****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Want a set of screwdrivers your kids can inherit m? Here you go!I’m a hospital maintenance & repairman, so I use screwdrivers everyday. I’ve gotten fairly picky about them, since mediocre tools end up costing time & money. These are my favorite workbench screwdrivers.Off the bat, some good screwdriver brands I recommend are Apex, Proto, Wera, Wiha, Zephyr, Felo, Grace, PB Swiss & Williams/Snap On.These wood handled Felo’s are among my favorites. The Germans know how to make tools.Pros:• overall quality is excellent, especially taking into account the price. Fit & Finish isn’t perfect, but it’s really good, & way better than what I’d expect at this price. The old school build style reminds me of my grandpop’s tools, but the handle shape is very modern.• w/ li-ion impact wrenches, it may not be needed, but the fill-tang shank, leather butt cap & machined hex bolsters make these good at removing seized fasteners. Give ‘em a good whack on the backside and crank ‘em w/ a wrench, the way they did it for a couple generations.• Quality is the steel & fit of the tips is terrific. The Phillips fit is among the best I’ve used & they show no signs of wear even after hard use. The tips aren’t played, which is a huge plus. Just keep them lightly oiled.•The handle shape, (this is the newer design,) is wonderful, it’s similar to Wera, but prefer these as on the larger handles, the diameter is more manageable. AND THEY DON’T ROLL! (Why is this still a thing companies miss?!)• when oily, greasy or wet, wooden handles don’t get nearly as slippery as plastic & rubber. And unlike rubber, these don’t wear out, get sticky or attract dust. But to take advantage of this, you’re gonna have to strip or sand the factory finish.Cons:• I’d prefer the slotted tips to be hollow ground for fit, but some users prefer the more traditional tapered design for speed. Felo’s 1/4” slotted bits are beautifully hollow ground, (as are most of the German / Czech brands.) if you want wood handled, hollow-ground drivers, you probably should look at Grace.• Not a bit deal, but there’s too much varnish / lacquer on the handles. I don’t think it’s a polyurethane, & it comes off quickly w/ some medium grit sandpaper. You can then further shape the handle to fit your hand. I prefer Tru-Oil finish, but any decent BLO-based finish will protect the wood & improve gripping purchase.• probably not feasible, but it’d be nice if there was only 1 or 2 wrench sizes needed to use the machined bolsters for leveraged. I wouldn’t use an adjustable on these, but a smaller Pliers Wrench works.• if I’m being extremely picky, some of the shafts aren’t flush with the butt caps on the handle. A little work w/ a file or sandpaper corrects this. For the price, its not a fair complaint.• again, being overly picky, the bead blasted finish is more likely to allow corrosion. A few minutes w/ some polishing pads solved that.• Here’s my biggest complaint; there’s no #3 Phillips in this set, and Felo doesn’t offer many additional options. I’d love to see some Robertson, (square,) Torx, Hex & Hollow-Ground options.Conclusion: For the price, you can’t get better quality. It’d be tough to find better at double this price. If you’re really picky, expect to work on them for about an hour, removing the factory finish, applying an oil finish, polishing the shafts and grinding down a butt cap or 2 so the shank is flush.You probably will want to get a Phillips #3, so factor that into the price. But even with all that considered, these will probably be your favorite screwdrivers, and will become heirlooms.
