ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area small screws or "arrruuuggghhhh!!!"

I have the worst problem with dropping screws and never being able to find them. The worst are cieling fan screws, the ones that hold the light kit on, you can't get them started then they fall and you can't find them. I try to put them in the end of my phillips and hold them with my finger while I attempt to start them with no success. Ballast screws and nuts are another one, trying to start them while you're holding the ballast up with one hand, balanced on top of your ladder. Yes I have big hands, I suppose that doesn't help. Well I just had to rant, I spent the whole day on ceiling fans and ballasts.
Anyone try those screwdrivers that hold on to the screw?

I have big hands too, BigB. I have a screwdriver that holds onto a slotted scew by spring pressure. The trick I've learned over the years is to watch the screw when I drop it.

Also, on a smooth floor, get a flashlight and scan low. The screw will cast a long shadow.

Dave

I feel your pain!

Funny thing is, I usually can find the screw if I HEARD where it went. Failing that, I start "sweeping" the area with a magnet.
I've had mixed luck with magnetic tips, and better luck using a nut driver instead of a screwdriver (where I can).

I don't know why they call 'em 'magnetic' ballasts...they don't stick to nuthin! :-)

Being a bit of a gearhead with engines dating from as early as 1921 its usually a one off nut or bolt to some obscure old thread standard that I end up dropping on the workshop floor that just happens to be the roughest bit of floor that dropped items just seem to evaporate into.

When I worked for the MOD it was the ****** nuts and bolts that held the hypertac connectors together that drove me crazy. Nearly as bad as BA nuts and bolts.

Simon

LOL

Never use nothing but a magnetic tip, and mostly w/ the cordless.(I hate when you drop them inside those big canopies)Can't remember the last lost one.

Hey Dave I always used to watch them fall too but The older I get the harder they are to see,like Reno said, sometimes I have to hear them.
I decided to get a good set of those retaining screwdrivers, do you know a good brand? I refuse to buy junk tools.

When I can't find a screw I've dropped, I drop a few more on purpose to watch how they bounce. I't works some times.

just put the fan together on the ground and hang it as one unit.. works all the time.. no lost screws, and you dont have to work upsidedown..

Don't laugh -- if you chew gum you have a "holding" screwdriver ! Old Timer showed this to me. A tiny piece of your chewing gum placed on the screwhead then stick it to the screwdriver. I thought the guy who told me this was "yanking my crank " but it does work.