DIY JIS Screwdriver

[Spaceteach]

I was thinking about ordering some JIS screwdriver bits yesterday and when I did a google search I was only able to find I vendor with bits. There were plenty with screwdrivers and sets, but my impact driver requires the insert bits. I did however find a post about modifying a Phillips bit to work on JIS screws, and thought I'd share it with the forum. Here are the instructions he posted.

Take a regular number 2 Phillips head screwdriver bit and grind a little at a time off the pointy end until it fits flush in a JIS screw head without rocking or moving back and forth. I tried it and it seems to work. I used a cutoff wheel on my Dremel Tool and cut about a sixteenth of an inch off the end of a new bit. When I tried it on a JIS screw, it fit like a champ. I haven't used the bit much so far, but early indications are looking good.

I realize this is not an actual JIS bit, but it's worked for me on everything I've tried. At any rate, if you like the idea give it a try and please reply with you findings.

Bob

 

[Craig92DA9]

I'm wondering what the difference is between the JIS bit and the PZ (posidriv) bit. From what I was reading on Wikipedia List of screw drives - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia the Posidriv bit has straight sided flanks instead of the cam out design of the Phillips bit. I have several PZ bits that came in a big bit set i have had forever but had never researched the difference between them and the phillips bits until now. Anyone know if they work just as well on the JIS fasteners?

 

[Spaceteach]

Craig,
I don't have a clue as to how the posidrive bits would work, but since you have them and a bike with JIS fasteners it would be much appreciated if you would try them and see if they are a good match. Just insert the bit into the screw head and see if it is a tight fit with no side to side or rotational play.
Thanks,
Bob

 

[Craig92DA9]

Sure thing, I can try something on my lunch tomorrow, any particularly tight fastener I should try a PZ bit out on?

 

[Mike Cash]

I was thinking about ordering some JIS screwdriver bits yesterday and when I did a google search I was only able to find I vendor with bits.

Bob

You need better search terms. What did you use?

 

[yticolev]

He may have been searching in English. How dumb is that!

 

[Mike Cash]

He may have been searching in English. How dumb is that!

Not dumb at all, but it isn't as effective as searching in Japanese. He may very well have searched in Japanese....that's sort of why I asked him. My first search in Japanese also only yielded one vendor, but I took hints from other results in the search to refine my terms until I got better results.

When it comes to the Internet, Japan can best be imagined as having everybody standing along the shores circling the whole country, firmly linked hand-in-hand and all facing inland. They don't really make their sites for the benefit or convenience of anyone outside Japan and they are largely content to act as though the Internet doesn't exist outside Japan. 99% of Japanese online vendors would rather completely miss any and all sales from outside the country than make any effort whatsoever to accommodate overseas customers.

 

[Spaceteach]

Craig,
Any screw on the bike should work to check fit. The easiest test I know of is to remove a screw very carefully and see if there is any tendency for the bit to move out of the screw head and also if there is any looseness in the fit. In other words does the bit wobble or move back and forth in the screw head. Once the screw is out, insert the bit in the screw and see if the screw will stay on the bit all by itself. If it falls off when you let go of the screw that's not a good sign. If those tests work, I'd say the bit should be a good fit. Those are just the tests I would do. I'm sure there are more knowledgeable people on the forum than I and one of the reasons I started this post was to see what others thought.

For the rest of you the search term I used in google was "JIS screwdriver bit" and "JIS screwdriver". For those of you who are proficient in Googling, please let us know if you find any vendors with easy ordering and preferably inexpensive JIS bits in the #2 Phillips equivalent size.

Thanks,
Bob

 

[Mike Cash]

Bob, if you just need a few bits I'd be glad to look in a local hardware store and see if I can find some to fit your driver. If I find what you need I'd be glad to mail them to you. Should be light enough that the postage won't run too much.

 

[Spaceteach]

Mike,
Thanks for the kind offer, but I'm actually happy (at least so far) with the way a modified Phillips bit fits the JIS screws on my bike. The only reason I searched for JIS bits was to see if there were any readily available inexpensive ones offered from USA vendors. When I came across the post on modifying a Phillips bit during the search I tried it and found that it worked well for me so I thought I'd pass the idea on to the other members of the forum. To be honest, I've yet to find a screw on my bike that a regular Phillips screwdriver couldn't handle, but I figured if I could get some JIS bits without a lot of hassle or expense I'd do it. Judging by my experience so far with modifying the Phillips bit, it doesn't look like I'll need to go with the official JIS tooling.
Thanks again for the the offer!

Bob

 

[Craig92DA9]

For the record, a Phillips bit is a MUCH closer fit to the JIS fastener than the Posidriv bit.

 

[Spaceteach]

Craig,
Thanks for trying it out.

Bob