camera repair screwdrivers

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retro

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My favorite phillips head screwdriver finally broke. It was the
perfect size for removing outer body screws and many others.
But, I bought it so long ago I can't remember where I got it and
it had no size marked on it. It seemed to be about 1/16 inch head.

Most of the ones I see are cheapo. I bought a set of Wiha drivers
but their smallest phillips size (#000) is still a bit too big.

Where can I get a decent phillips screwdriver for cameras?
 
Yes, Home Depot does sell sets of instrument screwdrivers, including Philips and blade. Possibly not the greatest quality, but they do work.
 
The set I use came from Hobby Lobby, a large chain hobby shop here in the States. It has both straight and phillips, but I don't know the official sizes of them. I've seen individual small phillips screwdrivers of about the same size at the Ace Hardware store, but I do not remember the actual size or price.
 
Thanks for the replies.

Well, I've done a little research and discovered that not all 4-blade
screwdrivers are phillips types. This sort of jogged my memory
and I recall reading about this years ago in some Romney literature.

There is a screwdriver called a JIS type S which looks like a phillips
but it actually has a different shape. JIS means Japanese Industrial
Standard. A JIS driver will also fit a phillips screw but a phillips driver
won't necessarily fit a JIS screw correctly.

There is also another type called a recessed cross point driver
but I don't think that's what I need for cameras.

I think it's the JIS driver that I'm looking for and they make
them down to a size #000 which appears to be smaller than
the 1/16" phillips.

More info here:
http://www.moodytools.com/MTI_CATALOG_PAGE_11.pdf

Anyway, I ordered a set of Moody JIS drivers so I will see.
 
retro said:
Anyway, I ordered a set of Moody JIS drivers so I will see.
Click to expand...

Please let us know how you get on with them when they arrive! I have a Japanese lens that really needs a total degrease, but I had to settle for just doing the aperture as I was starting to lunch screw heads trying to get it apart. I rather think that they might have been JIS screws...

What price were they?

Adrian

PS Nice Balda as an avatar!
 
Muggins said:
Please let us know how you get on with them when they arrive!
Click to expand...

I will.


What price were they?
Click to expand...
$22 for a set of four, size #000, #00, #0 & #1


PS Nice Balda as an avatar!
Click to expand...
Thanks. It's Baldamatic III with the 35mm lens. Found in near
mint condition at a yard sale for $1. Sadly, I couldn't get used to
the front-mounted shutter release and sold it.
 
Thanks, Bob - if they are good I'll get a set myself as I can get them from the UK without paying VAT (that I can live with - it's the £8 fee I then pay on top for the Royal Mail - the national post service - to use a private courier to return it to them from Customs! - that hacks me off!).

Pity about the Balda - I have a Baldessa 1b (I think) that's obviously about the same date which my girlfriend uses - says it's the most left-hander friendly camera she's ever come across.

Adrian
 
Well I got the Moody JIS screwdrivers. The size #000 does fit
the small external body screws on Japanese cameras though
not quite as well as my old mystery screwdriver. It still seems
a little big to me. Perhaps my old driver was a JIS #0000, if
there is such a thing.

I also got a set of cheapo phillips drivers that go down to 1/16"
in size. The 1/16" is a little smaller than the JIS #000 and it seems
to work about as well as the JIS #000.
 
If you're in the U.S., RadioShack sells several sets. I like the large 15- or 18-piece set that also includes a couple of nut drivers.

They sell smaller sets, but some of them have a rivet at the end that protrudes slightly and isn't as comfortable to use.
 
The Husky brand driver sets at Home Depot are a good stand-in for my Wiha set, and at ~$5 each I keep one of each (screw driver + torx) in my desk. The ones with the interchangeable tips that store inside the handle are the ones I'm talking about, and are a great deal. I believe the smallest phillips tip on these is just a tad smaller than my smallest Wiha...
 
Thanks -- I'm aware there are lots of driver sets available. That's
not the problem. I'm looking for a special fit driver to replace one
that broke. Read thread for details.
 
retro said:
Thanks for the replies.

Well, I've done a little research and discovered that not all 4-blade
screwdrivers are phillips types. This sort of jogged my memory
and I recall reading about this years ago in some Romney literature.

There is a screwdriver called a JIS type S which looks like a phillips
but it actually has a different shape. JIS means Japanese Industrial
Standard. A JIS driver will also fit a phillips screw but a phillips driver
won't necessarily fit a JIS screw correctly.

There is also another type called a recessed cross point driver
but I don't think that's what I need for cameras.

I think it's the JIS driver that I'm looking for and they make
them down to a size #000 which appears to be smaller than
the 1/16" phillips.

More info here:
http://www.moodytools.com/MTI_CATALOG_PAGE_11.pdf

Anyway, I ordered a set of Moody JIS drivers so I will see.
Click to expand...


Actually, the screws used for cameras are far more likely to be crosspoints than phillips, although both are commonly used. You really need both. http://www.rapidonline.com/Tools-Fa...rs/Miniature-crosspoint-screwdriver-set/30526

As for phillips head screwdrivers, Wiha makes the smallest (#000 size): http://www.filmtools.com/wih000minphi.html
 
sepiareverb said:
Are the JIS drivers less pointy than the phillips- more like a phillips with the tip ground off? That's a new type to me.
Click to expand...

The JIS type screwdrivers come to a right angle between the cross-blades, the phillips screwdrivers are rounded between blades. Unless the slots on the screw head have rounded inner points, a phillips screwdriver will not quite fit it. Well, if you try to use a phillips screwdriver on a cross point screw, you can strip off the sharp points in the screw slots and then the phillips might fit.
 
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