Electric Pen Screwdriver Recommendations?

finebyfine

Well-known member
My electric screwdriver crapped out on me last week and I was wondering if anyone has one that they like. The one I had before isn't this one from Harbor Freight but it's essentially the same thing. There's a lot of these popping up here and there and I don't really trust many reviews I've seen if I'm gonna drop $30-$40 as opposed to $15. It wasn't the type of thing I'd think I'd want to replace when I bought it but they're an absolute wrist saver ... especially with how religiously I use screw terminals
 
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I owned a Ryobi one for years before I misplaced it a couple years back. It was the only one I ever owned and I miss it - I just haven't bought a new one because I swear that it is still here somewhere and I refuse to admit defeat! I used it for light duty drilling (drywall for anchors, mainly) as well. I thought it was pretty handy and it would charge quickly, but I don't have a lot of experience with them.

For home use/light duty power tools I really like the Ryobi One stuff, so that was my reason for going with them on the screwdriver (and it had a handle on it and wasn't straight, which I liked). The only other one I've ever used was my dad's Makita (he's been a Makita guy forever) and it's like $100. He uses it pretty much every day at work, though.
 
I owned a Ryobi one for years before I misplaced it a couple years back. It was the only one I ever owned and I miss it - I just haven't bought a new one because I swear that it is still here somewhere and I refuse to admit defeat! I used it for light duty drilling (drywall for anchors, mainly) as well. I thought it was pretty handy and it would charge quickly, but I don't have a lot of experience with them.

For home use/light duty power tools I really like the Ryobi One stuff, so that was my reason for going with them on the screwdriver (and it had a handle on it and wasn't straight, which I liked). The only other one I've ever used was my dad's Makita (he's been a Makita guy forever) and it's like $100. He uses it pretty much every day at work, though.

The ryobi looks really good (and I've heard good things about it) other than that it looks just a size bigger than what I'm looking for unless I can't find the model you're talking about. The one I'm trying to replace is about the size of a paint marker (think maybe a jumbo sharpie) and was really easy to maneuver into tight / precision spots. The ryobi one has come up in a lot of my searches but it's just *ever* so slightly too big.
 
The ryobi looks really good (and I've heard good things about it) other than that it looks just a size bigger than what I'm looking for unless I can't find the model you're talking about. The one I'm trying to replace is about the size of a paint marker (think maybe a jumbo sharpie) and was really easy to maneuver into tight / precision spots. The ryobi one has come up in a lot of my searches but it's just *ever* so slightly too big.

Ah, yeah - what I had was a bit bigger than what you are looking for. This is the one I had: https://www.homedepot.com/p/RYOBI-4-Volt-Lithium-Ion-Screwdriver-Kit-HP54L/205545276

Probably larger than what you're looking for, I just like having the grip.
 
The only two I use...;)
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Ended up going with this Xiaomi Mijia one (~$40 from stores in the US, $30 from China). Basically the Wowstick with an additional torque setting. My main manual screwdriver is from same Xiaomi line and really like it. Lack of any torque control was really the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger on the Wowstick (I also didn't really like the standing base ( / charger ?) thing). 2 settings isn't as many as others I saw but those were all from more random brands that felt like I'd be taking more of a gamble on. I'll reply with an update when it arrives.

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Just picked up this one and it's been solid so far. I've got the other drills for heavy duty, but this one won't strip out the heads unless you reallllly try hard

 
Ended up going with this Xiaomi Mijia one (~$40 from stores in the US, $30 from China). Basically the Wowstick with an additional torque setting. My main manual screwdriver is from same Xiaomi line and really like it. Lack of any torque control was really the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger on the Wowstick (I also didn't really like the standing base ( / charger ?) thing). 2 settings isn't as many as others I saw but those were all from more random brands that felt like I'd be taking more of a gamble on. I'll reply with an update when it arrives.

View attachment 12463
😻
Subbed for the review
 
Ended up going with this Xiaomi Mijia one (~$40 from stores in the US, $30 from China). Basically the Wowstick with an additional torque setting. My main manual screwdriver is from same Xiaomi line and really like it. Lack of any torque control was really the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger on the Wowstick (I also didn't really like the standing base ( / charger ?) thing). 2 settings isn't as many as others I saw but those were all from more random brands that felt like I'd be taking more of a gamble on. I'll reply with an update when it arrives.

View attachment 12463
I have that set with a manual screwdriver, I may have to look into the electric driver!
 
Mine came today!

The case and bits are nice. They're not relevant to me - I already have an 4mm bit organizer, I won't be using the case, and I have plenty of bits. There are some longer bits of the most common types though that I will for sure be using regularly. The case is the same kind as their manual screwdriver - a compartment pops in and out of an outer shell, and the area for organizing the bits is magnetized so they stay put. The case is bigger and the outer shell is an adonized aluminum like the body of the driver itself. Think macbook pro.

Manual is only in Chinese and couldn't find an English one online because this isn't intended for English markets, but it's also just a screwdriver. I only wanted to check the LED charging status. Red = charging, white = charged. It charges over usb-c which is a plus for me because I try to only use usb-c as much as possible for charging stuff.

If you've never used something like this, it's not easy to describe the appeal on paper. They're for things you would be using a manual precision screwdriver for, they're not for assembling furniture. It only took me using my first for about an hour to sell me on them though. They're wrist savers. But you might not really get that until you use one and aren't using your hands to turn a driver. To hammer it home: I replaced mine the fastest I've replaced an electronics thing when my first cheapo one broke, short of replacing a stolen laptop or shattered iphone.

Using it feels natural, I like where the buttons are and I don't have to hold it any differently than I would hold a regular screwdriver. The bit holding part is magnetic, which is generally standard for these. The two torque controls are surprisingly good, they cover really useful ranges and when playing around with it I found myself switching between them for larger and smaller items - I kind of figured that one would be much more useful than the other but they're really good settings. I couldn't get it to start a hand closed enclosure screw, but once the initial seal was broken I could, and it went back in really well. The torque setting can also be switched to manual so that using it as a regular screwdriver doesn't mess with the motor. I found using it that way to be kind of a pain because of it's length, but it's nice that its there.

Feels like one of my better recent purchases. I'd replace it instantly if I lost it after frantically searching for it for a few hours. Hell, I'm already almost justifying buying a backup one.
 
Mine came today!

The case and bits are nice. They're not relevant to me - I already have an 4mm bit organizer, I won't be using the case, and I have plenty of bits. There are some longer bits of the most common types though that I will for sure be using regularly. The case is the same kind as their manual screwdriver - a compartment pops in and out of an outer shell, and the area for organizing the bits is magnetized so they stay put. The case is bigger and the outer shell is an adonized aluminum like the body of the driver itself. Think macbook pro.

Manual is only in Chinese and couldn't find an English one online because this isn't intended for English markets, but it's also just a screwdriver. I only wanted to check the LED charging status. Red = charging, white = charged. It charges over usb-c which is a plus for me because I try to only use usb-c as much as possible for charging stuff.

If you've never used something like this, it's not easy to describe the appeal on paper. They're for things you would be using a manual precision screwdriver for, they're not for assembling furniture. It only took me using my first for about an hour to sell me on them though. They're wrist savers. But you might not really get that until you use one and aren't using your hands to turn a driver. To hammer it home: I replaced mine the fastest I've replaced an electronics thing when my first cheapo one broke, short of replacing a stolen laptop or shattered iphone.

Using it feels natural, I like where the buttons are and I don't have to hold it any differently than I would hold a regular screwdriver. The bit holding part is magnetic, which is generally standard for these. The two torque controls are surprisingly good, they cover really useful ranges and when playing around with it I found myself switching between them for larger and smaller items - I kind of figured that one would be much more useful than the other but they're really good settings. I couldn't get it to start a hand closed enclosure screw, but once the initial seal was broken I could, and it went back in really well. The torque setting can also be switched to manual so that using it as a regular screwdriver doesn't mess with the motor. I found using it that way to be kind of a pain because of it's length, but it's nice that its there.

Feels like one of my better recent purchases. I'd replace it instantly if I lost it after frantically searching for it for a few hours. Hell, I'm already almost justifying buying a backup one.
Thanks, I'm glad I pulled the trigger
 
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