Swapped my impact driver for a ratcheting screwdriver on a multi-unit job and it saved me 2 hours

I was fixing up 12 identical fridge handles in a condo complex near St. Louis last Tuesday. Normally I'd grab my impact driver for speed, but I got tired of swapping bits and stripping the soft screws. So I tried an old-school ratcheting screwdriver I had in my bag, figuring it would be slower but more gentle. Turned out I finished each unit in about 4 minutes versus 6, because I wasn't fighting with the clutch or swapping sockets. Plus zero stripped screws, which meant no cursing and no returns. Has anyone else found a basic hand tool beats power for certain batch repairs?

3 comments

3 Comments

aaron89620d ago

Dude, that's a solid find. I hate stripping screws too, it's the worst lol.

lisa97620d ago

Aw man, I dunno if it's THAT serious with stripping screws, they're just screws right? @jaken23 sounds like he's got his whole life planned around saving two minutes.

jaken2320d ago

...I actually read something a while back about how ratcheting screwdrivers have a better torque control than impacts for small screws, which makes sense now. My buddy who works on appliances swears by them for anything with soft metal or plastic, says he can feel exactly when the screw's gonna strip. I never really thought about it until you broke down the time savings like that... 4 minutes versus 6 adds up fast when you're doing twelve units. Plus no stripped screws means you're not losing another 5 minutes digging out a torx bit to extract it.