From: rhaar@albert.cs.gmr.com (Bob Haar)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
Subject: Re: How about corded power (drywall) screwdriv
Date: 9 Oct 92 15:21:38 GMT
Reply-To: rhaar@albert.cs.gmr.com
Organization: G.M. Research and Environmental Staff

In article 16890@philabs.philips.com, mja@philabs.philips.com (Michael Amato) writes:
|>
|>Now that a lot of bandwidth has been used up on drill recomendations, I need a
|>recomondation for a power drywall screwdriver. I picked up a Makita
|>catalog the ohter day and this only got me slightly more confused.
|>
|>My requirements are as follows:
|>
|>I will be putting up drywall for an addition (large - ~1000 square ft).
|>I estimate that I will have to put up more than 5000 square ft of sheet
|>rock - so a good drywall screwdriver will be a good investment. However,
|>after this is completed, I would like to use it as a power screwdriver
|>and nut driver.
|>
|>Now Makita makes what they call a drywall screwdriver Mod# 6820V, 0-4000rpm,
|>variable speed, reversible, and weighs 3.0lbs. It is rated at 5.2 amps.
|>


I ahve the same Makita drywall screwgun that I have used to hang several
rooms worth. It has been dependable and wroks quite well for putting
up drywall with screws. I have also used it for construction (or
re-construction in my case) where it has been adequate.

A couple of comments:

Makita tools are a good quality, as are a number of manufacturers. If you
are tackling a big job or want a tool that will last a long time or
just like quality tools, then go for one of these. The prices will
be similar.

It sounds like you have a lot of drywall to put up. It will pay you to
get a specialized tool for that. You can also put in the drywall
screws with just about any electric screwdriver or even just a
variable-speed drill with a screw driver bit, but there are
tradeoffs.

A drywall screwgun has a depth-sensitive cluth that disengages
when the screw is set to the proper depth - slightly below the surface
of the drywall, dimpled enough to cover with "mud", but not breaking
the paper.

General purpose screwdriver (or screwguns) typically have a torque
clutch that disengages when the screw head bottoms out against the
surface. While these can be used with drywall screws, the results
are not as uniform.

A variable speed drill with good torque can also be used to set
the drywall screws, but you must develop a feel for when to stop.
This is possible, but not a convenient or fast. 

There are some attachments for setting drywall screws with a normal
drill, but I haven't tried them. The effectively add the depth clutch
mechanism.

The screwdriver bits are a comsummable item. Get a package of ten or
twelve or them and use the kind desinged for drywall screws. 

Amperage ratings are a pretty good indicator of the comparable
power of electric tools. A 5 amp drill will give you substantially
more available power than a 2 amp one. But torque output is
also dependant on things like the gearing used. 

You asked about speed. I have not found the Makita to be to fast. 
But if you are going to use the tool for general purpose screw driving,
I would recommend a variable spped unit with two different ranges. That
way you get more control over the speed.

By the way, if have found the drywall and deck screws are pretty good
replacements for nails in some construction uses. You have to
plan you joints a little different because screws hold better against
tension while nails are better against lateral forces.  Where screws
work well is in attaching plywood subfloors to joists.


- Bob



---
	Robert Haar               InterNet : rhaar@gmr.com 
	Computer Science Dept., G.M. Research and Environmental Staff
DISCLAIMER: Unless indicated otherwise, everything in this note is
personal opinion, not an official statement of General Motors Corp.