Screwdrivers

[bernie weishapl]

I found out really quick on my first watch that screwdrivers made in india are just crap. Excuse my french. I can’t afford to buy Bergeon, Swiss, etc to the tune of $200 to $350 a set and upward. I did find a set of Bergeon’s with 9 in the set for $87 or $106. I also found a French set for $65. I am thinking the $106 set but don’t know. Like I said the ones made in india if you have a stuck screw which I had on the watch I am taking down needless to say the blade popped the first time trying to loosen it. 😳 Any suggestions.

[Bob Tascione]

Hi Bernie,
I’ve used the French screwdrivers you mention and they are decent. I do prefer the 9 pc. Bergeon set in the wooden case though. I think you may be able to beat the $87 price. I’ll check around and will let you know what I find.
Adios for now,
Bob

[Bob Tascione]

Hi again Bernie,
Ofrei has them for a few bucks less but not much of a savings. I checked a little on Amazon and they have quite a few sellers carrying the different Bergeon sets. For a bit more here’s a 9 piece set on stand for about $110.00. http://www.amazon.com/Bergeon-Piece-Screwdriver-Set-Stand/sim/B000E4Z43U/2?o=9
You might check the French sets on Amazon to see the customer reviews. You’re right though…the cheap sets are crap!

Bob

[david pierce]

Bernie,
I had a similar experience with the blades not holding well in the handles. I solved the problem by running a small tap through the existing hole (I think it was a 2-56) and replacing the screws with small (2-56) set screws. My Bergeon screwdrivers held a little better than the El Cheapo’s but the set screws held better than anything else I tried. Also, if you have cheap handles you can buy the Bergeon blades separately and put them in the inexpensive handles.
david

[bernie weishapl]

Bob, Otto Frei has 2 Bergeon sets of 9 on sale. One for $87 and one for $105. They have the French set of 9 for $85 and another set of 9 for $65. Those are what I was looking at.

David that is a good thought. I never thought to see if I could get the Bergeon blades for the handles. Thanks. I will give a look see tonight.

[arutha]

It is very easy to make your own blades from blued pivot steel, and with a jig it don’t take long to re-make a tip if it wears or gets damaged. I bought a cheap set of screwdrivers to begin with and they were junk. I remember David posting a while back about putting good blades in cheap handles so that is exactly what i did but I made my own blades out of pivot steel. They work very well now
Paul.

[tmac1956]

Paul:

Where do you buy your material from?

Thanks!
Tom

[arutha]

From here Tom – https://www.cousinsuk.com/catalog/consumables/pivot-steel/pivot-steel-blue#select
Paul.

[tmac1956]

Paul:

That’s great. Could you show us a picture of your grinding jig?

Thanks!!!
Tom

[david pierce]

MSC carries 3 foot lengths of drill rod in W1, O1, and A2 in standard inch diameters of 1/16, 5/64, 3/32, 7/64 and 1/8. W1 and O1 cost less than $2.00 per 3 foot length and the A2 is less than $4.00 per 3 foor lenght. One 3 foot length should be a lifetime supply for staff and screwdriver blades for any watch repair operation. They carry larger sizes as well but 1/8 and under should cover any necessary diameter for watches.
A grinding fixture could be made with some blocks of wood and a pin vice. That should suffice for screwdriver blades. To index the pin vice you can drill a hole in the shaft of the vice and place it over a pin sticking out of the wood block. Grind one side of the blade and then flip the pin vice around and grind the other side.
david

[bernie weishapl]

Thanks guys. David I just ordered Bergeon blades for $15. I will also order some steel and make some other blades.

[arutha]

Just this type Tom. Works great.

[bernie weishapl]

Thanks Paul.

[tmac1956]

Paul:

I have one of those, but I can’t seem to grind the blades consistently. Anyway, thanks my friend.

Tom

[reuven gruber]

I purchased a cheap set and didn’t like them so I upgraded the set by replacing the blades with Burgeon replacement blades

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