Atlas acquires Microtrains

[peteski]

What size torx do you use on those screws?

My little Craftsman set (picked up several years ago at Lowes) has a T4, which is physically smaller than the 000 phillips I use on phillips head 00-90s.  Is the T4 going to be small enough? (also have T6 if the T4 is too small)

LOL!  I think we're getting a bit ahead of ourselves.   
Also I suspect that of such screws exist with Torx heads (likely M1.2 size), they are probably more expensive the Philips. We also know that model RR manufacturers always look to keep the costs down.

[nkalanaga]

Not to mention that slot-head 00-90s have been standard for Kadee/Micro-Trains N and Z couplers for over 50 years.  I doubt that most customers would be in any hurry to change.

[robert3985]

Speaking of keeping costs down, I just took delivery of 200ea M1.2X4mm Philips Head screws for my N-Possibles for a total cost of less than $8.00USD.  Took about ten days out of China to get them, but I wasn't in a big hurry.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[Lemosteam]

Torx- not just for 1:1 anymore... 

https://www.wihatools.com/pages/torx-screws-chart?srsltid=AfmBOopcvrANNXJIyZNQGR_Rw4VZiLjbdt-teAzP2iH0CZk1gk5oRE9Z

[Mark5]

LOL!  I think we're getting a bit ahead of ourselves.   
Also I suspect that of such screws exist with Torx heads (likely M1.2 size), they are probably more expensive the Philips. We also know that model RR manufacturers always look to keep the costs down.

Agreed.

FWIW, since I started tinkering with N scale models in the early 1970s - I've never stripped a philips head screw head.

[Sokramiketes]

I see, and have experienced the benefit of M1.2 phillips screws over the typical brass slothead 00-90.  They're easier to manipulate and install than slots. 

But I can't see a big enough incremental improvement to moving to torx.  Likewise, I've never stripped a head on a phillips with N scale forces at play.  In fact, if a screw gets jammed in a soft metal underframe, I'm more likely to twist the head off the screw than to strip the head.  This is with good quality Wiha drivers. 

[thomasjmdavis]

LOL!  I think we're getting a bit ahead of ourselves.   
Also I suspect that of such screws exist with Torx heads (likely M1.2 size), they are probably more expensive the Philips. We also know that model RR manufacturers always look to keep the costs down.

I didn't mean to push us down this rabbit hole, just responding to @jdcolombo and wondering what size torx was needed for such little screws.  But... as it turns out... looking at 00-90 screws on McMaster-Carr ( https://www.mcmaster.com/products/screws/thread-size~00-90/ ), the Torx, or Torx-plus drives are not unusual, and sometimes less expensive (when you check the quantities per package) than slotted, and they don't list any phillips.  (although yes, I also have some phillips flathead 00-90s, so I know that can be had).

Even with slotted screws, I think I've probably also broken off more heads than stripped out the slots on 00-90.  Especially back in the day when MTL screws had a high zinc content (or whatever alloy) and the threads were not as precise as those on the tap- and tended to jam when tightened on a metal underframe.  In the modern day, when I'm usually dealing with some form of plastic, I haven't broken or stripped one in a long time.

[jdcolombo]

Hi folks.

Should have been more clear - I like Torx IN GENERAL because they don't strip out easily - really meant that in larger sizes.  Agree you're not going to strip the head of a 00-90.  You'll break it off first. But I've stripped dozens of philips screws when driving them into wood decking, fencing, etc.  These days most larger wood and drywall screws have actually moved to a square head for that reason. 

I got my Torx 00-90's from McMaster Carr, because at the time I couldn't find phillips-heads and I was tired of dealing with slotted screws.  Here's a photo of the head on one of my 00-90 Torx screws:

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And here's the driver set I have, with Torx #'s 1 - 4.  If I remember correctly, the 00-90 head used a Torx 2. 

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I got this Torx set from iFixit, when I was working on putting a new hard drive into an Apple i-Pod (remember those?).  But I've since used it a lot - like I said, nearly everything I put on my workbench these days (trains, small electronics) have Torx heads.

John C.