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A Better Way to Drill and Drive
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you tell me more about your one-year guarantee?
. A metal foil sticker in the case, says: "One Year Guarantee. One of the finest tools you've ever owned or your money back." Brian Giffin, president, Jack Rabbit Tool Co. What's that supposed to mean?
. It's up to you the tool owner, what that means. If you think you received less than extraordinary value for one of our tools - first, we need to know why, and then, we want to make it right with you by your standards. We don't mean to say it will last a professional in daily use more than about ten thousand screws, but it ought to last the home owner several decades. We've had a few come back for free replacement, but it only helps to keep us informed and making improvements. With twenty-six years experience manufacturing tools, I find excellent guarantees are never a problem.
Is it true that Starbuck Coffee Shops are being made with Jack Rabbits?
. We can only claim approximately 90% of new Starbucks store interiors, we don't know about the rest. Those we know about are built at Design Fabricators in Lafayette, Colorado. They started buying some of the first units we ever made. Hundreds of our tools are in daily use at the factory now, some for many years. "With Jack Rabbit we find 50% time savings on screw intensive constructions, greater productivity gains than from buying CNC's". Scott Schnofer, production manager, Design Fabricators, Lafayette, Colorado.
No-set-screws? What are the wrenches for?
. Set screws are trouble. Period. This is particularly so if the application calls for the kind of torque needed resistance when keeping a smooth drill bit from spinning within a limited diameter countersink. Our first version of the Jack Rabbit had set screws and worked better than most, but many people lost the special shorter screws which are impossible to replace locally. Now we have a split-collet tapered thread system unique to the industry. If you lose the wrenches in the kit, no need to worry, the tool is adjustable with standard 1/4 inch wrenches or, in a pinch, vice grips. If it was not tight enough and the bit slips, the shank remains undamaged and still easy to adjust for length.
Are the drill bits the ordinary hardware store type and easily replaceable?
. We use standard "Jobbers Length" drills without a flat spot on either side. We buy the very best split point drills we can get from Viking Drill in Minnesota. If they break and you can't wait for our top quality replacements, any hardware store has replacement drills in stock. We have larger ID 3/8" countersinks available for tapered drills as well. Call the factory.
Should I buy a single set or the whole thing?
. It depends on the work you intend doing. Is it a deck or an addition? In the factory in Colorado where most new Starbucks Coffee Shops are made, (Design Fabricators) they only use #8 screws so they only buy #8 Jack Rabbits. On the other hand a general contractor who finds the tool handy from the foundations to the finishing trim, will eventually have valuable applications for the entire Deluxe Set.
I'm using T-25 Star screws and can't find a bit that works with the Jack Rabbit, got any solutions?
. Most Star bit shanks are cut round about 1 inch back from the tip. This will not work with our product, we need some hex shoulder to get ahold of. I recently cut T-25 Star bits and some other useful sizes, to round out the line. My favorite is the new #1 Phillips and #1 Square.
These bits are now available:
•2 1/2" PHIL #2 / T-25
•2 1/2" PHIL #1 / Square #1
•5" PHIL #2 / Square #2
•5" PHIL #2 / T-25
. A metal foil sticker in the case, says: "One Year Guarantee. One of the finest tools you've ever owned or your money back." Brian Giffin, president, Jack Rabbit Tool Co. What's that supposed to mean?
. It's up to you the tool owner, what that means. If you think you received less than extraordinary value for one of our tools - first, we need to know why, and then, we want to make it right with you by your standards. We don't mean to say it will last a professional in daily use more than about ten thousand screws, but it ought to last the home owner several decades. We've had a few come back for free replacement, but it only helps to keep us informed and making improvements. With twenty-six years experience manufacturing tools, I find excellent guarantees are never a problem.
Is it true that Starbuck Coffee Shops are being made with Jack Rabbits?
. We can only claim approximately 90% of new Starbucks store interiors, we don't know about the rest. Those we know about are built at Design Fabricators in Lafayette, Colorado. They started buying some of the first units we ever made. Hundreds of our tools are in daily use at the factory now, some for many years. "With Jack Rabbit we find 50% time savings on screw intensive constructions, greater productivity gains than from buying CNC's". Scott Schnofer, production manager, Design Fabricators, Lafayette, Colorado.
No-set-screws? What are the wrenches for?
. Set screws are trouble. Period. This is particularly so if the application calls for the kind of torque needed resistance when keeping a smooth drill bit from spinning within a limited diameter countersink. Our first version of the Jack Rabbit had set screws and worked better than most, but many people lost the special shorter screws which are impossible to replace locally. Now we have a split-collet tapered thread system unique to the industry. If you lose the wrenches in the kit, no need to worry, the tool is adjustable with standard 1/4 inch wrenches or, in a pinch, vice grips. If it was not tight enough and the bit slips, the shank remains undamaged and still easy to adjust for length.
Are the drill bits the ordinary hardware store type and easily replaceable?
. We use standard "Jobbers Length" drills without a flat spot on either side. We buy the very best split point drills we can get from Viking Drill in Minnesota. If they break and you can't wait for our top quality replacements, any hardware store has replacement drills in stock. We have larger ID 3/8" countersinks available for tapered drills as well. Call the factory.
Should I buy a single set or the whole thing?
. It depends on the work you intend doing. Is it a deck or an addition? In the factory in Colorado where most new Starbucks Coffee Shops are made, (Design Fabricators) they only use #8 screws so they only buy #8 Jack Rabbits. On the other hand a general contractor who finds the tool handy from the foundations to the finishing trim, will eventually have valuable applications for the entire Deluxe Set.
I'm using T-25 Star screws and can't find a bit that works with the Jack Rabbit, got any solutions?
. Most Star bit shanks are cut round about 1 inch back from the tip. This will not work with our product, we need some hex shoulder to get ahold of. I recently cut T-25 Star bits and some other useful sizes, to round out the line. My favorite is the new #1 Phillips and #1 Square.
These bits are now available:
•2 1/2" PHIL #2 / T-25
•2 1/2" PHIL #1 / Square #1
•5" PHIL #2 / Square #2
•5" PHIL #2 / T-25
Will a Jack Rabbit fit all 1/4" phillips bits? Why are yours different?
. The Jack Rabbit will fit many 2" long, 1/4" hex bits but not all of them, the variety available worldwide is rather amazing. I tried hard to design this tool so it would fit "generic" bits but didn't quite succeed. Most other brands of driver bit, they may not be long enough or straight enough or precisely 1/4 inch hex in diameter. To use a standard 2" bit with our tool, fit it all the way into the Jack Rabbit first and then put that assembly into the drill chuck. This will get enough bit out of your chuck to point the drill as straight as possible. The locking mechanism can be broken if its handling all the driving force so keep enough bit out of the chuck that it fits fully into the Jack Rabbit. Then the hex shank can engage with the body of the device for plenty of torque.
. As you know, it's very difficult to obtain a quality long lived phillips driver bit, and yet its important ! We had the same problem and ended up making all our own until very recently. We spec a 2 1/2" double ended bit, #2 Phillips with a #2 Square drive on the other end. It's the right length for using with the Mag Ring in a 3/8" keyless chuck. We have done extensive field testing with professional carpenters and cabinet makers here in Colorado on our bits and the Jack Rabbit.
. A very special thank you goes to my core group of product testers, Paul Liscom, Bill Brennan and Craig Thormann. They've inspired a lot of learning on my part and still do. They got me going real early on four fluted countersinks and ordinary drill bits. They insisted the phillips/square combination was needed when using square drive screws in home re-model. It saves valuable time rummaging when for just a moment up on a ladder, you need that phillips again. (We like square and star drive screws because they drive easier than phillips, with any brand of tool.)
. We recommend with our phillips bits you use a cordless drill so it has a clutch. Set the clutch as light as possible, and always pre-drill correctly for that screw. When driving the screw, slow down to avoid slamming the head into the material. And save your back, keep your new bits sharp by never allowing them to spin in the screw. One time around going thud-thud-thud and you're right, its never going to be the same.
. As manufacturers of driver bits, we have a choice at the moment of heat treating, to aim for greater hardness for possibly a very long life driving screws; or to aim for a softer bit with greater resilience to sudden shock so that no matter who uses it or how, the bit doesn't snap. It costs the same either way. Hard goes with brittle, and soft goes with shock resistance. Its the way the universe is made around here.
. Starting with the finest Pennsylvania steel we can buy, we presently aim our heat treating to maximize a bits longevity in professional hands. Unfortunately far more variation occurs in the heat treat process than most manufactures want to admit, even with small batches done at premium cost heat treat facilities, like the one we use. Larger batches produce larger variations. We certainly specify the Rockwell hardness and the acceptable deviation, but its tougher to do it right than you might think.
. I could relieve the sharp edges and change the angles so that the bit wants to back out of the screw head rather than stay engaged. This is an easy trick to avoid breakage when manufacturing a hard annealed long wearing bit. It makes the bit look good but its at the operators expense. Its a trick that works your wrists and shoulders all day long fighting to keep the bit driving screws. Our angles are as good and our edges as sharp as we can make them to keep the engagement solid in the screw head and the bit doing the work, rather than you. So use a light trigger finger and enjoy the easier work load. And if you break a bit, we are still learning, please contact the factory for prompt free replacements.
. The Jack Rabbit will fit many 2" long, 1/4" hex bits but not all of them, the variety available worldwide is rather amazing. I tried hard to design this tool so it would fit "generic" bits but didn't quite succeed. Most other brands of driver bit, they may not be long enough or straight enough or precisely 1/4 inch hex in diameter. To use a standard 2" bit with our tool, fit it all the way into the Jack Rabbit first and then put that assembly into the drill chuck. This will get enough bit out of your chuck to point the drill as straight as possible. The locking mechanism can be broken if its handling all the driving force so keep enough bit out of the chuck that it fits fully into the Jack Rabbit. Then the hex shank can engage with the body of the device for plenty of torque.
. As you know, it's very difficult to obtain a quality long lived phillips driver bit, and yet its important ! We had the same problem and ended up making all our own until very recently. We spec a 2 1/2" double ended bit, #2 Phillips with a #2 Square drive on the other end. It's the right length for using with the Mag Ring in a 3/8" keyless chuck. We have done extensive field testing with professional carpenters and cabinet makers here in Colorado on our bits and the Jack Rabbit.
. A very special thank you goes to my core group of product testers, Paul Liscom, Bill Brennan and Craig Thormann. They've inspired a lot of learning on my part and still do. They got me going real early on four fluted countersinks and ordinary drill bits. They insisted the phillips/square combination was needed when using square drive screws in home re-model. It saves valuable time rummaging when for just a moment up on a ladder, you need that phillips again. (We like square and star drive screws because they drive easier than phillips, with any brand of tool.)
. We recommend with our phillips bits you use a cordless drill so it has a clutch. Set the clutch as light as possible, and always pre-drill correctly for that screw. When driving the screw, slow down to avoid slamming the head into the material. And save your back, keep your new bits sharp by never allowing them to spin in the screw. One time around going thud-thud-thud and you're right, its never going to be the same.
. As manufacturers of driver bits, we have a choice at the moment of heat treating, to aim for greater hardness for possibly a very long life driving screws; or to aim for a softer bit with greater resilience to sudden shock so that no matter who uses it or how, the bit doesn't snap. It costs the same either way. Hard goes with brittle, and soft goes with shock resistance. Its the way the universe is made around here.
. Starting with the finest Pennsylvania steel we can buy, we presently aim our heat treating to maximize a bits longevity in professional hands. Unfortunately far more variation occurs in the heat treat process than most manufactures want to admit, even with small batches done at premium cost heat treat facilities, like the one we use. Larger batches produce larger variations. We certainly specify the Rockwell hardness and the acceptable deviation, but its tougher to do it right than you might think.
. I could relieve the sharp edges and change the angles so that the bit wants to back out of the screw head rather than stay engaged. This is an easy trick to avoid breakage when manufacturing a hard annealed long wearing bit. It makes the bit look good but its at the operators expense. Its a trick that works your wrists and shoulders all day long fighting to keep the bit driving screws. Our angles are as good and our edges as sharp as we can make them to keep the engagement solid in the screw head and the bit doing the work, rather than you. So use a light trigger finger and enjoy the easier work load. And if you break a bit, we are still learning, please contact the factory for prompt free replacements.