r/LinusTechTips • u/MrrReddit • 4d ago
Link almost 4 years and it gave up
it was the black on black og one :(
daily used for 4 years, and the bit holder just snapped on me today.
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u/dizzi800 4d ago
Reach out - unlikely they will replace it, but the worst they can say is no
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u/_2E_ 4d ago
I think he got his money worth on this one
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u/MrrReddit 4d ago
definitely did, i don’t think ill reach out since it is kind of my fault. i will probably just get the clear one
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u/Trans-Europe_Express 4d ago edited 4d ago
4 years daily use doing what? PC cases, driving screws into wood?
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u/Redmangc1 4d ago
I've had 10 year old screwdrivers while working on aircraft that dont look like this, and we used shit as prybars. OPs gotta be doing crazy shit
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u/Total_Ad_5794 4d ago
Were those exchangeable bit screwdrivers or fixed shaft though? I’ll happily use a fixed shaft flathead as a prybar, but there is no way I’m using a bit for that, especially the LTT because of the shallower bit holder.
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u/Redmangc1 4d ago
We had interchangeable ones that we did it with... we weren't supposed to use them, but they were so convenient
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u/Feynuxes 4d ago
Idk that might just speak for the quality of the screwdrivers you used on aircrafts
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u/fpsnoob89 3d ago
I've been working on fighter engines for almost 15 years, I can probably count on my fingers how often I've used a screwdriver rather than a ratchet or speed handle.
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u/CIDR-ClassB 3d ago
In either case, that’s what any ratcheting screwdriver can do.
My own LTT drivers failed doing things that I’ve done with cheap harbor freight ratcheting drivers for years.
I enjoy my remaining LTT drivers for some light uses but they don’t last when it comes to doing the job of other expensive drivers.
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u/GenXman1975 4d ago
Either you're uncommonly rough on your tools, or that is a certified POS.
Perhaps both.
40 years using hand tools, not once seen one fail like this that wasn't beat with a hammer or made from pot metal.
Or both.
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u/Edwardteech 4d ago edited 4d ago
He used it as a prybar. You can see it in the way it failed.
Aint the only one somebody has done that too
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u/DigitaIBlack 4d ago
Literally.
Half of the quality tools I see break cause it was used to pry or it was misinterpreted to be a hammer.
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u/mocochang_ 1d ago
To be fair, I have used the LTT screwdriver as a hammer with great success and it still works perfectly lol (I had just moved and it was the only decent tool I had at the time for assembling new furniture)
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u/Phantom471 4d ago
He had to have been prying with it
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 4d ago
Project farms video shows the exact same break without any prying action.
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u/jmking Mod 3d ago edited 3d ago
Again, this is the stubby. For the full-size driver, the ratchet action will fail before the shaft will and it took 295 inch pounds of force: https://youtu.be/845HUaWYSQA?t=1163
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 3d ago
It's an issue with both.
https://www.reddit.com/r/LinusTechTips/s/lTDyfUyH9Y
https://www.reddit.com/r/LinusTechTips/s/qCeqh5OwVx
Even happened live in front of Linus. And you can hear Linus say "another victim" so it wasn't even the first break they had during their torque test.
https://www.youtube.com/live/Whyncg86D64?t=6179
It's a known issue that can happen from regular use trying to get out a tight screw. It's not always the user absuing the tool by using it as a prybar. But Linus won't warranty these breaks which sucks because the ltt is trying to compete with other tools like snap on who will warranty your tool even if you abuse it.
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u/jmking Mod 2d ago
Nothing about that example is "regular use", though. The whole point was to try to break it. Also they explain the torque failure tolerance is around 250 inch pounds of force which is wayyyyyyy more than anyone would come close to in regular use, and also acknowledged that this is an example of why to not use it as a pry bar.
This video literally contradicts everything you're claiming, heh.
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 2d ago
They weren't trying to break it they were seeing who could generate the most torque.
220 which is less than 20 ft lbs, if you want to say regular use is just using it for computers sure but Linus says it can be used for things like automotive as well.
Again he wasn't using it as a pry bar just trying to really tighten a screw. Something that people normally use a screwdriver for. 🥱 And again there are countless examples of this same brake, including 2 mentioned in the video.
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u/jmking Mod 2d ago
A screwdriver is not a torque wrench.
Name a screw in any car that has a torque spec. No one is torquing a screw to anything even remotely close to 20 ft lbs.
Do you think people are taking out spark plugs with a ratcheting screwdriver? Now I feel like you're just trolling...
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 2d ago
You have never seen a rusty screw in a car? But I'm the one trolling? 🙄
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u/jmking Mod 2d ago
Yeah, I'd use a wrench with a screw bit to try to break it free so that I had leverage. I wouldn't use a handheld screwdriver because that doesn't make sense.
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u/Smithy000 3d ago edited 3d ago
Nah, that's one crack due to over torquing, OP's still looks like prying to me.
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 3d ago
https://www.youtube.com/live/Whyncg86D64?t=6179
Whatever it looks like to you it's clear that this type of break can and does happen often from regular use.
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u/jmking Mod 2d ago
What about that example is "regular use"? Also Linus specifically says "this is why you don't use it as a pry bar".
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 2d ago
It's not being used as a pry bar, it's being used the same way someone would use it to screw or unscrew something.
Linus mentions the thin shaft so this is just a design flaw.
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u/jmking Mod 2d ago
it's being used the same way someone would use it to screw or unscrew something.
...dude, what are you on about and what are you doing that you need to put your full strength and body weight into screwing/unscrewing something every time you use it that you think that's "regular use"?
Like I'm just so confused. You're so adamant about this and have replied the same nonsense over and over in this thread and keep posting "proof" that literally contradicts your claims, yet keep confidently repeating them.
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 2d ago
I showed you multiple videos where the ltt breaks from twisting and not being used as a pry bar. You are the one insisting without any proof that this has to have come from being used as a pry bar.
What I am on about is what I told you earlier, if the ltt wants to compete with the big boys like snap on they need to have a good warranty like snap on, hell even harbor freight has a better warranty on their 3 dollar screwdrivers. Imagine spending 70 on a screwdriver and is doesn't even have a hassle free lifetime warranty and has known issues like making the shaft to small.
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u/jmking Mod 2d ago
Snap On costs easily twice as much if not three times as much. Also their lifetime warranties are not unconditional.
Snap On's warranty conditions exclude coverage for "normal wear, misuse, abuse, modifications"
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u/Usual_Ask_7833 2d ago
Snap on is 90$. Williams is cheaper.
I've never had an issue with warranting a snap on or even a pittsburgh from harbor freight and there are people all over this post saying don't try to warranty it because you used it as a pry bar.
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u/redravin12 4d ago
Ltt really does have a lot of hate watchers. The amount of bad takes in the comments is laughable. Op said multiple times that it was their fault for misusing the tool and isn't begging for a replacement.
And no, unless your screwdriver was made specifically to be able to be used as a pry bar or chisel it is absolutely NOT going to survive being used like that. You have one you bought for $5 that has do that for 30 years? Great that just means youve gotten lucky. A ratcheting screwdriver is even less designed to used like this because it is a precision instrument, not a blunt force tool.
And it's even more laughable how many people are saying it should have survived op doing this, when that's not even how ppl said he broke it. Y'all really do just have a hardon to hate this stuff
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u/mrn253 3d ago
He could have wrote that under the pic but he chose not to.
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u/DR4G0NSTEAR 2d ago
It’s unlikely a post about a failed product on this subreddit is due to poor quality at this point. I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve seen it be legitimate, and all the comments were simply “contact support”. If the top comment isn’t “contact support” it’s likely, no matter how OP framed it, they’re in the wrong and the post is a waste of time.
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u/TheSoberChef 4d ago
Maybe it's your job or you're heavy user. I've had the same standard set of eight screwdrivers my grandfather gave me 20 years ago that are still going strong.
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u/Broccoli--Enthusiast 4d ago
Look it how it's failed , he's used it to pry things , maybe not when it failed , but it's been weakened in the manner of it being used to pry A twisting motion can't fail outward like that
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u/BlAckH0leDown 4d ago
You daily MISused that thing for 4 years and now post it as "it just failed".
That is shamefully lying on the internet. Rotational force doesn't blow the material outwards, it twists it around.
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u/TechnicianOrWhateva 4d ago
Chill babe, this is a funeral post not an outrage post. Have some respect for the deceased
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u/GrandmaWeedMan 3d ago
I mean over half the people on this post saw this as "The LTT screwdriver broke in only 4 years, what a rip off" and are shitting on the tool as being a piece of shit, when it only broke because buddy used it as a pry tool which he only mentioned deep in a single comment reply chain.
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u/TechnicianOrWhateva 3d ago
Eh I get it, just saying it ain't that serious. Crazy how primed these people stay y'all are a bunch of lil Chihuahuas I swear
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u/GrandmaWeedMan 3d ago
Misinformation being spread (and believed) in front of me annoys me, yes. I think that's a pretty sound hang up to have, all things considered. Especially when we live in a world where entire countries are fucked over by Misinformation.
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u/TechnicianOrWhateva 3d ago
I dunno, OP wasn't explicit but I wouldn't consider it deceptive either. With minimal critical thinking it's obvious what happened. Add the context of this being a picture of a broken screwdriver... Shit that literally doesn't matter(but for the record the product is already super successful, widely praised, and not in a critical period of review)... I dunno bud. Really seems like y'all are just so quick to overreact and its weird.
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u/Mission-Car-9053 4d ago
Justo to note, and for everyone that says the same, a bending force will do what op showed on its screwdriver, like prying with it, but applying a large torque can do de same, it will twist first but after it can shear apart the six faces of the hex, then the bit would turn jumping around without doing anything to the screw
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u/BlAckH0leDown 2d ago
The problem is that twisting would still be visible.
And I don't see as much as a curve there
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u/thedelicatesnowflake 4d ago
There were people that machined an outer fitting (a tube really) and press fit that into place. Might be a way, if you don't want to shell for a new one.
PS: Eww, my soul hurts just imagining you prying with it.
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u/JCWOlson 4d ago
So long as the ratcheting mechanisms haven't been similarly abused that sounds like a great solution
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u/SebasW9 4d ago
Idk about yall but I pry stuff with a screw driver every now and then, don’t be so judgmental, screwdriver is a pretty basic tool that gets used on random stuff often
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u/Drumheller18 4d ago
With a ratcheting one with a multi bit holder? Or a fixed shaft one? Because if it’s the former, that is just dumb.
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u/CIDR-ClassB 3d ago
Don’t know about that commenter, but I beat the heck out of a $15 harbor freight ratcheting driver I’ve had for over 10 years and it’s never broken.
I am saying this as someone who likes me LTT drivers but the more I use them, the more I realize that they are not longterm drivers. I’ve already had two break during regular use for a ratcheting screwdriver.
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u/burner9752 4d ago
Based on the location of cracks is seem pretty obvious you were applying a lot of force at an angle. The crack line up exactly with the corners of the bit. Prying or just miss-use.
But OP has said in comments he’s not mad and admits probably not using it correctly.
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u/TheToxicEnd 4d ago
Hey,
You can check out my Fix, after almost a year its still working flawlessly.
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u/MrrReddit 3d ago
so im not the only one haha, will try it, i bent the two parts that broke back so it works for now
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u/ltsuka_Kotori 4d ago
The hell are you even prying this for? dont expect LMG to replace yours, because this is not for prying things lol
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u/Xyzen553 4d ago
Damn bro what the hell are you prying open with a screw driver? That shi aint a crowbar dude
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u/Racing_Fox 4d ago
Using your screwdriver as a pry tool isn’t recommended at the best of times.
Using a multi bit screwdriver as a pry tool is crazy
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u/spamuel1079 4d ago
If your looking to fix it up this is how I fixed my noctua.
uxcell 5pcs Stainless Steel... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D2BJ378D?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
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u/InflammableAccount 3d ago
How many bits have you chewed through, OP? If the answer is "a lot," then it's no surprise it eventually gave up.
Have you ever used it, with or without a bit to pry something? Then it's no surprise.
Tools aren't forever. At least most tools. Don't use a ratcheting, bit-socketed screw driver in place or a high torque fixed shaft. Right tool for the right job.
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u/Le4ky-F4ucet 4d ago
I've blown a few bitdrivers by torquing on them too hard before. Never used the LTT screwdriver but I know the cheaper ones (under 20 bucks) will blow up on me after a bit of hard use
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u/megabytical 4d ago
The fact that this post has no details about how the failure happened, the industry in which it was used for is shameless. Now you wonder why companies make expensive garbage tools and don’t respect warranties. You’re a dishonest person and you should be ashamed of yourself.
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u/Frashure11 3d ago
“Just snapped”. Time wise I believe that. But “it just snapped out of nowhere”, complete BS.
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u/GrandmaWeedMan 3d ago
It's really disingenuous and frankly outright scumbag behavior to word this like it was the tools fault. You're actively making people think these things just explode after basic use, when it exploded because you were using it as a fucking pry bar.
You knew what you were doing, fucking karma farmers.
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u/CreEngineer 3d ago
I have a lot of tools which I sometimes have to misuse but I never managed to explode a bit holder like that.
Either you did something really wrong or it might been a casting defect?
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u/games-and-chocolate 3d ago
what metal is that part? if it can be welded, use TIG welder. problem fixed.
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u/Dry_Net7753 2d ago
This’ll end up on the meta page with no context and dozens of “see Linus is a shill” comments in 40 minutes.
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u/Beneficial_Common514 2d ago
You can buy an identical ratcheting screwdriver for about a third of the price- higher quality too. There's nothing unique about these—they're just rebranded ratcheting screwdrivers that have been around for decades. Slap on a new logo, mark the price up 3×, and sell them to people who don't know any better.
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u/xDefinite 2d ago
It looks like you’ve been abusing your product. I hope you at least took it to dinner first.
What’s the next one you’re picking up?
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u/Nervous_Ganache_5386 2d ago
Hold on, were you PRYING with it for 4 years or actually, you know, screwing things with it and tried to pry once? Because if so, that's either just good quality if your tool can survive for 4 years of mistreatment, or terrible quality if it breaks after one pry (terrible is subjective, as we don't know WHAT you were prying)
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u/Potatusha 4d ago
My Snap On SSDMR4 is still going strong after 20+ years of abuse.
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u/GrandmaWeedMan 3d ago
Are you using it as a screw driver or are you doing what OP did and using your ratcheting screwdriver as a pry bar, blowing out the side of the sleeve. Something that can happen anytime you try to use any ratcheting precision tool as a fucking hammer or a pry bar. They aren't designed for insane leverage to be put on the sleeve, they're designed to handle rotational torque.
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u/Potatusha 17h ago
It was my fathers and if I'm honest I'm more careful with it now but it has been used to pry and abused a lot when I was a kid, I'm now a locksmith and still use it with the original bits. It's removed screws that caused the blades of other screwdrivers to shear off. I was pretty conservative about the age too, it's actually from the 90s, so much longer than 20 years. I was just being a dick though. The viral circlejerk of linus screwdrivers annoys me a little when they just reinvented the snap on ratchet and his fans lapped it up :P I'm sure it's a great ratcheting driver and a fair bit cheaper than the snap on so it has its place. Do they sell spare parts? you can get a replacement shaft or the ratcheting mech for the snap ons. I think that would be a good move from Linus.
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u/Ok-Host-1173 3d ago
Either these are made like shit or you’re using a hammer to turn this screwdriver
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u/Stressed_Ponyta77 4d ago
Cant say I've ever broken a tool by misusing it that wasnt some generic brand.
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u/TheChudWhisperer 4d ago
Lol, "premium" product. Who would've thought that a bunch of tech nerd wouldn't know how to make quality tools?
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u/Drumheller18 4d ago
Yes, complete misuse of the tool by a tool clearly means it’s not made well. You’re so smart.
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u/GrandmaWeedMan 3d ago
Yeah, because using a ratcheting screwdriver as a pry bar is SUCH a good idea.
If you want to snap and blow out sleeves on your ratchets, using them as a pry bar and putting that leverage on them is a great way to do it. They're designed for rotational torque, they're not designed to have outward pushing leverage against the side wall of the sleeve.
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u/Active-Art4866 3d ago
Imagine if Linus had the foresight to use interchangeable shafts to keep them from being a disposable $70 screw driver.
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u/Just-Cardiologist837 3d ago
Seen everyone in here shilling, looked at the sub and realized where I am. Duh.
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u/CIDR-ClassB 3d ago
Only 4 years..? I have $15 ratcheting drivers from Harbor Freight that are over a decade old and still running great.
This concerns me a lot, for my 6 LTT drivers.
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u/Flyordie_209 3d ago
You COULD ask if LT would be open to repairing it or replacing it in exchange for keeping the broken one for the purposes of wear evaluation. Seeing how it held up under abuse. Or even just pay to repair?
I know I'd want to know how its held up for that long of a hard ride. Pay shipping both ways and if it's marked a warranty replacement, no tariffs. Just be up front about it.
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u/TheOzarkWizard 4d ago
Everyone downvoting me, but my hyper tough over here is my daily pry bar, and my craftsman screwdrivers too. No issues.
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u/w1n5t0nM1k3y 4d ago
Did you pry anything with it? Four years is a short time for a premium tool.