ifixit Manta Driver Kit: Unmatched Selection, Excellent Case, Okay Bits, and Downgraded Driver Handles.

[Dash Lambda]

I just wrote this review of the Manta kit on iFixit's store, and I realized this is an even better place to put it:

 

The bit set gets an easy 5. Not for quality, anyone who expects them to be up there with Wiha/Wera/Snap-On bits isn't looking at it the right way. The point isn't to give you the best bits; it's to give you every single bit you could possibly need. And quite frankly no non-iFixit kit can even remotely compare to how thorough and comprehensive these sets are.

The bits are a little on the chintzy side, some better machined than others, all made of a softer-than-I'd-like stainless steel. If they were nice Wiha bits the kit would easily be quadruple the price or more, and some of these bits I swear to god don't even exist among the nicer brands.

 

The star gets knocked off because of the driver handles. They're fine; they're solid, reassuringly heavy hunks of aluminium and steel with good magnets and great spinny caps. They don't lock (as compared to the Wera Rapidaptor), they obviously don't have any sort of bit storage, they just do their job. I probably would've given them 4 stars if I didn't have a first gen 64-bit kit. But I do have one.

 

I'm not fond of the second generation black handles. The first gen was nicely machined, ergonomic, had great knurling, and its cap spun like nobody's business. The new drivers keep the nice cap, but lose all the curves so it's more like holding a plain metal tube, and on the grip end of the knurling they have three sloppily cut flats that leave an ugly irregular edge where the knurling just randomly ends. It’s a flawed design. Having owned all three generations of iFixit screwdriver kits thus far, I’d say the driver handle quality went from dollar-store to best-in-class to frustratingly-meh. Quite a rollercoaster.

 

On a final positive note, I should mention the case. It’s great. Solid feeling durable plastic, strong magnets (I throw it in my backpack without thinking twice), partitioned screw-organizing lid, and a really, REALLY nice blue/black layered foam liner to keep the bits and drivers neat and organized.

 

Overall, I’d absolutely recommend this set. The driver handles are still fine and the bits are serviceable, while the bit selection is truly unmatched and the case is excellent.

 

(3 + 5)/2 = 4
 

Pictures:

Spoiler