Stripped every time

[Tinkerin_wit_tools]

Lately, I have been doing alot of drilling and using wood screws with each project. This may sound so amatuerish to everyone, but, since I am one, well, it sounds normal to me. Every time that I put a screw into wood, I always strip the head and leave them half in something. I don't even have an extractor set, and some of them tend to be in tight spots in between the frame of the garage for example, so I had to put the screw in at an angle. I always drill pilot holes one measurement smaller so the screws will "bite" into the wood, which I was always taught. No matter what they all look like a real shoddy job. What am I doing wrong? Besides more experience, what do I need??? Please help this poor shmuck!

[Kman]

Are you using screws with a phillips head? Those have a tendency to strip if enough pressure isn't used.

I like the square head and torx bits, and although they are more expensive, they don't strip.

What type of screws are you using? Hopefully not drywall screws. Deck screws tend to hold up better. Make sure you put firm pressure on the back side of the drill as you drive the screws .

[pushkins]

I agree, in essence Phillips and flat drive screws are fundamentally flawed, flats have very little surface for the screw driver blade to bite on and Phillips have a taper that encourages the driver to lift out of the screw. I too favor torx and square drive.
Something that will help you is to have a bar of soap with you, just rub the screw on the soap a little before driving it in, the soap will act as a lubricant and make your life much easier.
If your using a drill to drive the screws in make sure you keep constant firm pressure on the drill.

[Tinkerin_wit_tools]

I agree, in essence Phillips and flat drive screws are fundamentally flawed, flats have very little surface for the screw driver blade to bite on and Phillips have a taper that encourages the driver to lift out of the screw. I too favor torx and square drive.
Something that will help you is to have a bar of soap with you, just rub the screw on the soap a little before driving it in, the soap will act as a lubricant and make your life much easier.
If your using a drill to drive the screws in make sure you keep constant firm pressure on the drill.

You seem to reply to many of my problems, and I can't thank you enough for taking your time. Well, after many a headache, I went back to the Depot and voiced my concerns to a former contractor which helped me out also. You see, just like many inexperienced customers, I purchase the zinc wood screws and he told me how soft that metal was and that stripping the head would be so easy, for anyone. He recommended(and I haven't tried it yet) to get a box of drywall screws. I am not sure what this black metal is, but he told me how sharp they are and that he never had to drill pilot holes for them. They would go through hard wood like butter. Looking forward to extracting what I messed up this weekend and putting them to the test. What do you think??? The ones that come in a box of the torx or hex heads were three times the cost, so I wanted to stick with the phillips just to see what they can do....

[pushkins]

If it's for a quick fix and NOT exterior then the drywall screws will do just fine, they are not ideal. Drywall screws have very little strength so don't use them where that is needed, they are designed and intended for use in drywall. If you ever try to install drywall screws into hard wood like aged oak or even old pine studs (old homes) the screws will more often then not snap.

[Tinkerin_wit_tools]

If it's for a quick fix and NOT exterior then the drywall screws will do just fine, they are not ideal. Drywall screws have very little strength so don't use them where that is needed, they are designed and intended for use in drywall. If you ever try to install drywall screws into hard wood like aged oak or even old pine studs (old homes) the screws will more often then not snap.

Well, since I do have an old home and not to familiar with telling the difference in types of woods, then what would you recommend drilling into studs for mounting purposes? Usually, in the garage and in the basement, there are things that I will need to install, and there is not much more than particle board that the previous owner had in between the studs. Basically, what I do is get some 2x6's and cut them down to size to drill into the studs to mount cabinetry, fuse boxes, etc. I know that one screw wouldn't be a cure all for all jobs, but what would you recommend I use in those instances??? This is mostly what I have been doing over the last year or so.........

[pushkins]

I would recommend square drive exterior screws, square drive because they are hard to strip and the driver never backs out, and exterior simply because you can use them in and outside (kinda 2 for 1 deal). They are strong and have considerable shear strength. Seldom require pre drilling, they might be a little expensive for a DIYer at $28/box but a box is going to last a home DIYer a long time.
As a note: never use drywall screws to hold up cabinetry, drywall screws have very little (to none) shear strength and all weight on upper cabinets is stress on screws in a"shear" plane.

[mrcaptainbob]

Screw stripping...

Not to mention...use a new, or 'fresh' screw driver tip. The screw driver tips often get slightly rounded on the edges. When that happens, the tips roll out of the screw slots much easier and that in turn rounds the edges of the screw slots. A complete surface contact is what's needed. For slotted screws, the proper sized flat screw driver blade with sharp edges will fill the slot side to side and be the full length of the slot, too. If the blade is thinner than the screw slot, then only the leading edges of the screwdriver are contacting the screw. Sounds like a lot of over-kill drivel, but filling the screw slots completely, phillips or flat, will help a lot. And consider the many different shapes and sizes of phillips. Fit the screw driver tip to the screw and check it closely. A Reid Prince looks an awful lot like a #2 at a quick glance.

[Tinkerin_wit_tools]

I would recommend square drive exterior screws, square drive because they are hard to strip and the driver never backs out, and exterior simply because you can use them in and outside (kinda 2 for 1 deal). They are strong and have considerable shear strength. Seldom require pre drilling, they might be a little expensive for a DIYer at $28/box but a box is going to last a home DIYer a long time.
As a note: never use drywall screws to hold up cabinetry, drywall screws have very little (to none) shear strength and all weight on upper cabinets is stress on screws in a"shear" plane.

I managed to extract the old Zinc scews, and they were a bit of a job since they were just over 2". I put the square drive exterior screws in and they zipped in like butter. Thank you so much!!! Now since I know what to use, I will always keep them on hand in my tool box. You have always gave great advice and I wish I could thank you with more than just a thumbs up. Hooray for contractors............

[pushkins]

Glad we can help, there's always lots of good advice here from the very handy home handy people to contractors with years of experience.