hollow ground screwdrivers

[two bit okie]

Wally world has a red box of hollow ground bits and handle plus philllips and square head bits for a paltry $11.00 in sporting goods with the cleaning stuff and swivels, ect.

before ordering expensive ones, check these out. box says winchester gunsmith screwdriver set. they worked fine for my job replacing a front and middle barrel band on a rossi mod 92.

[olyinaz]

I have one for the range bag and while it certainly works just fine 90% of the time and is a good value, the smaller bits are a bit soft and will twist into junk with reluctant screws. Just sayin'.

Oly

[chadbr]

thanks for the heads up.... Better than nothing (which is what i have now!)

[two bit okie]

chad. my thoughts exactly

[Rusty]

Might be good for the range bag. I wonder if the smaller ones could be hardened?

[yooper2]

Oly is right, the little ones are a bit soft but they are handy to have around for tweaking on things. I keep the set I bought behind the seat of my truck.

Eric

[chadbr]

I finally picked up a couple of these - thanks again for the heads up.

Chad

[Griff]

Thanks for the tip. I need smaller set for the range box.

[kimwcook]

I finally bit the bullet and bought a set of thin bits from Brownell's for my LC Smith which has really thin slots. They are a real quality item and I highly suggest them. I can't stand working on something and the dog gone bit twists because it's too soft.

[L_Kilkenny]

I have 2 of the Walmart kits that I bought on clearance for $7 each before they changed everything to "Winchestor" badge. My intention was/is to grind some of the bits down for more perfect firearm specific fits but I've yet to do it. Overall I find it a pretty crappy little set but it works and the wife and kids act like they don't know they exist so they are generally where they should be when I need em. Can't say that for my other screwdrivers. Nevertheless I've actually found the good 'ol red handled 4 in 1 screwdrivers you see for about $5 to be handy around the guns. Only 2 sizes of straight and phillips but they are well chosen sizes IMO. Neither the kit nor the 4 in 1 will fit every gun need as is but they work and cost makes em a duh.

LK

[bdhold]

I would grab one. Even if it ends up in the kitchen junk drawer for honeydews.
Cheap Chinese hollow grounds have their place - you can always use them to supersede cheap tapered drivers.

[piller]

I have a set. I have replaced 4 bits in the last year due to twisting or breaking them. I have used them on things other than firearms. Harbor freight, Northern Tool and Equipment, Lowe's, and Home Depot all carry a bunch of hollow ground screwdriver bits which can be used to replace the ones in the kit. Yes it does raise the price of the kit over time, but that is done over time so that the cost doesn't seem so bad. I prefer the hardened bits when replacing them since the hardened variety last longer.

[FatJackDurham]

I am pretty clumsy and the first thing I did with one of those hollow ground screwdriver bits was put a nasty scar in my Rossi's receiver. Then, while unscrewing, I etched a ring around one of the bolt holes.

So, now, the first thing I do is grind only the barest corner off the edges of the bit, then rub it around in a peice of emery cloth in my hand to chamfor the edge. It still fits the screw, but if I miss a little, the smooth, rounded edge no longer scrapes the metal on my gun.

Wish I had been more careful, though. Live and learn.

[bdhold]

off today with my daughter - couldn't get her to bike ride, so she's playing Halo and I disassembled a $2000, 130-y-o reel I was hired to clean and refurbish.

You can see where people have buggered the screws trying to loosen them.


I used a pair of nylon-jawed tubing pliers with my hollow ground drivers (sprayed it with Boeshield last night)
and it came right apart this morning



It's a Leonard bi-metal, inner plates and spool are nickel-silver, the rest of the metal is brass.
You can't tell it now for the dealloying, but you'll be able to tell it when I'm done.

[JB]

Might be good for the range bag. I wonder if the smaller ones could be hardened?

I'd say they could, but I've never been able to master the art of hardening. I either get the steel too soft or too brittle.

[bdhold]

here's the outcome - tough to photograph now.
I reshaped the spring with radiused bending pliers and set tempered it.
Someone had bent it to change the winding direction.
The right tools are great.