• AtHeartEngineer
    link
    fedilink
    English
    52 days ago

    Square (Robertson) and/or torx depending on application. Square should be for everyday things and torx should be for anything mechanical, yes I know there is a big gray area in the middle there, but flat head, phillips, and hex need to go.

    • kronisk
      link
      fedilink
      162 days ago

      Honest question, why not torx across the board? What do square do well that’s not covered by torx?

      • BarqsHasBite
        link
        fedilink
        English
        5
        edit-2
        2 days ago

        Robertson is tapered, so you just have to hit the hole somewhat and it’ll guide itself in real easy. Torx is fickle to line up and orientate.

      • AtHeartEngineer
        link
        fedilink
        English
        32 days ago

        The way I see it, anything with a square bit can be done by with a hand held screw driver, and anything with a torx bit should probably be torqued to a certain amount and/or be used with a screw gun. Square/Robertson bits are used super often in things like electrical panels and electronics. They are becoming pretty common for cabinetry also. I doubt you’ll see a torx screw in cabinets.

        • kronisk
          link
          fedilink
          22 days ago

          Thank you for replying. Robertson screws are not common in Scandinavia - at least I’ve never seen one IRL. I use torx for everything, never had an issue with hand screwing them, which is why I asked. But I’m not an expert or professional, just a home owner that tries to DIY as much as I can.

          Not having to deal with stripped screws is the biggest plus for me, I hate having to remove a Philips or flathead screw that someone else put in some hard-to-reach location that can’t be turned without breaking. (Which happens surprisingly often, actually.)

    • @blackris@discuss.tchncs.de
      link
      fedilink
      12 days ago

      I have never in my life seen such a screw. Hexagon is the shit here, when it isnt Phillips. Maybe coming from Ikea, I don’t know. Is this format a (popular) US thing?

      • AtHeartEngineer
        link
        fedilink
        English
        32 days ago

        Ya Ikea standardized on hex because it’s cheap to mass produce. It definitely strips though.

        Torx has slowly been gaining popularity in the US for a decade or two now, but sadly Phillips is still pretty popular and hex is pretty common also, you will see the square/Robertson screws a lot in electrical panels and in cabinetry but not super common at the hardware store.