Rel Seat Clamp Screws/Nuts

[Brewcrafter]

Playing a lot of catchup today.  Question - What do you folks use as a "goto" tool for reel clamp screws/nuts?
Duh!  The default answer here is "screwdriver" but I am wondering if I am missing something, and looking for some guidance. 

Left to right are my Avet JX6/3, Torque 25NLD2, Tiberon 113H, and 20VISX.  Here is my worry - common screwdrivers all have a "pitch" to the bit and hence their engagement is more of a "wedge" and there is some slop.  On the Avet (which has the most use) you can see the edges are starting to exhibit wear.  I also know that these clamp screws do not need to be tightened to 200 lbs/ft of torque  (side note - last June I saw a nice United Composites deckhand style rod reduced to scrap from an over tightened reel seat on a trip).  I'm also looking for something that I can throw in my reel bag that will not take up a lot of space.  So -
Is there a cheap existing tool that I don't know about?  If not:
I am thinking about either taking a common nut driver and grinding it down to turn it into a pseudo "spanner wrench nut driver" with nubs that fully engage (no pitch).
I am also thinking of making something out of sheet metal (could have different size nubs/different span on each end).  The positive is that it would be flat and not take up a lot of room in the reel bag - and I know there is no need to generate a lot of torque on this.  It's just with some of these nuts they would easily take a #3 size common screwdriver - pretty damn big overkill screwdriver to be lugging around for a "single use" tool.  What do you folks use?  And to think my older stuff just uses wing nuts, and the universal tool is located on the end of my hand. 

[Swami805]

Good question, beats me. Some of the Shimano screws are the worst.  In a pinch I use a coin and my dykes

[thorhammer]

I believe hollow ground Brownell's gunsmithing drivers may be what you seek- Fred will say for sure. I just use a big bit as-is, but you could grind your own with a file to the profile you need and just keep it in reel tools bag. My 0.02.


John

[foakes]

Brownell's, Wheeler, Chapman, and Grace all have good hollow-ground screwdrivers.

These are gunsmithing screwdrivers.

Some folks are OK using any old cheap screwdrivers that they find -- that doesn't work for me.

And you don't need to break the bank when acquiring tools.

Personally, I made up a complete set of reel tools and spare parts -- it goes on every trip.

It is in a soft case and weighs about 8 pounds.

The key is having a hollow ground screwdriver blade of the closest to the exact slot size possible.

Best,

Fred

[foakes]

Screwdrivers and tools are not really that expensive -- I just get what is needed.

Best, Fred

[SoCalAngler]

I bought a cheapo multi-bit driver that I keep in my tackle box. This driver holds 7 bits, 3 different size blades, 2 sizes phillips heads. 1 #14 spanner bit and one large blade notched for the Avet seat bolts.

It works fine for all my reel clamps and I could even do reel most repair/service with it on longer trips if I wanted or needed to.

[foakes]

Yeah, I have repaired many a reel on a galley table with just a newspaper, screwdriver, crescent wrench, and maybe a pocketknife -- as we moved to another drop site.   

But I soon learned that that did not work well for me -- plus when folks find out that you are a reel mechanic -- they expect a little more professionalism.

So I generally always have an organized repair bag kit on trips -- with tools, drags, common spare parts, lubricants, etc.

Never need it for my own gear -- it is to assist other anglers.

Best, Fred