Wowstick cordless precision screwdriver

[mtdoc]

I've had this Hitachi for a few years now and have been very happy with it.

It is similar to the Panasonic above but faster RPMs and significantly cheaper as well.

[neslekkim]

when looking for the panasonic, I also found this:
http://www.bosch-professional.com/gb/en/gwi-10-8-v-li-33603-ocs-p/

started to wonder if this one could be good, atleast lets me come to tight spaces ..

[mikeselectricstuff]

Do any of thee alternates have a torque stop, as opposed to the normal limiter? This is what makes the Panasonic really good for smaller stuff

[neslekkim]

On the bosch it only says this:

7-stage electronic torque adjustment + drill setting

which I guess is as on normal drills etc.

But also this:

Motor brake for precise work when driving rows of screws

Wonder if that will help?

[KL27x]

The motor brake means that when you let go of the trigger, the chuck stops dead. This helps if you're, say, installing a wood screw and need to stop when it's flush, rather than stopping at a certain torque. The inertia of the chuck won't cause the screw to go a smidge too far.

The RA drivers are good for tight spaces. For most electronics work, you're not limited in space. So being stuck with 585 RPM is a compromise.

I use something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003BEE2LU?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
1300 RPM for zipping out screws. Clutch adjusts far enough down for insertion on most electronics work. Real one-handed, single-sleeve chuck takes 4mm or 6mm driver bits, or drill bits, with no play. You can even chuck up a small jeweler's screwdriver. And it has enough torque to drill big holes and turn deck screws to boot. It has a slip clutch and motor brake, and you can torque the screw manually if you let go the trigger. The runout is so low, it's good enough to use as a mini lathe.

For the tiny little cell phone screws, you're probably faster with a small-barrel manual screwdriver that spins easy with a twist over any powered tool, simply for the ergos. Getting the screw in the hole is the hardest part, there. In theory, the motor brake would help by allowing you to zip the screw in at high RPM and then stop short to finish manually. But in practice, any screw that needs that little torque where the clutch limit and/or inertia comes into play is going to be so short that you don't need a power tool, unless doing hundreds. For a specific project like that, you might want one of those fancy mains screwdrivers with the feather clutch; they come in flavors with 1000+ rpm with a clutch that adjusts down to nothing. Set up your assembly line, hang the driver on a stand, and get to work. For repair/prototyping with these tiny screws, this is where those cheapie little AAA battery deals can be handy, despite being slow. The umpteenth time you uncrew/rescrew the chassis to tweak things, you don't care how slow it is. You're taking a mental break, anyway.

A couple of months ago I bought the little Worx WX252 cordless driver here

I have one of those, too. The bit changer works great. The battery is ok. But it's like a Dremel driver. It's slowww. And no clutch. It doesn't need one, because it's so slowww.

[G0HZU]

I have one of those (Worx WX252), too. The bit changer works great. The battery is ok. But it's slowww. And no clutch.

Yes, it's pretty basic. It is a bit slow and it always sounds a bit tired, even on a full charge, but it does seem to keep going.

Do any of these alternates have a torque stop, as opposed to the normal limiter?

In the case of the WX252 I have no idea but I suspect it only has some form of crude self limiting.

Overall, it's a cheap compromise and I think it works quite well considering the price. For taking apart test gear and assembling flat pack furniture it seems fairly competent although that is definitely its upper limit. It isn't going to be able to screw in big woodscrews or undo anything tight.

[mtdoc]

Do any of thee alternates have a torque stop, as opposed to the normal limiter? This is what makes the Panasonic really good for smaller stuff

Hmm, I'm not exactly sure what you mean - but I think the answer for the Hitachi is no.  When the set torque is reached the clutch slips it does not stop the motor.  I can't say that this has caused any issues for my use - which is primarily normal assembly/disassembly - often of old test equipment.  I've never tried to use it for really small, precision stuff since I don't have very small precision bits for it.  Normal manual precision drivers work just fine for that.

[mikeselectricstuff]

Do any of thee alternates have a torque stop, as opposed to the normal limiter? This is what makes the Panasonic really good for smaller stuff

Hmm, I'm not exactly sure what you mean - but I think the answer for the Hitachi is no.  When the set torque is reached the clutch slips it does not stop the motor.

Yes - I mean that when it reaches the set torque, the motor stops and you need to release and re-press the button to restart.
This gives immediate feedback of when it's done (with slipping clutches  it can be hard to tell on low torque settings) and avoids had/tip damage due to spinning out.

[Psi]

I've only ever seen those smaller interchangeable driver bits in cheap china sets.
Never seen one that looked like it was made of proper metal.

The bit didn't even rotate centered during the closeup section of the video.

Seems like they spent most of the money getting it to look good.

[bapou]

Makita DF010DSE might be an alternative to the Panasonic EY 7410 proposed by Mike.
In Germany, it costs 1/2 the price;
weights 550g (50g more), has 7.2V, seems to have a torque stop
"Auto-Stop Clutch: Tool shuts off when clutch disengages for extra fastening control and prevents overdriving the fastener" and is slightly faster and stronger than the Panasonic.

But I don't own one (yet)

[neslekkim]

Great!, same here, better price, but the productpage at the reseller did not say anything about auto-stop, but find info about that on the productpage now, cool!

[fivefish]

Hmmm... Panasonic is 40% cheaper vs Makita on Amazon.

I placed the Panasonic on my Amazon wish list.

[mtdoc]

Yes - I mean that when it reaches the set torque, the motor stops and you need to release and re-press the button to restart.
This gives immediate feedback of when it's done (with slipping clutches  it can be hard to tell on low torque settings) and avoids had/tip damage due to spinning out.

Well damn. Now you've made me want a feature I never knew I was missing

Nah- sounds like a nice feature but not essential for my use.  I actually don't use the torque limit very often and when I do I don't have an issue with spinning out since I've learned to hold pressure until the clutch slips.

[bapou]

The prices seem to strongly depend on country.

Here are the manuals of the Makita and Panasonic machines:

ftp://ftp.panasonic.com/cordlesstool/ey7410/ey7410_en_om.pdf
http://makita.at/katalog/manuals/884799C976_97970.pdf

Clutch auto stop seems to be very similar/the same, starting at 0.29N (Panasonic) / 0.3N (Makita) and having 21 steps up to 2.9N.
Length of 276 vs. 279mm... Speed of 200 and 600 vs. 200 and 650RPM...

One differnce is that Makita writes that one would have to lock the machine before using it as a screwdriver while Panasonic seems to be directly
usable when it stopped (also confirmed by reviews)

Makita writes:
"Using the tool as a hand screwdriver:
Switch off the tool.
Move the lock button to the locked position A.
Turn the tool. "

But maybe this is just a safety issue? Would be great if somebody having this electric screwdriver could report this.

[neslekkim]

The prices seem to strongly depend on country.

Here are the manuals of the Makita and Panasonic machines:

I ended up ordering the makita, for half price compared to the panasonic, it's an no brainer.
I don't see it as an issue to lock it for using it as an screwdriver.

[KL27x]

Well damn. Now you've made me want a feature I never knew I was missing

Nah- sounds like a nice feature but not essential for my use.

It's actually not essential for most uses.

I have consulted regarding an assembly line using high speed screwdrivers with the slip clutch. Small screws in ABS plastic, and screw holes were being stripped. A lot of the workers blamed each other for keeping the screwdriver on for a second while the clutch was slipping, rather than letting off the button immediately. The ratcheting noise SOUNDS bad, afterall. A few minutes of experimentation showed you could let the screwdriver "click" indefinitely without any issue, so this was obviously not the problem. Even if you left trigger on and partially withdrew the bit from the screwhead and held it there, the worst you could do was some damage to the screwhead. But the sound of the clutch clicking would not be happening, and this would be a very odd thing to accidentally do.

The problem was the clutch was moving as the drivers were being handled. The fix was a piece of tape on each driver.

AFAIC, the sound of the clutch slipping is a beautiful thing. It's the sound of the tool being used properly, and if you hear it, it's the sound of a screw hole that is not stripped. To strip the hole, the clutch would have to be set so high that it didn't make that noise. The workers that were blaming the others were probably the ones stripping the holes, themselves, having tried to adapt to incorrect clutch setting.

For low torque applications, it is pretty hard to screw up the screwhead without actively trying. And with a clutch that works, it is impossible to over-torque and damage the hole.

[amyk]

Is this the Wowstick you're talking about?

http://www.dx.com/p/wowstick-a1-1-8-inch-mini-lithium-cordless-electric-power-screwdriver-w-led-light-silver-406198

The adverts are hilarious. "We ran out of idea" "In addition, what does make you keep?"

[mikeselectricstuff]

Is this the Wowstick you're talking about?

http://www.dx.com/p/wowstick-a1-1-8-inch-mini-lithium-cordless-electric-power-screwdriver-w-led-light-silver-406198

The adverts are hilarious. "We ran out of idea" "In addition, what does make you keep?"

It's like If Apple spoke Chinglish....

[neslekkim]

So I got this makita now, got myself an small suprise.. I have lots of normal bits that I thought I could use with this machine, but hey, almost lost the bit inside the machine..
It comes with two bits that are longer, and have an head in both ends, but my short bits I cannot use. damn.

[ajb]

Are the 'normal' bits you have insert bits like these?

If so, yeah, they don't work well in most quick-change hex chucks.  Fortunately, all you need to use them in your driver is an insert holder like this.  The one downside to that type is that the bit is only retained magnetically, so if the bit gets stuck in the screw head it may pop out of the holder, but you can get twist lock or ball detent holders that will retain insert bits much more securely. 

[neslekkim]

yes, like those short ones.

I have a lot of those adapters, but kinda the point of having an hex chuck would be to not add an extra adapter on top
I have searched around, and it's not too easy to find these in good sets, but will take a trip to a few shops here to see what they have. It seems it's some standard, e6, or e6.3 or something.

[ralphrmartin]

Well, in the end I got myself (from Taobao, while in China) a 6c screwdriver, an upmarket version of an 802, as well as a 3c screwdriver, an upmarket version of an 800. The former takes bits with a bigger shank, and has a higher maximum torque. Both use the same 18-36v power supply. I'm pretty pleased with both, with good torque control and you can get a wide range of bits for both sizes. See an earlier posting for more detailed discussion of the 800. I figured as these were a bit pricier than the equivalent 800 and 802, it might be worth paying slightly more, for hopefully better quality.

I've forgotten exactly where I bought them, but this site is representative of the ones on offer:
http://world.taobao.com/item/36330301419.htm

[bapou]

So I got this makita now, got myself an small suprise.. I have lots of normal bits that I thought I could use with this machine, but hey, almost lost the bit inside the machine..
It comes with two bits that are longer, and have an head in both ends, but my short bits I cannot use. damn.

Except the "surprise" which might be the same on the Panasonic unit, how do you like the Makita device?

[neslekkim]

It's good!, and I really like the torque stop, that is, it's stopping easily.
And as mentioned earlier, the manual says that you need to lock it, to use it as an screwdriver, but I don't find any problem using it as an screwdriver without locking.
I guess, as long as the screws aren't too tight, it will not destroy it.

And.. I bought loads of bits, so I think I should be set.