the.com/screwdriver
the only tool that doubles as a cocktail and a crowbar excuse
means A hand tool with a shaped tip that turns screws to drive them in or back them out — or, a cocktail of vodka and orange juice.
from A plain compound of 'screw' and 'driver' — the thing that drives screws — appearing as the screw itself spread through manufacturing. 'Screw' comes through Old French 'escroue' (a nut, a female screw), possibly from Latin 'scrofa' (sow) — one charming theory links the spiral to a pig's curly tail, though that's far from certain. The cocktail name is supposedly newer, said to come from American oil workers who stirred their vodka and juice with the nearest tool to hand; a fun tale, and plausibly true, but it's a story passed around more than documented.
- named after screws
- The screw came first, in the 1400s
- flathead's flaw
- Slips and strips because nothing keeps it centered
- phillips on purpose
- Designed to cam out, protecting early assembly lines
- the drink
- Orange juice and vodka, allegedly stirred with one
- space-rated
- Astronauts use torque-limited versions to avoid overtightening
phillips head — patented by henry phillips in 1932, cross-shaped design for phillips screws
flathead screwdriver — oldest and simplest type, single slot design used since the 1500s
pozidriv — invented by phillips screw company in 1962, improved cross-pattern with 8 ribs
torx driver — hexalobular design trademarked by textron in 1967, 6-point star pattern