Why ratcheting screwdriver

[Negen]

I use them for 5,5.5,7mm nut setters as well torx bits t8 ,t10

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[jasonphelps]

It's great for quickly tightening or removing fasteners in places that are a reach to get to and you're in an uncomfortable position. The only thing I'm not sure of is if it's better to put them in the locked position for breaking loose fasteners or not.

 

[seber]

I had forgotten about the Yankee driver. I still have mine. It saw a tremendous amount of use before variable speed drills became available. I wore out a lot of bits in that thing.

 

[pstemari]

Yeah, Yankee drivers were great when doing electrical boxes. Two pushes and the plate pops off, 3-4 more to release the switch or socket.

Ratcheting screwdrivers excel when getting the bit into the screw is troublesome. Get it lined up once and then it's smooth sailing. I have a Rolgear (ratchetless ratcheting) and a Megapro, both made in Canada and very nice tools.

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[FigureItOut]

I rarely use regular screwdrivers, I'm mostly using a little 12V driver with power bits, but I have a couple ratcheting screwdrivers for specific tasks. I have a Bahco stubby in my toolbag that gets used occasionally for when I can't get my cordless driver in somewhere and need a little more torque than a right angle adaptor can provide.

I have a second one above my bench for opening the case on a specific piece of electronics I work with often. Finally I have the Klein ratcheting 11-1 that I use for wiring projects around the house or shop.

So I don't find them terribly useful except for those specific ones, but I'm also a guy that doesn't often use regular screwdrivers either.

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[Mr Ratchet]

Speed when you can't fit a drill. The Snap on/Williams T handle ones are nice. https://store.snapon.com/T-Handle-10-T-Handle-Ratcheting-Magnetic-Long-Screwdriver-P634165.aspx
I use mine as much as I can and with the handle design, I get more torque over a regular screwdriver.

 

[TwoInch]

I use them for machine screws a lot, never wood screws. Inside cars, on tools, assembling furniture, chainsaws, etc... Where you are working with steel fasteners on metal threads, much finer than wood screws, much more endless turning, but little torque.

If I can fit a 1/4" impact, then ill use it. But the ratcheting screwdriver is there to fill in.

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[Andres26tnt]

When you have 50 million screws on a panel and can't use a speed handle/power tool, A&P mechanics/USAF appreciate this tool.

 

[Sine Swept]

I have the Williams T-handle, Snappy hard handled regular and stubby and a soft handled Snappy with removable shanks which I also have the extended bit holder and regular sized 1/4 drive extension. With a 1/4 to 1/4 Armstrong coupler I have I can put the long bit holder attached to the 1/4 drive extension together for 14" or so of reach (think dashboard screws in some 80s/90s vehicles.

I use them most for interior work and is a beauty thing to have for removing bumper covers. They also work great for snugging up that last little bit on any screw (machine screws especially). They are also better suited to mobile work as they can have lots going on in one tool. For work on the bench I am more likely to use a Wera as they are my go to and are within reach.

I have seen a friend use the removable bit holders in his power drill (not impact).

 

[66HertzClone]

Anybody remember these, they are called screwballs. Before cordless drivers came along it saw a lot of use.

I had one of those and used it a lot, I found it to be excellent for removing those damn headlight retaining ring screws. Those tiny Phillips screws that every other screwdriver I had would cam out of, that thing worked every time I tried it. Must have had something to do with the way you could cup it in your palm to apply force. I wish I knew where it went.

 

[rsanter]

When removing or installing trim screws in cars, they are faster.
Time is money

 

[Qualitytools]

I love using my SnapOn ratcheting screw driver. Without it I would compare it to using a breaker bar and not use a ratchet

 

[ex-x-fire]

Back in the day I replaced a lot of H6054s with mine.

 

[joshmodelskidoo]

I inherited a Snap-On ratheting screw driver and tried i a couple times but I don’t really like it. I prefer my 6 in 1 stanley I use that 90% of the time, enough to warrant getting more 6 in 1 screwdrivers but none i like as much as the stanley

 

[Sine Swept]

It comes down to right tool for the job and of course a kool-aid fueled aquired taste!

 

[SuperCat]

I use the ratcheting screwdriver just for quick jobs in the house or in the garage. I had some of those crappy plastic junk tools for many years, but recently I picked up the Craftsman ratcheting screwdriver with the movable handle (similar to the picture in post #24) and the Husky ratcheting screwdriver. Those two tools have completely changed my mind, and now I go for either one of those two first on every job. Of course, if I can use my cordless drill driver, then that is the way to go, but sometimes the drill is just too big to fit in a small space. (Or too far away, LOL.)

 

[G1GRANDEUR]

if it's requiring lots of turning and many screws i use ratcheting.

for small job and little turning or low torque screws, i like to use regular drivers.

 

[Fialaja]

Yeah it definitely is a different beast. I got a couple, they don’t see nearly as much use as their non ratcheting counterparts.

 

[Dumber than lumber]

after reading a few of these i remembered a yankee push screwdriver my dad had. that thing was really a timesaver 'back in the day'.