I kinda miss a few opinions on the topic of “screw taste” here. 🥲
this post was submitted on 26 Dec 2025
303 points (90.6% liked)
196
5085 readers
2585 users here now
Community Rules
You must post before you leave
Be nice. Assume others have good intent (within reason).
Block or ignore posts, comments, and users that irritate you in some way rather than engaging. Report if they are actually breaking community rules.
Use content warnings and/or mark as NSFW when appropriate. Most posts with content warnings likely need to be marked NSFW.
Most 196 posts are memes, shitposts, cute images, or even just recent things that happened, etc. There is no real theme, but try to avoid posts that are very inflammatory, offensive, very low quality, or very "off topic".
Bigotry is not allowed, this includes (but is not limited to): Homophobia, Transphobia, Racism, Sexism, Abelism, Classism, or discrimination based on things like Ethnicity, Nationality, Language, or Religion.
Avoid shilling for corporations, posting advertisements, or promoting exploitation of workers.
Proselytization, support, or defense of authoritarianism is not welcome. This includes but is not limited to: imperialism, nationalism, genocide denial, ethnic or racial supremacy, fascism, Nazism, Marxism-Leninism, Maoism, etc.
Avoid AI generated content.
Avoid misinformation.
Avoid incomprehensible posts.
No threats or personal attacks.
No spam.
Moderator Guidelines
Moderator Guidelines
- Don’t be mean to users. Be gentle or neutral.
- Most moderator actions which have a modlog message should include your username.
- When in doubt about whether or not a user is problematic, send them a DM.
- Don’t waste time debating/arguing with problematic users.
- Assume the best, but don’t tolerate sealioning/just asking questions/concern trolling.
- Ask another mod to take over cases you struggle with, if you get tired, or when things get personal.
- Ask the other mods for advice when things get complicated.
- Share everything you do in the mod matrix, both so several mods aren't unknowingly handling the same issues, but also so you can receive feedback on what you intend to do.
- Don't rush mod actions. If a case doesn't need to be handled right away, consider taking a short break before getting to it. This is to say, cool down and make room for feedback.
- Don’t perform too much moderation in the comments, except if you want a verdict to be public or to ask people to dial a convo down/stop. Single comment warnings are okay.
- Send users concise DMs about verdicts about them, such as bans etc, except in cases where it is clear we don’t want them at all, such as obvious transphobes. No need to notify someone they haven’t been banned of course.
- Explain to a user why their behavior is problematic and how it is distressing others rather than engage with whatever they are saying. Ask them to avoid this in the future and send them packing if they do not comply.
- First warn users, then temp ban them, then finally perma ban them when they break the rules or act inappropriately. Skip steps if necessary.
- Use neutral statements like “this statement can be considered transphobic” rather than “you are being transphobic”.
- No large decisions or actions without community input (polls or meta posts f.ex.).
- Large internal decisions (such as ousting a mod) might require a vote, needing more than 50% of the votes to pass. Also consider asking the community for feedback.
- Remember you are a voluntary moderator. You don’t get paid. Take a break when you need one. Perhaps ask another moderator to step in if necessary.
founded 11 months ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
I see, you decided to pick 2 pieces of shit.
Phillips proceeds to strip when I look at it badly.
Slotted keeps kicking out the screwdriver.
Robertson is the top. It holds onto the screwdriver even without magnet, and good luck stripping a square.
Phillips usually strip when using a pozidrive screw driver on them. Very common mistake because people think they are the sams, but easy to avoid once you know it.
Also, the fit has to be tight. If it’s loose, the screw driver is too small.
Posidrive is not that common and not the problem. Phillips heads strip because they're designed to cam out and prevent snapping heads or overtorquing. JIS is same cross shape but doesnt cam out, which is good for avoiding stripping the heads but makes it easier to snap the head off of screws
Maybe in the US, but Pozidrive is very common here in Germany and other european countries in the form of “Spax” screws. They are the main screws we get for everything from wood working to wall mounts for pictures. They also don’t strip as easily as philips screws.
And trust me, I have seen plenty of philips screws beeing stripped ue to the use of pozi screw drivers while beeing perfectly okay when beeing removed with a philips screwdriver. Of course there are other reasons they strip as you mentioned, but here in Germany its a huge problem because Pozidrive is so common and people dont know the difference.
The reason for the stripping , that the shape of the tip is different.
Source: pbswisstools.com
(This information is incorrect, see the reply below.)
~~Pozidriv drivers actually work very well on Philips screws, sometimes better than Philips drivers, due to the fact that the "vanes" are angled rather than curved, proving a larger contact area. Fit is definitely the larger factor, along with the quality of the screw metal.~~
They're both junk next to Robertson though.
I beg to differ. It’s the other way around. Using a pozidriv screwdriver on a philips screw almost guarantwes that you will strip the head when tightening.
You can find a pretty good explanation here or here
More sources: Mechanics on Stackoverflow
Whoops, you're right, I had my memory of the geometries mixed up.
There is this interesting video that suggests that JIS drivers (a Japanese standard) work pretty well for all cruciform heads.
No, no they don't. You mix up Philips and JIS, you WILL have a bad day.
Source: I'm an old toolmaker that has made some nice pocket change over the years drilling out stripped out JIS screws on motorcycle engines from owners that didn't know the difference. A decent amount from repeat customers too.....
Maybe. The opposite isn't really true in my experience. Pozi drivers work well enough on JIS heads but Philips drivers slip way too easily. The bad thing is that JIS looks like Phillips heads which probably is part of the reason for Phillips rep of slipping out.
Philips is designed to allow the screwdriver to slip out so you don't over-torque the screw. If you're stripping them, you're probably using too much torque. But, it might not be your fault, because a lot of people use Philips screws when they shouldn't, and use too much torque when screwing them in.
As for slotted, those just suck. I guess one benefit is that you can use an over-sized head on small screws. But, slotted is really the wrong choice almost every time.
That's a myth. I've read the entire patent and there is no mention of it, and later patents are just post-hoc justifications for an objectively faulty, inferior design.
My charitable hypothesis is that the design uses shallower angles that are easier to cam out because sharp angles would result in stress fractures during the cold forming of the screw heads. My realistic hypothesis is that dies with shallow angles are cheaper to produce and more durable. But the point is moot: the Phillips didn't become the de facto standard because of any practical advantage (real or perceived), but because Robertson wasn't willing to sell exclusive rights to Ford.
I'm usually not one to criticise a person's life choices, but if you think Phillips is better than the popular alternatives, I immediately think less of you as a person.
People are brainwashed by phillips corporate propaganda to believe phillips is a good screw head.
Ok, it's more accurate to say that the fact that the screw will cam out is something that was key to its adoption, even if it wasn't designed to happen.
Quoting “One Good Turn - A natural history of the screwdriver and the screw” by Witold Rybczynski:
https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/were-phillips-screwdrivers-designed-to-cam-out/57870/9