8 ms·

It seems like choosing a screw drive is almost as difficult as choosing which programming library, framework or environment to use. Well, maybe not. New ones p

It seems like choosing a screw drive is almost as difficult as choosing which programming library, framework or environment to use. Well, maybe not. New ones probably aren’t added quite as often.

analog31 8y ago
I work for a company that makes scientific equipment. We apply a few basic criteria, which narrow things down a lot. First, a lot of those fasteners are either really specialized or just rare or obsolete. So they can be ruled out. We look for something that will be easy for our assemblers, and for our field service technicians. They have given us feedback on what they like and dislike, including what kinds of tools are common in different parts of the world. They hate flat head screws. Hex socket screws are really easy, and it's also easy to make them look nice on an assembly. To an increasing extent, we want tools that can be used with a torque handle. For instance hex drive is better than Philips in that regard. I hate to say that it's still a work in progress, but we are heroically trying to get away from fractional drivers, especially for our field technicians who presently have to carry full sets of US and metric tools. We even have mixtures of US and metric in some products! If something is meant to be serviced by a customer (e.g., a lamp or filter that gets replaced), then we stick with Philips, which we are told is common worldwide. Or we use a captive knurled fastener if it's in a place where there's finger access. So these are just a few thoughts. Other considerations are whether you're in an industry that has already standardized on a particular tool set, such as metric allen wrenches for bikes.
- kazinator 8y ago
  > We even have mixtures of US and metric in some products! In North America, tire sizes are given in millimeter width, but imperial mounting diameter. E.g. 175-65R14: 175mm width, 65% aspect ratio (sidewall height to width or something like that), for a 14" wheel.
  - hangonhn 8y ago
    I noticed that the other day too! Dumb question but what does the rest of the world do? Do they convert inches to mm or is the inches diameter just an approximation of the more exact metric diameters?
    - analog31 8y ago
      I can't speak for cars, but there's a similar situation with bicycle wheels and tires. There are all sorts of historical measures, such as "26 inch" and "700c," but at the same time most rims and tires are marked with ISO dimensions that are in mm and quite well defined. So for instance my "27 x 1-1/8" tires are also ISO 28-630, where 28 is the approximate inflated width, and 630 is a particular dimension of the rim. When I buy a new tire, I look at the ISO number to make sure I got the right size. I recently restored an old Schwinn with its own oddball tire diameter, but ISO numbers published by modern tire makers got me up and running with new tires. I think that in a lot of cases, English vs metric is a moot point because a tool is so specialized (spark plug wrench) or because production tools are computerized and switch unit systems as needed. On a milling machine, all dimensions boil down to the number of stripes on a precision glass scale, regardless of what units you choose to specify. Historically, there are bike parts with mm diameter and English thread pitch, such as some old French pedals.
  - nlawalker 8y ago
    I just learned about Nominal Pipe Size, in which the number that precedes the word "inches" does not refer to any actual measurement on the pipe. The specific characteristic of the gas grill pipe hookup on the back of my house that makes it a "half inch pipe" is that it has a .84 inch outer diameter; there is literally nothing about it, including the inner diameter, that could be described by the words "half inch". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominal_Pipe_Size https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominal_Pipe_Size
    - golem14 8y ago
      True for pvc pipes also. Quite confusing.
- Gibbon1 8y ago
  > They hate flat head screws My experience with flat head screws in a production environment was the driver slipping out of the screw and scratching the paint on the part being assembled. Boo! My experience with Philips is, works great as long as people use the exact correct driver, which they won't. Which results in a striped screw and a striped driver. The latter like a bad penny will go on to strip more screws till someone holy and wise (me) tosses it in the dumpster. So Flat, just don't. Philips is okay for light duty. Anything else use a Torx or Hex.
agumonkey 8y ago
Unless you use LISP sockets
- TeMPOraL 8y ago
  In true Lisp fashion, my kitchen knives can macroexpand to fit into any screw socket I need them to.

It seems like choosing a screw drive is almost as difficult as choosing which programming library, framework or environment to use. Well, maybe not. New ones probably aren’t added quite as often.

analog31 8y ago

I work for a company that makes scientific equipment. We apply a few basic criteria, which narrow things down a lot. First, a lot of those fasteners are either really specialized or just rare or obsolete. So they can be ruled out. We look for something that will be easy for our assemblers, and for our field service technicians. They have given us feedback on what they like and dislike, including what kinds of tools are common in different parts of the world. They hate flat head screws. Hex socket screws are really easy, and it's also easy to make them look nice on an assembly. To an increasing extent, we want tools that can be used with a torque handle. For instance hex drive is better than Philips in that regard. I hate to say that it's still a work in progress, but we are heroically trying to get away from fractional drivers, especially for our field technicians who presently have to carry full sets of US and metric tools. We even have mixtures of US and metric in some products! If something is meant to be serviced by a customer (e.g., a lamp or filter that gets replaced), then we stick with Philips, which we are told is common worldwide. Or we use a captive knurled fastener if it's in a place where there's finger access. So these are just a few thoughts. Other considerations are whether you're in an industry that has already standardized on a particular tool set, such as metric allen wrenches for bikes.

kazinator 8y ago
> We even have mixtures of US and metric in some products! In North America, tire sizes are given in millimeter width, but imperial mounting diameter. E.g. 175-65R14: 175mm width, 65% aspect ratio (sidewall height to width or something like that), for a 14" wheel.
- hangonhn 8y ago
  I noticed that the other day too! Dumb question but what does the rest of the world do? Do they convert inches to mm or is the inches diameter just an approximation of the more exact metric diameters?
  - analog31 8y ago
    I can't speak for cars, but there's a similar situation with bicycle wheels and tires. There are all sorts of historical measures, such as "26 inch" and "700c," but at the same time most rims and tires are marked with ISO dimensions that are in mm and quite well defined. So for instance my "27 x 1-1/8" tires are also ISO 28-630, where 28 is the approximate inflated width, and 630 is a particular dimension of the rim. When I buy a new tire, I look at the ISO number to make sure I got the right size. I recently restored an old Schwinn with its own oddball tire diameter, but ISO numbers published by modern tire makers got me up and running with new tires. I think that in a lot of cases, English vs metric is a moot point because a tool is so specialized (spark plug wrench) or because production tools are computerized and switch unit systems as needed. On a milling machine, all dimensions boil down to the number of stripes on a precision glass scale, regardless of what units you choose to specify. Historically, there are bike parts with mm diameter and English thread pitch, such as some old French pedals.
- nlawalker 8y ago
  I just learned about Nominal Pipe Size, in which the number that precedes the word "inches" does not refer to any actual measurement on the pipe. The specific characteristic of the gas grill pipe hookup on the back of my house that makes it a "half inch pipe" is that it has a .84 inch outer diameter; there is literally nothing about it, including the inner diameter, that could be described by the words "half inch". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominal_Pipe_Size https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominal_Pipe_Size
  - golem14 8y ago
    True for pvc pipes also. Quite confusing.
Gibbon1 8y ago
> They hate flat head screws My experience with flat head screws in a production environment was the driver slipping out of the screw and scratching the paint on the part being assembled. Boo! My experience with Philips is, works great as long as people use the exact correct driver, which they won't. Which results in a striped screw and a striped driver. The latter like a bad penny will go on to strip more screws till someone holy and wise (me) tosses it in the dumpster. So Flat, just don't. Philips is okay for light duty. Anything else use a Torx or Hex.

agumonkey 8y ago

Unless you use LISP sockets

TeMPOraL 8y ago
In true Lisp fashion, my kitchen knives can macroexpand to fit into any screw socket I need them to.