I'm firmly in the Snap-on hardhandle and Snap-on ratcheting with many bits mode. I've owned hundreds of screwdrivers, and worn out most. The Snap-on have held up the best of all I own. I have been using the ratcheting drivers for 30 years, I try to use them almost exclusively, they work so much better for me. I have big hands, and like the large, full handed grip that some find clunky.
I too started out with Craftsman drivers. Early on, I found that the phillips were soft as butter and often stripped out on the first use. (these were 1970's drivers, replaced over and over through the years up until I gave up on them about 2000). The only decent ones I ever had from Sears were the hex shank, black handle industrial that held up okay, but by the time I had worn out my first phillips to warranty, they were discontinued and replaced with a much poorer red/black handle professional one. I eventually discared all of the Craftsman ones. I got my first Snap-on hard handle #2 phillips in 1988, I still own it. It has had the shank warrantied out one time in that period. I bought a #0 and #1 phillips shortly after that have the original shanks in them.
I prefer the anti cam out ribs to any of the bead blasting, vapor etching, diamond dust plating, etc that has been tried over the years. They seem to hold the best and last the longest of all the anti-cam-out treatments. That was the really good thing about the black handle professional craftsman.
I'm going to add a postscript: When I recommend Snap-on hard handle and ratcheting, that's for high torque fasteners that wear out such as phillips and torx.
For flat, there are a lot of drivers out there that work, depending on your application. I do a lot of gunsmithing work, and you need a huge range of slotted bits. I use a few select flat drivers that I have collected by weeding out losers over the years. They span a lot of old us makes and only a few are snap-on. I don't see a lot of advantage to snap-on in flat drivers, although I own a full range of them. I use a lot of insert bits with a snap on ratcheting driver, (or in the drill press or mill) and most of those are zephyr. I modify many of them by milling or grinding them to shape to get exactly what I need.
For paint stirring, chiseling, scraping, prying, opening paint cans, and similar work, buy harbor freight or craftsman or whatever you like that is cheap. Buy the length of blade and shape of handle that you like the best, that's a more important consideration than the quality.
(this is a real auction)
