Replies

1. 
   notDusty | Feb 12, 2006 06:23pm | #1

   Hi john ,

                 If the tool has no variable speed or clutch control it will be likely stripping the pocket screws out especially into plywood .

                     good         luck             dusty

2. 
   dustinf | Feb 12, 2006 06:44pm | #2

   I do it all the time. 

   You can feel when the screw snugs up enough, but not too much.  I don't know how to describe it, but you can just feel it.

    

1. 
   maddog3 | Feb 12, 2006 07:15pm | #3

   excuse me, but why do you need an impact to run screws into wood????isn't that sorta like using a sledgehammer on trim???

1. 
   dustinf | Feb 12, 2006 07:26pm | #4

   Impact driver has to be one of the best inventions for carpenters in the last 15 years.  They are smaller, lighter, and have 3 times the tourque of a standard drill/driver. 

   View Image 

2. 
   mudman | Feb 12, 2006 08:20pm | #6

   I don't know if you are famuliar with the newer cordless impact drivers, but these aren't like the monster drivers we used for sinking lagbolts and iron work. A 12 or 14 volt impact driver is very well ballanced and has a lot of finesse. All the new ones are variable speed and if you slow the impacts you can actually watch the screw get tighter and excert a lot of control. For me, I get more consistant results with my 12 volt impact driver than my big, heavy, akward 18 volt dewalt drill/driver. Using a cordless impact driver is not at all like using a sledge on trim. It is more like using a nail gun instead of a hammer and countersink, you achive faster and more consistant results.

   Mike

1. 
   maddog3 | Feb 12, 2006 10:04pm | #7

   dustin and mudman,I have used these things, but I didn't know that they were needed in carpentry. and yeah they are nice to use !! BUT..I had an apprentice using one to tighten up the screws in some commercial Sylvania bolt-on breaker panels....the kid thought he was on a NASCAR pit crew, I went ballistic on the poor kid, because he was able to cross thread the line lugs into the el cheapo Aluminum bus. and didn't know it.... I had to toss the guts and a few breakers .. plus figure out how to hide the time and material. So, those things are sometimes TOO handy ......

1. 
   mudman | Feb 13, 2006 08:38am | #8

   Holy cow! I would have lost my cool completely if I saw that as well. There are certian times when a screwdriver is best.

   Mike

3. 
   mudman | Feb 12, 2006 08:12pm | #5

   I use a 12v. Hitachi impact driver for all my screwdriving needs, especially pocket screws. Because I use it so much I can tell when it is perfectly tight. As the screw gets tight the impact noise quickly speeds up. If you are using a bigger 18v impact driver it may be harder to tell. I used to drive the screw with my impact driver and as soon as it snugs I would switch to a hand screwdriver (Roberts square drive). But now I don't bother with the screw driver.

   I would say that the most importaint thing is to use the correct screw for the application. Fine screws in very hard woods like Oak, tropicals, and hard maple; coarse screws in softer wood like pine, soft maple, cherry; and "hi/low" screws for man made materials like MDF, PB, Ply. If you use the correct screw you will be far less likely to strip out the hole.

   One last thing that I have noticed is that if I use regular #7 pan head screws ,intended for pocket holes of course, (instead of the larger head, Kreg style, washer head screws. The smaller head will counter sink itself before the threads strip out. Of course, there is a very legitimate concern that the smaller head makes a weaker fastener, so I use #7 or #8 washer head screws when strength is important.

   Mike