Thread: Spiral Screwdriver Collection

Lee valley do sell these driver bit 'chucks' https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop...e-screwdrivers you can fit any hex bit you like in them then.

but you can just modify a ordinary magnetic hex bit driver adapter thing by grinding a flat on the end of the shank to fit in your spiral ratchet screwdriver

Originally Posted by draconus

The other set is a Yankee 100 Tool Set. Has the blackened spiral screwdriver. Not sure of the date of this one maybe 30-40's ? Although I did read somewhere the blackened version of spiral was done to prevent it reflecting light during WW2 ..whether this is just an urban myth or not I can not be sure.

Yankee 100 Tools.JPG

Although a black oxide treatment is an inexpensive way to forestall rust; and a lot of wartime practices were driven by "save money/time so the resources freed up can go toward winning the war." Wartime finishes were often pretty minimal.

I can add these to the collection from my late grandfather's collection. The ratchet screwdriver box is pretty much done but at least all the bits are there. The Yankee screwdriver only has 4 bits remaining.
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Huon Pine Fan: that Yankee is not, actually, a screwdriver, but a push drill: insert bit, locate where you want the hole, push and let the spring push the handle back, repeat. They're the bee's knees for installation of small hardware around the house, like brackets for blinds, because you can put them in the toolbag around your waist or in your back pocket while you're up on the ladder, without having to figure out where to set a larger drill on the ladder top (and watch it hit the floor - bit first, of course - when it slips off). They're also dynamite if you realize, when assembling furniture, that you forgot to drill a needed hole in a tight spot.