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Step 12Slot Type Drive
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Cutting a slot in a screw head to turn it is an old idea: drawings from the 16th century show screws with slotted heads.
The advantages of the slotted head are that: most people have a screwdriver that fits them (sort of); worn drivers are easily reground; a new screw head slot can easily be cut with a hacksaw. Otherwise the slotted head is the worst screw drive system, and while very common, it is also generally obsolete. Some of its deficiencies include: the driver does not automatically center or line up with the slot (there is a picture of a driver tip that helps keep the driver on slot); it is easy to get off center; the user must keep the axis of the screwdriver aligned with the axis of the screw; the driver can engage the head in only two possible positions, at 180 degrees. The sides of most slotted screwdriver bits are tapered. When the driver is turned it tends to be pushed up and out of the screw head. This is called "camout", see glossary.
To add to the shortcomings of the slotted head, screwdrivers for slotted screws are usually described by the length of the shaft and the width of the tip; the crucial measurement, the tip's thickness, is rarely given. Any given tip width is sold in a range of thickness; the longer shafts usually have the thicker blades.
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Cutting a slot in a screw head to turn it is an old idea: drawings from the 16th century show screws with slotted heads.
The advantages of the slotted head are that: most people have a screwdriver that fits them (sort of); worn drivers are easily reground; a new screw head slot can easily be cut with a hacksaw. Otherwise the slotted head is the worst screw drive system, and while very common, it is also generally obsolete. Some of its deficiencies include: the driver does not automatically center or line up with the slot (there is a picture of a driver tip that helps keep the driver on slot); it is easy to get off center; the user must keep the axis of the screwdriver aligned with the axis of the screw; the driver can engage the head in only two possible positions, at 180 degrees. The sides of most slotted screwdriver bits are tapered. When the driver is turned it tends to be pushed up and out of the screw head. This is called "camout", see glossary.
To add to the shortcomings of the slotted head, screwdrivers for slotted screws are usually described by the length of the shaft and the width of the tip; the crucial measurement, the tip's thickness, is rarely given. Any given tip width is sold in a range of thickness; the longer shafts usually have the thicker blades.
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