Hi Peter & All,

Peter shows a clip from a book showing what he calls an "unorthodox" use
of a turnscrew. Not at all unorthodox to those of us who date back to
the ice ages when cars had mechanical ignition distributers and spark
plugs that needed to be replaced (or at least cleaned and reset) about
every 3000 miles. Using a screwdriver to check plug ignition was
standard practice in those daays; many motorists who didn't even know
enough about cars to class themselves as shade tree mechanics knew how
to do that to find out if they needed to get the car to someone else who
did know enough to fix it.

The screwdriver shown in that picture isn't what is usually considered a
true turnscrew in that the lower part of the shank is round vs. flat. I
know I've seen ones like that with a flat area just below the handle
that changes to round lower down, but I can't recall whether they were
some particular brand or what. I wonder if they might possibly have been
an intermediate style during the change from flat to round shanks?

Best Wishes,
Bob