A cruciform recess with tapered flanks and a pointed bottom, sized by number, with #2 the most common. The taper helps a driver find the recess quickly on a production line, but it also pushes the bit out under high torque, so Phillips heads cam out readily. Pozidriv, marked by small tick lines between the arms, and the Japanese JIS cross recess, often marked with a dot, look similar but need their own bits.
That's Pozidriv, not Phillips, see the little ticks, put a PZ2 in the driver before you chew up every head on the cabinet.
Many of the so-called soft screws on Japanese motorcycles are JIS heads chewed up by Phillips drivers; a JIS bit seats fully and stops the cam-out.
Also heard as
- cross recess
- Phillips head
Related terms
Cam-out
The driver bit climbing out of a screw recess under torque, chewing up the recess and wearing the bit.
Torx
A six-lobed star drive that transmits more torque with less cam-out than cross or hex recesses.
Robertson
A square-socket screw drive, standard in Canadian construction, with color-coded bit and handle sizes.
Rounded off
Describes a hex head, nut or socket recess whose corners have worn smooth so wrenches just slip.