Quality Screwdrivers: The right tool for the job

Message

nichevo · #1 Post by **nichevo** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 8:49 am

Any lamebrain can find the right size screwdriver cheaply, no doubt, but yet I find that some of the screws on say a T41 are not so easy to turn. There's at least one (keyboard maybe) which seems quite "springy" and requires a lot of force, not to turn so much as to keep the bit in the head and not stripping it. Can anyone recommend a good type/brand of driver, or a set of drivers, or of driver bits for these screws, with a nice fine sharp head of the correct size which will grip the screw properly and not tend to ream it out?

Also the HMM says replace any screws with new nylon-coated screws. Does anyone feel the need for a new set of screws each time you open a case? I guess this bars buying a set of used screws? Can you dip the old screws in nylon or wax or the like?

Just in the interest of doing an A1 job. Best N

#2 Post by **richk** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 3:50 pm

I don't use new screws unless the heads are "screwed up" (no pun intended). I have used lots of screwdrivers. I used to go through about 3 electronics screwdrivers a month. Now I use a Husky 8-in-1 slotted/phillips screwdriver, which is about $5 at home Depot. The SKU number is 160-149. I have used the same one for about a year and a half. The biggest Philips (size 1) fits almost all the Thinkpad screws. I use the smallest (size 000) for some of the screws inside LCD screens and some of the X60/X61 screws inside the case.

Thinkpad Lover · #3 Post by **Thinkpad Lover** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 4:42 pm

Hey again Nichevo,

I've met that 1 troublemaker screw on a T41. I've shaken hands with him. We've had many battles. He doesn't seem to want to go peacefully. I've met him on a T42 also. I've tried every possible size attachment from several mini-screwdriver kits I purchased online. What I've found is that it takes the right attachment, and a lot of finesse, coaxing and elbow grease and he'll finally come out but no doubt 99% of the time someone has previously tried to open up that machine without the right attachment or patience level and started stripping the screw head... then they gave up, or maybe succeeded in opening up the machine and closed back up the machine using the same damaged screw. How inconsiderate

Once I finally get that screw out I throw him away immediately and find an exact match which I usually have lying around. I don't bother purchasing new screw kits since I have a (very large but disorganized) collection of every imaginable size from opening up hundreds of T4x's. Another thing about the T4x's are the number of different screw types used on the back cover. Now I've got their exact location memorized and can disassemble and reassemble a T40 completely within minutes but I remember how tricky it was trying to reassemble my first one years ago before I got the brilliant idea of marking their location. Wish the T4x's were like the R51 which uses one main (and easy to remove) screw throughout the chassis. BTW I would definitely check out the screwdriver kit mentioned by the moderator above.

Good luck on the business,
Daniel

ajkula66 · #4 Post by **ajkula66** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 11:35 pm

Thinkpad Lover wrote:

Wish the T4x's were like the R51 which uses one main (and easy to remove) screw throughout the chassis.

I'm fairly certain that you've mistaken R51 for another model since what you've stated is incorrect.

T4x and R5x have the same basic screw layout - especially for the keyboards which *are* one and the same - apart from the battery compartment where R5x has additional screws securing the palmrest/bezel under the battery itself. The type of screws is not the same, though, although their length matches and they are interchangeable, apart from the aforementioned three in the battery compartment.

To OP: applying light pressure on the keyboard on the opposing side of the screw usually works in my not-so-modest experience with these machines.

I don't replace screws with new ones, either. The screwdriver I use was made by Adtran. No, I'm not kidding. Got a few of them at a seminar I attended some time ago, pretty sure they do not sell these on regular basis.

Have fun.

nichevo · #5 Post by **nichevo** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 12:01 am

Hey Daniel, I see you've been where I am. It is really only that one particular one. I tried the trick of laying them out in the same pattern they were in the case, but as I used a paper towel with the creases from folding out of the dispenser (I was doing this in Dad's room at the rehab center) they rolled around a bit. Yet I think I managed. In future I must make a traveling kit centered around a bit of anti-static matting and another mat of something the screws will stick or be impressed into, maybe a really big refrigerator magnet type of thing.

Upon reflection I remember constantly wishing for a magnetic screwdriver but again, I managed. I have a set of six thin drivers with bases on swivels so you can really bear down with the heel of one hand while turning with the fingers of the other. The fit was good enough I suppose.

But what I think it is, these were dime store drivers - long story short - cast heads, rounded tip, the blades or edges also somewhat rounded, black meaning probably cheap carbon steel if not soft iron. They did the other screws just fine but I sweated that one keyb screw.

I have the mental picture of getting the finest German or Swiss or Swedish or Japanese steel or whoever makes cold forged screwdrivers like prize cutlery, where the heads will be fine and sharp enough to draw blood and, more importantly, really bite into the heads. Maybe watchmaker grade or surgical grade or some such. I will look at the recommended Husky, thank you richk, since you recommend.

George, thank you; had considered pressing on the keyboard opposite the screw, but I had the machine closed up (was working on a non-hospital-grade tray table in, as I say, a room in a nursing home) and was concerned how I would manage everything while holding the sucker in one hand. I suppose on a good table, opening the laptop fully and laying it out flat, I could put say a matchbook or other small flat object under that spot and pressing down git'r'done. Yet I did feel a really good sharp biting screwdriver was the answer rather than mashing keys. Sadly I doubt I would ever find an Adtran-labeled screwdriver or someone who could speak intelligently about its provenance, but I will think it over. I suppose there is always eBay.

Hmm, does IBM make tool kits? Would they be top notch?

....

Mmmm, richk, upon looking that Husky might be the one. This one?

Husky 6-Piece Phillips and Slotted Screwdriver Set

Model # 74501

Internet # 100074336

Store SKU # 163149
4.9 / 5
(12)
Write a Review

$5.97 /ST-Set

They say the heads are precision formed, which is what I'm driving at, I guess. I also see they have another with Torx, which will be good if I ever get suicidal enough to start playing with HDD innards or Macs, or securing HDD covers with "security screws." Thank you! That looks like a great place to start. Wonder if you can buy a whole shooting-match of fine bits in that size, which must be mini-standard.

ajkula66 · #6 Post by **ajkula66** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 12:11 am

IBM barely makes anything nowadays, but you can get a mortgage from them....

As for Adtran screwdrivers - the size is perfect - but it's really like owning a Fender or Dodge-labelled screwdriver...

...probably made somewhere far away and stamped with a name requested...nothing really special about it apart from size/shape, a nice promo gift, though...

Couldn't find any hand tools on this page, maybe I didn't look hard enough...

http://www.adtran.com/web/page/portal/A ... ts_landing

Have fun.

#7 Post by **JaneL** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 12:06 pm

Hmm, does IBM make tool kits? Would they be top notch?

Years ago, I had an IBM screwdriver that one of the mainframe SAs left behind. On the (black) handle, it said IBM on one side and Snap-On on the other.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

#8 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 12:40 pm

This topic has already been discussed - http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=89928
....and I gave some recommendations in that thread.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Wiha-26190-7-Piece- ... 43a67f7be1

As far as IBM tools, Jane is correct with regard to Field issue tools for IBM techs...Snap-on (at least at one time when I was one). I don't believe IBM ever produced tools for commercial retail sale, but I know for a fact that they used to and still do make their own specialty tools for their own repair techs and production lines for jobs where other tools do not exist ..

kenf · #9 Post by **kenf** » Thu Jun 23, 2011 6:37 pm

Hey Nichevo,

I was reading your posts about taking apart your Thinkpad and it put me in mind of having disassembled my daughter's laptop (since this is a Thinkpad Forum, I will not mention its Make/Model). I found instructions and digital photos (not from the manufacturer but an owner) on the Net along with some good advice. The guy recommended using a muffin tin like a matrix and then putting similar screws together starting at Row 1 Column 1 and going across then down. I found this to be pretty helpful. Also along those lines of thinking if you are working on a tray table you might be able to make use of one of those plastic fishing tackle boxes in a similar manner - besides, they would also have a snap on lid that might keep things pretty secure if the meal cart came by and you were only halfway done? Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Kenf

nichevo · #10 Post by **nichevo** » Thu Jun 23, 2011 7:26 pm

kenf wrote:Hey Nichevo,

I was reading your posts about taking apart your Thinkpad and it put me in mind of having disassembled my daughter's laptop (since this is a Thinkpad Forum, I will not mention its Make/Model). I found instructions and digital photos (not from the manufacturer but an owner) on the Net along with some good advice. The guy recommended using a muffin tin like a matrix and then putting similar screws together starting at Row 1 Column 1 and going across then down. I found this to be pretty helpful. Also along those lines of thinking if you are working on a tray table you might be able to make use of one of those plastic fishing tackle boxes in a similar manner - besides, they would also have a snap on lid that might keep things pretty secure if the meal cart came by and you were only halfway done? Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Kenf

I used a lunch tray with some success but it was recycled cardboard and thus warped and they rolled around a bit. If it were a good tray but more importantly if it were a plush surface or a soft mat or covered in sand then perhaps the screws would not have rolled about so. Tackle boxes someone suggested but their grid might not quite map to just how they are arranged by IBM - not quite a neat grid on their lappies.

I like the idea of a tray that doesn't roll. What could one line the tray with to keep the screws from rolling? Thick layer of damp paper towel? Impractical for wet around circuits of course. But you get the idea - you'd press down the screws and they'd make depressions in the towels and stay put.

Hmm what to use. A big sheet of refrigerator magnet? Does it come that big? A sheet of Play-Doh or Silly Putty?

Silly me - went to Lowe's to hunt the Husky screwdriver kit. LOL only Home Depot carries Husky. Lowe's carries Kobalt. I got that one, seems nice, though bits maybe not pointy enough, don't fit Tpad heads like they're married, but prob will work - other prob is the handle is aluminum. The Husky are I think plastic. This would be a big deal for insulation purposes. I had over an IBM tech checking the fit of a T400 lid. He used a pair of Husky drivers. Guess they don't give their guys free stuff anymore.

KRAZY KEV · #11 Post by **KRAZY KEV** » Mon Jun 27, 2011 4:35 pm

as a qualified motor mechanic and pc technician i know the importance of using a good quality tool. as a mechanic two makes spring to mind. SNAP-ON & FACOM. these brands are the dogs doo dahs in the world of tools. facom are the cheaper of the two but my opinion is that quality is equal. if you can get one try and get an anti cam-out screwdriver. these are designed to remove stubborn screws with minimal damage

Unknown_K · #12 Post by **Unknown_K** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 1:35 am

kenf wrote:Hey Nichevo,

I was reading your posts about taking apart your Thinkpad and it put me in mind of having disassembled my daughter's laptop (since this is a Thinkpad Forum, I will not mention its Make/Model). I found instructions and digital photos (not from the manufacturer but an owner) on the Net along with some good advice. The guy recommended using a muffin tin like a matrix and then putting similar screws together starting at Row 1 Column 1 and going across then down. I found this to be pretty helpful. Also along those lines of thinking if you are working on a tray table you might be able to make use of one of those plastic fishing tackle boxes in a similar manner - besides, they would also have a snap on lid that might keep things pretty secure if the meal cart came by and you were only halfway done? Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Kenf

Anything with a snap on lid will work great for those projects you have to put aside if something else came up.

I don't sort the screws by size, I put them in groups by where they were taken out of (and in the order they came out). My way makes it easier to put the machine back together in the reverse oder it was taken apart without missing a screw or worse using a different size screw that will make a hole in some plastic cosmetic piece.

Quality tools are great to own, but sometimes you need quality and specialized tools for the job.