this post was submitted on 07 Oct 2025
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They are better than slotted. The driver always slips and you always stab yourself in the arm, they are impossible to work with. Why were they even invented, what purpose do they solve, it is literally the worst possible way to design a screw.
The problem you have with slotted screw heads is twofold.
You buy the cheapest and crappiest set of straight bladed drivers the dollar store sells. Manufactured by some poor Pakistani dude squatting in the dirt and wearing his safety squints and safety sandals as he bashes each one out with a hammer and scrap steel anvil.
You have no idea that those drivers are actually meant to be fitted to the slotted screw you are working with. Not that it matters, you won't take the time and effort to do so anyway.
A good set of straight blade screw drivers cost real money. They a forged and then the tips are hollow ground to get purchase in the slot to prevent cam out. Check the cost of a set of gunsmithing screwdrivers. And no one that actually has a set or two of those is afraid to modify the tips to correctly make the screwdriver, (or as the British so elegantly put it-- turnscrews back in the day), fit the slot.
While we have far better designs these days, they are complicated to make and require special tooling to manufacture. And a big advantage to the slotted screw is if you strip out one of those much fancier types, you can often just take a small flat file and pretty quickly cut a slot to try again. (looking at you Philips head).
Flatheads are typically used in situations where you want to discourage using a driver because it may over torque the screw and cause damage such as in an outlet cover.
They are the easiest to machine, so they were invented first. Being first and being cheap leads to abundance. Ubiquity means every toolbox needs a flathead screwdriver, and most of those also prove useful as prybars.
My father in law converted a #4 slot into a chisel using his grinder.
Slotted is still useful today, but as a bolt instead of a screw. They are fantastic for applications where you can't assume someone has a screwdriver.
They work OK as machine screws these days. But I still far prefer socket hexhead screws.
O the other hand, I have dabbled in the gunsmithing repair of old antique firearms. I have a taste for fine old British SxS shotguns. And they often needed repairs to put them back in service. They use nothing but slotted screws to this day.
And honestly, there is something in my toolmaker's brain that feels so good when I gaze upon a fine old shotgun and see every screw slot is timed to be in perfect alignment and every screw meticulously hand fitted to make it so. The extra time and effort to do that speaks to the care and craftsmanship of the 'smith that built that gun. It's a level of craftsmanship we no longer see in the day to day world anymore.
I should specify that they work better when all you have is a knife, coin, or cartridge. to unscrew things. My avalanche beacon has a slotted screw for the battery for example, but guns are another one.
Your beacon maybe has a coin slot that's a more universal type for real emergency things like your beacon or a small child's battery operated toy.
I'm confused, are you saying avalanche beacons are children's toys or emergency things? Childrens toys in my experience use Philips head screws.