• merc@sh.itjust.works
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    3 hours ago

    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.

    • rtxn@lemmy.world
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      2 hours ago

      Philips is designed to allow the screwdriver to slip out

      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.

      • Xatix@lemmy.world
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        1 hour ago

        People are brainwashed by phillips corporate propaganda to believe phillips is a good screw head.

      • merc@sh.itjust.works
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        2 hours ago

        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:

        Paradoxically, this very quality is what attracted automobile manufacturers to the Phillips screw. The point of an automated driver turning the screw with increasing force popped out of the recess when the screw was fully set, preventing overscrewing. Thus, a certain degree of cam-out was incorporated into the design from the beginning. However, what worked on the assembly line has bedevilled handymen ever since.

        https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/were-phillips-screwdrivers-designed-to-cam-out/57870/9