Help me choose a screwdriver set??

[piste]

Wondering if you all can help me out. I've been into milsurps a few years now and I'm generally quite mechanically inclined and have quite an array of hand tools. I've been getting by with my Craftsman stuff on the too-many-to-count Mosin Nagants, handful of Yugo 24/47's, and handful of K31's without much of any problem. I've just started on my first Turkish Mauser and it has some screws on it that seem to have fairly shallow slots that are VERY straight walled such that I can't seem to find a Craftsman screwdriver that can get any bite and I'm leery of pushing it for fear of stripping. So it may be time for me to bite the bullet and get a gunsmithing set. Now I first looked at these:

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=439523
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=223597

...and thought one of them might be the way to go. I'm not "married" to Wheeler but they seem to have a good rep and I thought one of these might be best. But then I saw this set which includes much more than screwdrivers...

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=967134

..and I pretty much could use all these tools except maybe the steel punches. And though it has many other items it only has a 28 piece screwdriver set.

So my question is this...I'm not ever planning to be a gunsmith so only want what I'll "need" for a screwdriver set...but don't want to "go short" only having to end up buying a more "robust" set down the road. In other words I wanna buy the set that is gonna meet all my foreseeable future needs. Thoughts or recommendations? Also open to other than Wheeler. TIA

 

[Sunray]

Got a bench grinder? You could grind a screwdriver to fit the slot. The "gunsmith" kit 'bits' are designed to break before the screw head gets damaged. Replacing them gets to be an expensive nuisance.

 

[LHB1]

I like and use the Brownells's MagnaTip sets on my guns. Work great and broken bits are replaced free.

Good shooting and be safe.
LB

 

[JNewell]

Go straight to the top of the market here. It's a little more but you will never regret it. Buy the 44-piece Brownells set. If you can't afford it now, buy the 22-piece set and add on later. (Don't buy the 50-something piece set unless you really need the Allen bits, etc. - and you probably don't.) Here's a LINK.

Folks are going to point out lots of alternatives, but I've been turning gun screws for more than 35 years. I've made my own, bought other brands...but I have not bought anything since I gave up a few years ago and bought the Brownells set. I highly recommend going that route the first time.

 

[Jim K]

Most of the "magna tip" type drivers are ground wrong, with a steep curve that will jump out of the slot.

If you have a shop and can hang up screwdrivers on one of those eyehook type frames, the answer is to buy good quality hollow ground screwdrivers, then grind a few for special uses, like split drivers for Mauser recoil lug nuts. The alternative is to buy cheaper drivers and just grind them to whatever shape you need. Most gunsmiths end up with a combination of both - top quality for most work, then cheap drivers to grind for special applications.

If you have a drill press, you also want some power tool type drivers (tips) to use in combination with the drill press when you need to put pressure on the driver to keep it from jumping out of the slot.

Jim

Jim