How to drive screws with a drill/driver 

This video is a brilliant example of the value of RU-vid to the world. Simple, high-quality knowledge, recorded and shared with anyone who wants to see it.

Ashamed to say I've learnt more in 4min than I have in 20 years. Great vid

I've always had problems driving screws in with my cordless driver. Now I know why! Thanks again Ultimate Handyman.....

OMG!!!!!! I had no idea!!! There were so many differences. As a single woman, I need to do what I need to do to get things done. So, needless to say, this bit (no pun intended) of information is very helpful. I will be subscribing to your channel.

Guilty. Yesterday I was trying to drive a screw in with a Philips head bit and chewing up each and every screw head. Blamed it all on cheap Chinese screws. Changed now to the proper bit and they drive home just fine. Thank you.

Absolutely brilliant. I've got a box full of drill bits and had no idea why they were slightly different. Im a fairly new enthusiastic DIY'er and love learning new stuff. Your video's are teaching me so much. The rubble bag under the under floor pipes was genius ;-)

Thanks I'll start using the right bit for the right screw. Never knew. .

Thanks for this , I recently purchased my first Makita drill and impact driver set .I have been damaging bits and screw heads , and thinking both were poor quality .More than likely my fault .I will definately be looking at the compatability from now on.

My absolute favourite now are Robertson (square head) screws. Learned to love them while I was in Canada. No problem with screws dropping off the driver, no need for magnets, simple, no cam-out, and beginning to become readily available even in the UK :)

Had to watch several videos learn enough about drilling screws. One showed the importance of lining it straight and to start it by jabbing the wood, another showed a very useful drill guide that makes starting it much easier and safer, another showed how to stop wood splitting and screw stripping with pilot holes. I learn from you that a pz (never heard of it) screw top is different than phillips top. I learned from a comment here that you can set the torque to prevent stripping. I assume these videos are all for newbies like me. Why don't you instructors just make it comprehensive in the first place?

Showed the video to my wife, hoping you would make two simple points. 1 - it never hurts to pre-drill, and it's actually necessary when working with smaller pieces of wood (like kitchen cabinets). 2 - never use a power drill as a screw driver (the kind you plug into a power socket). It is too powerful and not suited for driving in screws. I noticed you use clamps, but you did not mention those. I also find it helpful to use dish soap to lubricate screws sometimes. It prevents squeal and can make the job easier. Good info on the different types of bits, though.

Totally did not know lol. Feel like a noob now

Another simple informative video from the Ultimate Handyman.

So glad I watched this! You solved my problem! Thanks!

My Makita drill came with a comprehensive set of flat/cross and hex bits. Tomorrow I'll go practice with some screws that I have and a pallet. There's probably practice needed with hammers, nails and saws as well while I think about it...A timely video as I have a shed to renovate and all the time in the world.. Thank you.👍

I know that this video has been up for years, but it is still helping people. Your video was a confirmation that I did not have the proper anything to make my cordless drill perform properly. So I went to Walmart and purchased the $7.36 screw and bit kit for my drill. It comes with 22 pieces. I was able to accomplish my projects. Thank you, thank you so much.

Great video but so ridiculous and needless to have different screws heads and bits. Why not just make it simple and easy - 1 screw type with bits, and this would be so easy. Now we gotta go get a phd in screws to be able to tell the difference.

phillips screws are crap. Don't know why they are still manufactured. Torx or robertson are far better.

stupid question. is that a regular drill or impact..? thanks

Thank you so much. You helped me continue my project. I never even thought about the size of the bit and my bits are marked. My screws were also marked. I used the correct bit and I am good to go.I also appreciated the tip about practicing on some scrap wood. Thanks a lot.

PZ2/Phillips, sheesh, why do they make something so simple more complex. I've never heard of a PZ2 bit/screw, why can we just pick the better of the two types and just go with that? Is that difference really that big of a deal?

ROFLMAO....OMG! 20 years and like "Madmatuk" said below, I've learned more in 4min than I have in 20 yeas. Is this suppose to be like common knowledge or something because I missed it my whole life..LMAO ************** SUBSCRIBE ********************

The head of my screwdriver keeps falling out and it annoying as fucking shit

Good video. Another tip you could add is to use an impact driver rather than a drill driver... way less cam out and don’t have to press down as hard. More consistent results

Great tutorial I didn't screw it up. I did find I had to tighten some of my screws with a driver after

Can someone tell me what I am doing wrong? When I drive a screw, it either comes out while drilling (wrong size?) or the drill just doesn't move.

I'm surprised there was no mention of the torque settings. Seems I've ruined some screws bc I had the torque too high. It seems that should have been mentioned since it applies here. Good info otherwise.

Thank you so much mate. I am struggling with my combi drill driving or undoing screws. I have found the answer. A minute ago I tried and it worked. I used the PZ2 bit coming with the screws and it actually worked perfectly whereas I'd stripped the same screw in using PH2 bit before that. Amazing!!! Love your work

I must admit to using what ever bit is nearest and not bothering to check. This could very well explain why I do get the caming out of so many screws and damage so many bits. I think from now on I will check and use the correct bits for the screws I am using. Many thanks...

The bits may be labelled but screws are not. They all look the same (PZ2, PH2, Phillips) to me. If I'm removing a bunch, for example, how do I tell? Or do I just use the bit that seems to mates well?

When the Pozidrive patent expired Superdrive came out. Hence these different screw drives could go on forever if a company can deliver a flow of succesful ad campaigns. Worth a look... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_screw_drives You have to consider a punch makes the female side of the drive and these can wear out quickly especially if they are "exotic" in design. Screws like these are cold forged in a heading machine... COLD FORGE HEADER MACHINE The noise a factory of these machines make is unbelieveable Nice feature video, thanks UH

Hammer never fails for me !

Wish they'd go to torx for everything.

Why have you not explained the differences in the screws and how to recognise them? This would of been more helpful

You'd be surprised how many people use the wrong bit for the wrong screw just because its philips. On the screw box it says the number and you use the same number bit. #2 philips is the most common in the Us

Nice demo, thank you!

Hi Ultimate Handyman, I'm mostly new to using power tools so THANK YOU for making and sharing this helpful video. Also, I love your accent! Caroline :)

Thank you - but the hard part is when your have to drill in at height! Which is most of the time!

This will give me the courage to assemble a wooden raised garden bed with a power drill I’ve never yet used! ❤ (4 long pieces of wood (2 slightly shorter), 4 short, green screws, no instructions (it’s prob obvious to all but me!) 😂

What’s with the gloves? Why is everyone wearing gloves these days? I understand that if you’re using chemicals, paint, grease or the likes you need to protect your hands. However, wearing gloves to hold a drill to insert a screw? Really? Before you know it, people will be wearing gloves to tie their shoelaces.

Tried and failed and didn't know why. Thanks my man. I bought a cheapie 4 tiered Metal storage unit with small screws that don't have a name on them. Do you have an idea what they might be? Put one up manually and can't consider it again! Nearly got blisters using a screwdriver and there is another shelf unit to do.My hardware store, Bunnings in Australia charges AUD$55 to do it for you and the units were AUD$14 each. Goodeh from Downunder!

Great tips, and also choose quality drill bits that won't round easily if you do happen to cam out.

Glad i found your video b4 so anything. All new to me. Trying to learn. Thanks. Going to but a good review on Amazon kit comes with case & all bits, etc. A gal so need good driver to put stuff together. I like learning, jist not well lately to do all big projects, bit I have to anyhow, cuz I need it for metal storage shed. I have only put furniture in the past never drilled metal. I figured all this, but it is best to watch how it's done to make sure.

Pozi drive not posi driv Philips (ph) screws were originally designed for the automotive industry and were designed to "cam out" to prevent over tightening of trim fixings etc. Then thefe are Robertson, spline, tri wing anf hex socket (Allen) to mention a few

nothing on the planet makes me as angry as when i strip a screw head usually at halfway in. any method to identify which bit is needed? do all boxes of screws tell you what bit to use? i checked my stash, some show it clearly, others maybe show it but in some kind of cryptic code i don't recognize. (maybe as part of the model # or something?)

I bought a Ryobi drill driver a few months ago and for some reason I find it difficult to drive screws into certain types of wood, well any wood really but particularly an old garden gate post. No matter what type of screw bits I've used (making sure I've got the right type of screw bit of the screw and making the sure the drill is set to drive mode), it really struggles driving screws into wood. It does manage to pull screws out but this depends on the screw as often itscrew won't budge, but I suspect this is because the screw is seized or the wood its screwed into is too hard (I'm talking about a 20 plus yr old gate post here). Really can't understand why it doesn't do the job, and as far as I know the drill isn't broken. It will of course drill holes into wood and masonry, but as far as screw driving goes it does a really poor job of it. When you try and drive a screw either vertically or horizontally, drilling screws into material like wood makes the screw wobble all over the place and hard to keep the drill steady, certainly isn't effortless like the in the video. Anyone know what could the problem or has anyone else had the same problem?.

Hi. For some reason my cordless drill doesn't allow me to press the trigger softly to get the screws going. It pretty much goes from 0mph to 100mph straight away. Am I using the wrong drill? I've tried all settings.

News to me - I must have been using an unmatched screw/bit combination. I suppose knots in the wood, old screws stuck in the wood and other screws lying across the desired path can stop things too.

torx screws saves you the headache

I always have issues with the square bit, I got the bit #2 and the box of screws also says #2, but it keeps getting out, I end up damaging both the bit and the screw, what else should I be looking for?

Thank you, helpful internet man! You have just unlocked my entire problem!

Old video I know but taking a chance you’ll see this... How do you know what type head the screw has if there is no package with label ?

As a girly girl with a pink power driver. Thank you for taking the time to help us 🙏 finally installed my curtains.

Amazing information. Stupid Phillip head style screws, why can't they all be the same.

They are not likely to come out but they will come out if you are using cheap bits. I have learned this a hard way that you should never cheap out when buying tools.

how do you know if it is a good fit or a bad fit

Never realised there were different types of drill bits for specific type of screws until I saw this video. Thank you very much for making this video. Just bought a Dewalt drill bit set with all the different types of drill bits available, should come in quite useful. Also I have some Wickes multi purpose screws which require a PZ bit, it doesn't say PZ1, PZ2 or a PZ3. So using a pass or fail test, the thicker PZ3 seems to be the exact fit.

I really felt useless yesterday for the first time because my bit kept skipping. I couldn't figure out why

Check the fit first, then you will know before you ruin either your screw or tip or work piece all Phillips are " NOT " the same

First of all, save yourself a lot of frustration and don't use Phillips screws! Robertson or Torx.

Thanks for the great video! Does the screw have the label as well? Or do you just check which bit fits best?

there is no reason why the PH2 bit can't drive the PZ2 screw. However the PZ2 bit can't drive the PH2 screw.

Just the thing I was looking for. I didn't know the name for the bit to get and now I do...thanks! :)

I'm always laughing at Americans camming out on every single screw, but I didn't notice that drywall screws required a Philips bit. To be fair I didn't have any camout, but I should have thought to check. Annoyingly the box of screws comes with a space on the lid for the required bit, but B&Q sell them without one.

anyone can drive a screw straight down with ample room on all sides. What about overhead, sideways and other real world situations? I'm so frustrated with screws I keep a supply of nails handy.

I am an apprentice trained (6yrs) tradesman, I can assure you and all your readers, that real trades people already know this stuff, so please don't say some pro's do not know, they are not tradesmen, just because they work at it for a living does not make them tradesmen. I learnt my craft in the early 1960's, and we all knew how to screw, but diy men, sometimes get it wrong, not all.

this video is important, I had no idear pozi and Philips were different, now explains damaged drive bits, screw heads and screwdriver ends, its all ways the simple, basic things like this that helps the most, im now gona buy new sets of Phillips and pozi bits and drivers and have sets of both.

What is the difference between the driver bit type C 6.3 and E 6.3? Why does the e 6.3 have a collar at the end?

i,m confused so just between me and you , what piggin drill ?/driver do i use to screw without pilot holes , ta great info btw

All that said, you do normally drive a screw in with an impact driver, not a drill. Correct?

Yo man, Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I'm constantly having the bit pop out of the screw, even if I use the bit provided. Part of the reason is that no matter how much I try, the screws often end up going in sideways. I then struggle to maintain that exact angle, very frustrating!

Why can't they establish a standard for screw heads and every manufacturer just use that standard?

I actually love watching your videos because its clips like this that teach me something new though I presumed I already know how to do the basics before watching the video. My question is *****, how do you identify the screw by eye? For instance identifying a PZ-1 screw from a PZ-2.

I am trying to screw decking together and someone suggested doing pilot holes with a drill ? but do I need a specialized electric screwdriver for screws / hard wood ie decking .I am female and just learning .thanks would appreciate a reply asap thanks

What happens if i did not release the trigger in time while screwing in. may be like 3 to 4 seconds

I will be screwing 2x10 splices to 2x10s that are fixed, or already nailed down. Do I start the screws in the splices or start the screws into the 2x10s that are already nailed in place? Thank you.

How about showing us the best way to tigen two boards together with screws, explain how if you don't get the boards tight with the first screw they won't go tight no mater how many more screws you put in, and how to use the non threaded part of the screw, and an easy way to remove screws when the threads have nothing to grip. Oh and one more thing, have you ever heard of a Robertson screw bit, they are color coded by size, grip way better than a philips, but they mite be too square for you..

I understand each bit might be labeled but how do you know what screw goes to what bit?

pz bits also slip off pz screws

Yikes I wish I would have seen this 2 hours ago before stripping like 6 screws! Thanks for the info. Do you determine the screw head and bit fit by looking at it or is there a written guide?

some posidrive bits cam out on pz screws .Have used Ph.bits on Pz screws with just as good results .During screwdriving into dried out timber .spit on the screw goes in better and release the torque and start a couple of times seems to reduce cam out rather than driving in one go .

Why are the bits so small? Im having a hard time understanding this...

Would having the wrong drill bit prevent a nail from going into plywood at all?

I have a degree in engineering....I really need this true education

I usually buy PZ2 or PZ3 screws and my bit still comes out. I don't have an impact driver, but people say their bits never come out. I know that the bit and the screw should be perfectly lined up, but that still happens. Does that mean my bits are no good or there's probably something else? I am definitely not an expert. I am considering buying an impact driver, but I am not 100% sure it will be worth it. :(

Two things used to wind me up when I was on site. Watching so-called experts driving in long screws NON-STOP and they were wondering why a number of these long screws were snapping. The second one was when they kept pulling the drill away from the screw before releasing the trigger and they wondered why their driver bits were wearing out. I laugh about it now but I guess some folks never learn eh! Chez lol

what I hate worse then the wrong bit is when they don't predrill a hole and the wood splits lol

any reason why I see a lot of "pros" use a very long shaft for the driver bit?

I plan in using masonary screws to screw stud walls into masonary walls and school parquet flooring to secure the stud walls, I will do the 6mm pilot whole first then drive in screw with my combi drill, do you think my makita LXT white and black model drill with a 3ah battery will have enough power to drive screw through masonary as I don't have a impact driver currently

But how do you know what fitting the screw head is. Is there a easy to tell?

Do you drill a hole into wood for the screw to go into or just screw into the solid wood? Probably a dumb question I know but I know nothing about this.

I'm building something for the first time...I'm having so much trouble getting the screws in. I am small, but the drill goes so far and stops completely. I take it off and it works fine...after watching this I'm wondering if it needs to be charged more. Thanks for the video.

Im 9 years old and i have a problem. I want to unscrew a screw. Should i do it clockwise or counterclockwise?

My drill didn't come with that cylinder extension piece to insert the drill bit. Can I use the drill bit without the cylinder extension piece?

why do most people pump the trigger? I do it too and I don't know why. Guess I'll have to do a side by side test to figure it out.

How do you know you have a PZ head screw?

Good Video! But at 03:00 and forward; remember not to cover the breathing and cooling holes of the tools, warranty will not cover overheating caused but blocking the ventholes

bits are not standardised or screws are not ..angle differs. . only way is buy a big box screws delivered with the bit

Did not know ph and pz were different 😅