phillips head screws

[Warren]

why do these still exist ?
is there something that someone is not telling me ?

i have 2 phillips head screws holding my fairing panel on at the front (its a CBR by the way)

now getting them off is proving to be a right bugger,

is there an art to getting them off without rounding them off ?

im going to be replacing them with allen key heads BTW.

[embee]

First make sure you have the correct driver for them.

Phillips (aka "crosshead") are not the same as Pozidrive (supadrive etc), and the drivers don't fit the other type correctly (point angles are different for a start). That's the best way to mess up the heads.

The easiest way to tell the difference is that Phillips have a simple cross shape, while Pozidrive have a cross with an extra drive edge in the corners, and a pozi screw head is usually marked with a star stamped into it at 45deg to the recessed cross.

Most Jap bike screws are of the Phillips/crosshead pattern.

A 1/4" drive socket type bit holder and a T-bar is usually the most successful at shifting them, but being made of Lymeswold they will often round out anyway. If they start to deform, gently tap the head with a small hammer to peen the metal back into place, and if necessary tap the driver bit back into the recess. Tapping will help release them anyway, but care on plastic panels. :roll: