Help me figure out where I can find this screwdriver for 'bucker bobbins!

[John Carlsen]

Hey guys, I found this on Stew Mac's site, and I don't really know where to find it other than with their big set of small bits, but would love to have one so i don't slip off the humbucker pole pieces and mar the bobbins with my screwdriver. Help!

[David King]

Why don't you slip a piece of rigid tubing over a standard screwdriver tip?

[big_teee]

I always wondered why they didn't go to another type of screw head.
I have some 5-40 screws with phillips heads.
I take one of those and my electric screwdriver and tap all the holes first.
The Phillips head doesn't slip out as bad as the blade.
Then after winding I use the Fillister head screws.
They go in much easier after they are tapped.
I'm sure there are other tricks used here for that also.
B_T

[David Schwab]

I always wondered why they didn't go to another type of screw head.
I have some 5-40 screws with phillips heads.

Slotted screws are evil. I only use phillips if I can help it.

I used to have a driver tip like that. I forget where I got it, and have since lost it. But it wasn't from Stew-Mac.

[John Carlsen]

Yeah, I just wish that there were phillips head pole pieces, then i'd be in business. Say, do you guys use a power drill, or only by hand? It's really hard for me to do them by hand because I have bad tendonitis, so it's pretty tough for me. Good idea about the tapping first! I think I may actually have the right sized tap bit for this, I'll have to try it on one of my scrap bobbins. Thanks guys!

[big_teee]

Yeah, I just wish that there were phillips head pole pieces, then i'd be in business. Say, do you guys use a power drill, or only by hand? It's really hard for me to do them by hand because I have bad tendonitis, so it's pretty tough for me. Good idea about the tapping first! I think I may actually have the right sized tap bit for this, I'll have to try it on one of my scrap bobbins. Thanks guys!

I do it all with the cordless drill.
I tap the bobbins with the phillips and cordless before I wind them.
That way if I have an accident and scar one, I throw it in the none sell pile. lol
If you use the cordless horizontal on a shop towel then If you slip off it doen't drop down and gouge.
I had lots of trouble with this when I first started making Hummers.
Then after the winding I put the slotted fillister screws in the bobbin being extra careful.
Later,
B_T

[copperheadroads]

A drinking straw will fit tight over a fillister screw
i put a straw over the screw , snip it off with scissors just about 1/4 above the screw then use your power driver ,it will hold bit from slipping
it works great

[David King]

John,
get a good quality, USA made spiral point tap (aka gun tap) from Cleveland or OSG etc, mount it in a small LiPo cordless drill (these weigh under 2 LBS and will run continuously with two batteries). You can clean up those bobbin holes in a few seconds. I would use a screw driver blade bit in the drill as well, just start with a thick one and grind it down until it's almost a tight fit in the slot of your screws (if it starts out too thin you can grind the tip back to where it's thicker), you'll have a lot fewer problems if everything fits right and the tip of the blade is sharp. You can magnetize the tip with a small neo stuck to the side and the whole job will be quick, easy and hopefully painless.

[David Schwab]

A drinking straw will fit tight over a fillister screw
i put a straw over the screw , snip it off with scissors just about 1/4 above the screw then use your power driver ,it will hold bit from slipping
it works great

That's also what I do.

[big_teee]

I just tried something new this afternoon, that I think David King suggested.
I have a 5x40 Tap. I chucked it up in my small 12V Cordless drill on low speed.
I Tapped a bobbin from the rear of the bobbin.
It is so quick and Zero effort.
If you do it don't go to far to the end of the tap, cause it will strip the threads.
After Tapping you can thread the screws in with your fingers.
I will do it like this from now on.
Give it a try it works great.
If you use metric screws you may need a metric tap.
I think that should end my scratched bobbins in the future.
Good Luck,
B_T

[John Carlsen]

That sounds great Terry. I'll have to give it a try. Say, where do you get your polepieces from? I get mine from MOJO, so I can't remember off the top of my head what the official size is. Thanks!

John

[copperheadroads]

5-40 x 3/4 "
unless there metric
M3 x 0.5 thread, 0.850" overall length

[jason lollar]

i make those out of a nylon spacer with an inside diameter the size of the screw head and I epoxy it onto a slot head screw driver I cut the handle off to chuck in a drill. You can glue a piece of felt over the end of the spacer and you can set how deep or how much you want the screw head to stick out by how you align the spacer with the end of the screw driver blade- they last years, I have one thats over a decade old so the few minutes it takes to make one is nothing.

[big_teee]

i make those out of a nylon spacer with an inside diameter the size of the screw head and I epoxy it onto a slot head screw driver I cut the handle off to chuck in a drill. You can glue a piece of felt over the end of the spacer and you can set how deep or how much you want the screw head to stick out by how you align the spacer with the end of the screw driver blade- they last years, I have one thats over a decade old so the few minutes it takes to make one is nothing.

What kind of a nylon spacer?
Thanks,
Terry

[David King]

What kind of a nylon spacer?
Thanks,
Terry

AKA electrical standoff. You can buy them in many sizes at most if not all hardware stores.