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Our screwdriver took three years [video]

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Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#61

As someone who spends a good portion of his workday using screwdrivers on industrial equipment and computers, I still don't understand why you'd want a ratcheting one.

It really is a matter of convenience. Linus's work is obviously mostly with computers and servers, where you often work in tighter spaces; not having to reposition your whole hand (and/or pull the screwdriver out of the screw and reposition it because of a lack of space) is a nice convenience. Plus, most computer screws are not really tightened very much, so you'll be done with a few flicks of your wrist. He also exp…

> He also explicitly mentions he uses the ratchet by turning only the axle and keeping the handle steady in his hand for a lot of the screws.

This is shown in action at this point in the video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K5Gqp1cEcM&t=606s

In many ways, this mimics the function of a jewelers screwdriver:

https://www.victornet.com/milpixpics/1315_GEN-SPC-100.jpg

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"The ratchet is based on Megapro's long-standing & reliable design, but has been significantly modified to suit our needs. We reversed the ratchet direction (right for clockwise, left for anti-clockwise), adjusted the spring for lighter back-force which allows you to ratchet-drive even very small screws, and optimized for smoothness and quiet function. It's rated for operation of up to 220 inch-pounds of force." opti…

> optimized for an extra $10.00 Megapro may have larger economies of scale and therefore lower costs, or Megapro may have already paid off / amortized the cost of development and so felt its margins were already without having that included in the price anymore.

That’s not how a business sets prices. It charges as much as consumers are willing to pay.

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#63

I always reach for the non-ratcheting screwdriver when working on electronics. I find the ratcheting mechanism on all drivers I've used to have too much resistance and just start screwing the screw back in rendering it useless and bulky. A bit drive with an end cap that rotates seems to work best for me. For automotive it's a different story, but then I'd use a ratchet wrench anyway, and fixed screwdrivers in the eng…

Idk what you call it but ones with a back knob that spins freely so you can press with your palm to hold it in place are my favorite for tiny screws. I definitely prefer ratchet for bigger stuff.

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#64

I still don't get why they, as a tech channel with a tech audience, chose the default bit set to include Robertson instead of Torx. It'll be no surprise this driver will be used mainly in an electronics context, where torx is commonplace and robertson hardly seen, even more so outside of north America.

I think they would be kicked out of Canada if they didn't. :-P

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#65
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quoted post unavailable.

On the contrary, I loved this video going into the details of the process. I'm an engineer, and a huge nerd though, and I've always hated ratcheting screwdrivers with a passion for the poor quality. I can't wait to try out one of these, if for nothing more than to pay for the LTT entertainment/content I enjoy.

All I did was ask for a summary. Then those who want can go into detail, and those who first want to read a summary (which used to be quite normal when you read e.g. a news article) only read that, or decide afterwards if they want to read further.

Another commentator provided the summary [1], the feature set is available in text supported by pictures at the second half of this page (you can skip the first ~50% of the page if you want to read the summary).

[1] https://www.lttstore.com/products/screwdriver

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#66
post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

kind of a shame that even though they're based in Canada, if I were to buy one from either company I'd have to pay USD to get it shipped 1 hour away in the same metro area. $10 USD for local shipping apparently

They did explain their reasoning behind this during WAN a few weeks ago. In short, they are trying to make shipping price more fair for the average customer (including those oversea, or in remote regions) by making shipping a bit more expensive where it is cheaper. Charging people nearby a bit extra allows them to offset some of those costs. They provided a few examples of backpacks shipping to remote regions in Cana…

I also live in Europe and I'd love to buy their merch but the shipping and customs costs add up immensely so there's no way I'm buying anything from them.

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#67
post #37
post #8

Not an apples-to-apples comparison, but I just wanted to see the price positioning for this screwdriver. It goes for $69.99 [0] and Megapro ratcheting screwdrivers (which they mentioned in their video) goes from ~$50 to $59.99, depending on what bits it comes with. [0] https://www.lttstore.com/products/screwdriver [1] https://megaprotools.com/collections/ratcheting-drivers

I got an iFixit Mako set for less than 60 or 70 USD on a Black Friday sale a couple of years ago. Should I get this screwdriver instead, or is the Mako set suffice? AFAICT the Mako set is better bang for the buck, but I don't know the pros and cons of this LTT screwdriver.

You can't really get it instead, you already have the other. Does it do what you want at a quality point you require? Is that worth selling at a heavy loss (eBay suggests £30 for a quick sale)? Are they even comparable products? The Mako looks like an ⅛" driver for small and odd security bits.

A smooth low-backlash ratchet is the USP. Conscious decisions about materials. I can't speak to your requirements.

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#68

As someone who spends a good portion of his workday using screwdrivers on industrial equipment and computers, I still don't understand why you'd want a ratcheting one.

I want, and have, both a ratcheting screwdriver and a "normal" one. For screws that a hard to reach, I don't want to lift the screwdriver between turns. There are certainly cases with tricky screws where a normal screwdriver is much more convenient. It really depends on what I'm doing.

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#69

As someone who spends a good portion of his workday using screwdrivers on industrial equipment and computers, I still don't understand why you'd want a ratcheting one.

I highly prefer a ratcheting screwdriver if I have to remove a stubborn philips or pozidriv screw, especially if the screw is not directly accessible or there's limited space for my hand. This allows me to keep a good grip and the pressure on the screw all the time, ensuring the screwdriver head doesn't slip out of position. I also find it faster to just twist the shaft of the screwdriver once the screw is loose, som…

The locking mechanism is really where many cheap screwdrivers fail. If it's to easy to hit, or doesn't lock cleanly in place, it can be pretty annoying.

Re: Our screwdriver took three years [video]

#70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a Canadian thing.

While true, I've never seen it on a piece of tech. If this is meant to be a general around-the-house screwdriver set, then the price point is way off. If this is meant to be more of a tech-focused set, missing Torx seems really dumb.

For most tech related tasks they could get rid of the flat-head bits and replace those with the Torxs. If they really wanted to keep the Robertson bits.
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