex. Crow 

 

[jkingrph]

Thanks for all the great advice. Although I could probably find here and there drivers to do the job, I’m going to try go hex screws. I will still need a fixed set and a Wheeler set to keep it clean. I can’t see all my guns in hex. Crow 



Torx and hex are good, but too modern looking. Nothing quite beats a nice old double rifle, or a higher grade rifle where all the slotted screws are aligned along the axis of the gun.