I got a screwdriver for Christmas when I was a kid, around 1998. I'm sure it was a craftsman. It was black and had 6 different tips/shanks in the handle. There was a twist section at the hilt of the screwdriver and each tip had its own shank. You twisted the selector around and you could choose different screw drivers with out having those small bits that get lost. The screw driver shanks were trapped in the handle.

Does anyone remember this screwdriver? I was talking with a co-worker today about multi-tip screw drivers, and he had never heard of this screwdriver. I then tried to google it and have not been able to find one.

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I had one too. Craftsman made them, and you shook the shanks out and into position.

All 6 shanks were visible and around 3" long

Good luck man, maybe Snap-On had a version as well?

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the snap on version would cost at LEAST 400 bucks.

Personally, I don't know how they stay in business, yeah they are great tools, but I just recently bought a snap on 3/8ths ratchet, and for the same price I could have bought 8 craftsman ratchets, stanley ratchets, or dewalt ratchets, which are all pretty decent.

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For years I used a Craftsman 3/8 ratchet, like a decade. Finally it broke. I went and got a new one. It lasted 3 months. I got another. Another 3 months. I broke down and bought a Snap-On, knowing it cost 6 times as much. I cursed and grumbled that it had damn well last me 6 times as long...

So far so good. If it lasts 6 times as long as my original Craftsman, I'll die first. But it's certainly doing better than the new generation Craftsman.

MV

I had a screwdriver once.

A bit too weak for my tastes............all orange juice.

Now I drink Bourbon Manhattans made with Antica Formula Vermouth.

Fantastic.

I hear ya there. My dad was raised on Craftsman on the farm, so logically he's a fan, and all the tools hes bought me over the years have been Craftsman. (This is why I was pretty sure the screw driver was a craftsman) It was the perfect option, cheap enough for the weekend warrior, strong enough for a farmer or other not 100% full time mechanic to make a living with them. In fact if I remember correctly the farmer was Sears target market when they started selling Craftsman just about 100 years ago.

Anyway, I'd say 70% of my tools are Craftsman, 30% various Chinese junk. what is sad is that in the last 10 years the quality of the Chinese junk has been on the rise, and the quality of the Craftsman tools have been on the decline. And now even some of the Craftsman tools are made in China.

As a result my dad and I have taken to shopping at rummage sales and flea markets for Craftsman tools. There are still a lot of good pre-2000 vintage craftsman tools to be had cheap, but the problem is you can't ever trade them in if they break or you'll just end up with more Chinese junk.

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Cheap oriental versions are still out there. I have an oriental one somewhere but it does not function well. I have no ideal where it came from as I did not buy it.

Also have seen similar versions from time to time in hardware store chains. The craftsman may have worked better and perhaps the oriental one did as I got it well used is about all I remember. Gaget type tools usually never really catch on.

I just remembered the name of it! and googled it and found this picture!


Seems it was built for sears by a company called Wilton.

http://www.novationindustries.com/wilton-industries.aspx

I googled "Wilton screwdriver" and they have a similar screwdriver for sale under their name through Granger, but it says its made in china The Craftsman variety was made in USA.

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I have a lot of screwdrivers with changeable bits on them. But, a Mechanic needs to have Solidly made Screwdrivers as they used and Pry Bars and you occasionally have to Hammer on the ends of them.

I still have a Craftsman (the clear handle with red, white and blue panels) that had small interchangeable bits in the handle. But, you needed to dump them out in your hand to pic which bit you want and the bits were held in with a Magnet and a circular Wire Spring (gone).

Again for short bits. I have another Craftsman that is black and the Handle pulse up and exposes little Plastic Brackets that a whole bunch of the Little bits fit into and it is a ratcheting one.

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The oriental versions somewhat similar in function and appearances still abound. Personally I do not like them but for some people could be very useful. I have the typical full of screwdrivers drawer in my tool chest.

Not organized so I try to identify by colours and the contours of handles etc. I still have this bad habit of misplacing screwdrivers and of course it it is usually the most common ones that get displaced.

It's a law of physics that's pretty well known:
If you need a philips, there are only flatheads in the drawer.
If you need a flathead, there are only philips in the drawer.

If you need torx, there are only allens
If you need allens, there are only metrics and they strip the bolts

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$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

Real mechanics have pry bars and chisels....

I have a red, white and blue ratcheting Snap-On screwdriver which has to be at least 20 years old and works perfectly.
Not sure if it was a Dale Earnhardt model or maybe even something from the bicentennial....

Many of my tools are old Craftsman, but I don't believe I would buy new from them anymore.

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1983 300SD - 305000
1984 Toyota Landcruiser - 190000
1994 GMC Jimmy - 203000

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Correct, I had one but it broke because of poor materials. I mean, WTF is wrong with a screwdriver that cannot stand being rolled over by my truck accidentally? Unfortunately the replacement they gave me that obsoleted what we are talking about is a bunch of little replaceable bits.

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