On Tue, 19 Feb 2019 02:08:44 -0000, rbowman wrote:

On 02/18/2019 08:38 AM, Commander Kinsey wrote:
They shouldn't call them self tapping because they rarely do unless the
wood is very soft indeed. Usually the force to create the hole wears
off the er.... the bit the screwdriver goes into. I almost always use a
pilot drill first, unless I'm in a hurry, then I curse the bloody screws
when they burr.

Using the correct size of a quality screwdriver helps. What is the UK
equivalent of Harbor Freight?

I always use PZ2 screws with a PZ2 bit on an cordless drill. Not only is a power drill easier and faster than a manual screwdriver, but you can concentrate on holding it straight and providing enough force to keep the bit in the screw head, while the motor does the rotation. I'm talking about these sort of woodscrews (note this SORT, not these particular ones, this was the first link I found): http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/322667640506