Show us your pb swiss tools!

[Boring_toast]

They don’t work that well I’m afraid! At least not as well as the others.

I have very few of the Swissgrips, and they are really not good in dirty environments. Grease and grime gets ground in, they’re hard to clean, and then they pick up grit. They last o.k. if you keep em clean, but they don’t wipe down easily, and they’re not nice to use.

They’re great in a clean environment. Fine for electronics, o.k. for woodworking, just not great for automotive work - at least on the sort of vehicles I work on!

The Multicraft handles (same shape, but hard CAB) are better. The classic handles better still, as they don’t have the texture of the Multicraft.

What would be better still would be a opaque hard material, but PB Swiss, love ‘em as I do, are just not designed for an automotive (or heavy engineering) environment.

Bummer, that's pretty much what I figured. Guess they're the Sunday screwdrivers lol

 

[macgee]

Out of curiosity, how does the swissgrip hold up to dirty hands? I'm not talking full on grease, but they look like anything more than home electronics work would tear them up. Do they have some longevity when working in not pristine enviroments?

Sorry, only just now saw your question.

I'll echo what the others have said.

My soft grips are a bit of a love/hate relationship. The santoprene grip does get stained, mine haven't gotten chewed up; I've had them since 2017 and use them almost everyday but I'm also kind to them and generally never chew grips up. I have other drivers I pull out for the ugly rambo work.

I've tried cleaning them but there's some small black stains from grime that wont come out (I think you can see them in my pics earlier).

If you're working on dirty grease monkey type jobs or filthy machines, then these might not be the best for you. If you're assembling new high end custom fabricated F1 parts, then these are the right drivers for you. I don't think home electronics would be too bad, PB Swiss is very popular in hollywood film camera manufacturing companies and camera operators. I use them on custom fabricated items but also on older machines that have some oil on them that come in for tuning and work and thats where mine can get dirty but generally items go through a whole de-greasing cleaning process before they enter the work space and get worked on.

 

[suresnoi]

From my experience, dirt stains Swissgrip finish very fast and easily (the vibrant red does not help really) but all the grease/dirt I have encountered washed perfectly well with WD40. A good spray and wipe restores the finish as good as new.

 

[TjoFrasse]

My PB Swiss. Mainly focused on their slotted screwdrivers, since that is the most unique product.

 

[bonneyman]

My PB Swiss. Mainly focused on their slotted screwdrivers, since that is the most unique product.

Loving those allen head T-handles. Shoot they look versatile!

 

[pizza]

new stuff!

 

[Pexto]

I like that PB Swiss bike tool kit. I have the Victorinox branded version; it's identical but can sometimes be found for much less money.

 

[NKlamerus]

Bump.

First shipment came in, I can't find any of the older "PB204" Allen wrenches that have the spinning sleeve on them. They were discontinued in 2015 apparently


Love the smaller hex keys though, cheaper and way more comfortable than Bondhus versions

 

[billspreston]

For those looking to clean their SwissGrip handles – we get pretty greasy here in the shop and use these Silca Gear Wipes to clean our Santoprene handles https://silca.cc/products/gear-wipes. I'm told carpet cleaner works a treat also which is surely a more affordable and easier to find alternative.

 

[designer485]

Standard Swissgrip phillips and Garant branded flat blades. I really like these screwdrivers. The parallel flat blades are on a whole different level.

 

[Steve_P]

I'm not much of a PB fan, the prices are insane in the US, but do have these punches. I bought the metric pin punches as I needed some right away and these were all I could find- probably 10+ years ago. Not sure what they were thinking making the small diameter ones so long; they're going to bend under any resistance.
The carbide tipped punches are great. I bought some Wilde nail sets and they were totally meh; they worked but looked bad after minimal use. I don't need the bigger sizes in the PB set, but they didn't have another option at the time. These are probably 10 years old.
On the center punches, I have Starretts, so I didn't need these, but I liked the idea of the carbide tip. I used the medium sized one a bunch in the last few weeks on mild steel and it's still like new. I bought these about a year ago on a 25% off sale. Definitely recommend these.

 

[Dave455]

… Not sure what they were thinking making the small diameter ones so long; they're going to bend under any resistance.

PB make several types of pin punch. On the 750’s the length of the punch is proportional to the size. These are what you want for general work.

The 755’s are all the same length. Not sure why, obviously a bit of a specialist tool.

 

[Steve_P]

Agree, but at that time, in the US, that was all I could get

 

[jgme]

Mostly PB Swiss now with some Vessel, old Craftsman (late 1970s to early 1980s), and Klein.

The PB Swiss screw drivers are from Tool Lady. Thanks to others here for posting about that source. They responded quickly to emails inquiring about some sets that were not listed on their site at the time. The holiday sales were great and were made use of.

 

[1320]

PB Swiss 8100 (regular) and 8140 (long) # 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6 slotted screwdrivers.

 

[1320]

I picked up another bit handle to put in my travel tools and I noticed it has the same serial number as the other one I've had for months. So, apparently the numbers aren't individualized, but are production lots?

 

[CallumRD1]

I picked up another bit handle to put in my travel tools and I noticed it has the same serial number as the other one I've had for months. So, apparently the numbers aren't individualized, but are production lots?

That is correct, they aren’t serial numbers but rather production batch numbers.

 

[LOW1]

From time to time I think about buying a really good complete set of screwdrivers. But then reality sets in and I realize that in a short while I will be using them to open paint cans and chip out floor tile just like I have always done for the last forty years. So it's Menards house brand for me.

 

[m6z]

 

[mvcorse]

Well, I didn't realize that there is a PB Swiss thread here. Got to post some vintage candy!


Restored.

 

[mvcorse]

"Super" Chrome Vanadium


T-handle screwdriver

And 15X series.

 

[mvcorse]

Mysterious titanium set. No serial number, CNC made, and come with customized leather package.
I would guess that they are customized for medical company.

 

[CallumRD1]

Mysterious titanium set. No serial number, CNC made, and come with customized leather package.
I would guess that they are customized for medical company.

Wow! Where'd you come by them?

 

[mvcorse]

Wow! Where'd you come by them?

Online flea market. The previous owner customized the leather package and said that they come from Germany.
They don't exist in catalogues and I can't find any info about them...

 

[garfieldzzz]

It looks like the titanium tools are discontinued.

I own an 5mm allen key myself, nice score on those, the titanium tools are really nice but not for everyday.

 

[mvcorse]

I like the color of old 304 series...



A collection of 25mm-long bits.

 

[Zjenji]

PB rainbow to melt your retinas. (Yes, I cranked up the saturation.)

 

[mvcorse]

Made a tray for 1204 series.

 

[Ton ton]

I like the color of old 304 series...



A collection of 25mm-long bits.

Nice hammers.

 

[Zjenji]

DRPD order from the other day. Orders over 150 get a free PB Swiss mug!

 

[Catcher1984]

Well, I didn't realize that there is a PB Swiss thread here. Got to post some vintage candy!


Restored.

Those are awesome! I have the heavy duty bradawl and they have the same handle. I wish they made these for there screwdrivers

 

[mvcorse]

Those are awesome! I have the heavy duty bradawl and they have the same handle. I wish they made these for there screwdrivers

Yes they did. I've seen the screwdriver pictures in the "Tools from the old world" thread long ago, but can't find them anymore.

 

[mvcorse]

 

[KnurledNut]

Thanks for the swag Hoffmann!

 

[KnurledNut]

That corkscrew was made by Maxram.

 

[Zjenji]

Picked up 50 (!) more drivers over the holiday weekend. All came from either DRPD, Tool Lady, or PB Tools.

 

[Ton ton]

Picked up 50 (!) more drivers over the holiday weekend. All came from either DRPD, Tool Lady, or PB Tools.

That's a well-balanced collection of screwdrivers.

 

[dukefx]

Here are my latest additions

 

[1320]

Picked up 50 (!) more drivers over the holiday weekend. All came from either DRPD, Tool Lady, or PB Tools.

Do the yellow ESD screwdrivers have the same spongy grip feeling as the regular Swissgrip Screwdrivers or are they hard plastic? I don't have ESD screwdrivers and I think I recall reading that somewhere...

 

[dukefx]

Do the yellow ESD screwdrivers have the same spongy grip feeling as the regular Swissgrip Screwdrivers or are they hard plastic? I don't have ESD screwdrivers and I think I recall reading that somewhere...

No personal experience, but you can filter on their site and there's a "SwissGrip ESD handle" checkbox. It'll show you all the full sized handles and a mobile set.