On Tue, 17 Jan 2006 14:41:06 -0500, Keith Williams
wrote:

In article ,
says...
According to Keith Williams :
In article ,
says...
According to Keith Williams :

There was an article here once called "my outlaw toilet". Maybe it's
hiding screwdrivers.

If I need one, it's across the borDER to Canuckistan. Hmm, I guess
I'll need a passport...

The only reason why we have phillips screwdrivers is because _you_
guys use 'em. If it wasn't for that southern influence, it'd
all be Robertson or better.

AIUI the Robertson patent licenses were deemed too expensive. I've
used Roberson head screws whenever possible for about thirty years.
Unfortunately, they're not ubiquitous. Note, Robertsons aren't
perfect (clutch and Torx are better, though more expensive).

There have been non-Robertson square drive screws and drivers available
for quite some time. They're so interoperable it's seldom possible
to tell them apart so we call them _all_ Robertson - but many of them
aren't really. Patent-wise at least.

Interesting. What's the difference? I thought the patents ran
out, which is why we're seeing them (for at least 30 years) in the
States.

[Unlike the umpty-ump versions of Phillips which all behave noticably
differently.]

There are some that look like Phillips but are most certainly not.
HP used a screw that looked like a Phillips, but wasn't (IIRC it
had straight sides rather than curved). There were four radials
stamped in the head indicating the special head. I don't remember
the name of the head.


I have a screwdriver that comes with a lot of bits. It has standard,
Phillips, Torx (no 5-pointed though) and square. Then there's some
even stranger ones. There's one that looks like Phillips except the 4
points aren't quite aligned, and one with 3 points. Plus the security
bits with the recess in the middle. And I almost forgot, some shaped
like a bowtie.

Strictly speaking, McFeeley's (for example) sells square drive in the US,
not Robertson.

They may sell them, but aren't they still the "Robertson head"?


[snip]
--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.laughingsquid.com

"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what
to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb
contesting the vote." - Benjamin Franklin