When you receive your JIS screwdriver set and open the box, you will find the best set and maybe the last set of screwdrivers you will ever buy. That’s because JIS screwdrivers fit most Phillips screws too.
Most people don’t know that there are multiple screw types that look like the traditional Phillips. (See Picture #3)
Phillips screws by design were created to cam-out. This is a process in which the driver is meant to jump out of the screw when a certain torque is reached. There are many theories as to why, such as dangers of over tightening on airplanes, or tool longevity, but never the less at one time or another everyone will experience a Phillips round-out as a function of its cam-out design.
JIS drivers are re-engineered standards that aim to reduce or eliminate cam-out.
Even though the JIS & Phillips looks very similar, they are two different designs and the drivers are not meant to be interchangeable. Using one in the other will lead to frustration and stripped out screws.
There are the real JIS and the not-so-real JIS screwdrivers. Remember, JIS is a standard, so a screwdriver needs to be made to that exact standard to be considered authentically JIS.
Most JIS advertised screwdrivers sold today by companies like Vessel, Hozan, and others are actually conforming to a new standard: DIN 5260 which is identical (at the tip) to the newer ISO 8764-1.
But wait, DIN stands for Deutsches Institut für Normung e.V. (German Institute for Standardization), and ISO is the International Organization for Standardization. Neither sound very Japanese, do they?
The reason these companies have changed to DIN 5260/ISO 8764-1 is because the new standard is designed to work in both Phillips and JIS screws. For the most part that is true, it does work on both screw types, but like anything meant to work with multiple things, the middle ground means compromise. The JIS standard screwdriver will always outperform a DIN/ISO screw driver in the worst of conditions on a JIS screw, and the same is true in reverse.
If you only need one set of screw drivers, or are an infrequent user, the new DIN/ISO standard screw drivers will likely work for you, but if using the right tool for the job is important to you or if you frequently work with Japanese or JIS screws, consider investing in proper JIS screw drivers that are built to JIS B 4633.
We are glad to be one of less than a handful of companies who can supply the correct J.I.S. drivers. They are made out of the best materials possible.