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Spent 20 years using a flathead screwdriver as a pry bar before I saw the light
Last month I snapped the tip off my favorite old Craftsman screwdriver prying open a paint can, and a kid at the hardware store just looked at me and said 'you know they sell pry bars for like six bucks right?' I guess I figured if it worked it was fine, but now I'm wondering what else I've been doing wrong for decades. Anybody else have that moment where a 20 year old habit got called out in five seconds?
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michael51926d ago
OH come on now. A screwdriver IS a pry bar, you just have to use the right technique and not be a complete animal about it. I've been using the same flathead for prying stuff for 15 years and it's still going strong because I know how to treat my tools. The real problem is people buying those cheap junk screwdrivers that snap if you look at them wrong, not the method itself. You're telling me you've NEVER used pliers as a hammer or a butter knife as a flathead? That kid at the hardware store probably owns a torque wrench for changing his car's oil too.
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norag5526d agoMost Upvoted
Point me to the actual rating on that screwdriver shaft that says it's designed for prying. It doesn't exist because it's not a pry bar. The steel is heat treated different, the handle is designed for twisting torque not sideways force. I watched a buddy try to pop a paint lid with a Snap-on flathead and the tip just curled right over. That thing cost him 40 bucks and now it's a bent piece of junk. Using a butter knife as a screwdriver doesn't mean it should be done either, it just means you were lazy and lucky.
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