PSA: your Defender does not have Phillips head screws

[acheck]

Do you ever feel like your phillips #2 screw driver feels a bit loose in the "phillips" head screws on your Defender? Are they rounding out a bit and occasionally slipping?

Introducing the Pozidriv screw:

What Is Pozidriv?
Pozidriv, commonly spelled incorrectly as “Pozidrive”, is an improved variation on the Phillips drive design. After the patent for the Phillips head expired, the company GKN Screws and Fasteners created the Pozidriv design.

The Pozidriv drive style was originally formed to address the largest issue Phillips heads are prone to: cam-out. Cam-out is defined as the slipping out of a drive recess that occurs when torque exceeds a certain limit. The Pozidriv drive style has the same self-centering design of a Phillips drive style but improves upon the two following factors:

• Increased torque without cam-out
• Greater surface contact engagement between the drive and the recess in the fastener head making it harder to slip when installed correctly

Can I Use a Pozidriv on a Phillips Screw? Or Vice-Versa?
While we at Albany County Fasteners do NOT recommend using the improper drive style on a screw, technically speaking you can. A Phillips drive style fits into a Pozidriv drive recess decently when using the right size. It’s important to note that even if the Phillips does fit snugly into the drive recess, it is still much more likely to strip or cam-out than when using the proper driver.

Alternatively, you can attempt to remove a Phillips screw with a Pozidriv drive but they do not fit into the Phillips drive recess snugly and are much more likely to slip or damage the recess during removal.

Where Are Pozidriv Screws Used?
Pozidriv screws can be used just about anywhere, although they are not nearly as popular as standard Phillips screws. Over the years, many other drive styles, such as the Torx and Robertson, have come out as being more reliable than the Phillips drive style at preventing cam-out and stripping. The Phillips drive is still extremely popular in manufacturing due to its self-centering design but is starting to lose popularity for manual applications due to other drive styles having a better design.

Benefits of the Pozidriv Drive Style
As an improvement on the Phillips drive style, the main benefit of using the Pozidrive is the increased torque without the increased risk of cam-out. Pozidriv screws can handle significantly more torque on the fastener recess than a Phillips drive can.

How Do You Identify A Pozidriv Screw?
While Phillips and Pozidriv screws look similar, Pozidriv are actually quite easy to recognize at a glance. This is due to four notches marked into the head of the Pozidriv screw that are not present in the Phillips Head Screw.

the above taken from https://www.albanycountyfasteners.c...at-is-pozidriv-is-it-different-from-phillips/

A set of PZ screwdrivers and bits makes a world of difference when working on your Defender and is not expensive to obtain:

https://www.amazon.com/GEARWRENCH-80061-Piece-Material-Screwdriver/dp/B000UH282Q/ref=sr_1_4?crid=2MEX0J4S4V9IW&keywords=pozidriv+screwdriver+set&qid=1581440103&s=hi&sprefix=pozidriv+screw,tools,152&sr=1-4

This set (or similar) should be in every Land Rover owner's toolbox (PZ used extensively on all coil sprung and P38 models). You will be amazed the first time using the correct tool for the fastener.

I'll follow up below with a few personal favorite Pozidriv tools of mine.

 

[erover82]

I purchased all five sizes (PZ0-PZ4) of these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/272866063420

Then this driver: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FMTQB9D

Threw away the bits and stored all of the PZ bits in the driver.

One driver, all relevant sizes. Of course you'll probably want to use an impact driver with the PZ4.

 

[acheck]

One of my first purchases as a professional LR mechanic was a complete set of PZ drivers from Snap On.

At the time, I was heavily into a P38 dashboard at least once a week for heater core o-rings, blend door motors, or similar. I found the "reach" of the standard PZ2 to be useful, but the full size handle cumbersome. So, I improvised and after a few minutes in a bench vise I had joined the stubby driver handle with the standard PZ2 blade. Now, long "reach" and small overall size make this one of my favorite overall tools. It has been with me for almost 15 years now.

 

[acheck]

And of course, the infamous combination of the impact driver and 3/8 drive PZ4 bit.

Another purchase early in my "pro" career for removing brake rotor retaining screws on P38 and Discovery 2 hubs. This is also the only tool to use for Defender door hinge-to-bulkhead screw removal and installation.

The 3/8 drive PZ4 bit can be hard to find. This was also purchased from Snap On about 15 years ago.

 

[jymmiejamz]

That's something I always hammer home with my apprentices. There are only a few instances that I can think of where LR actually uses a Phillips screw.

Fun fact: If you ever are assembling IKEA furniture you will notice they (like most European companies) utilise Pozidriv as well and include only Pozidriv bits in their tool kits.

 

[BarryO]

Too many people poo-poo this, but IMO my set of Pozidriv bits are a must-have. When you're trying to remove a screw that's a bit corroded and you definitely don't want to have it cam out (e.g., the middle bottom screw on the frame on the SW sliding side windows), these bits save a lot of grief.