Torx and starheads are great for things like soft wood, but too much torque screwing into metal or plastic is going to crack the casing or strip the threads or hole instead of the head.
Similarly they work well for bolt applications with a lock washer or other point of weakness to handle over tightening.
Torx screws really should be used with a driver with an adjustable torque setting, which is pretty standard on most cordless drivers now, but rare for manual ones.
>FYI, Phillips screwdrivers are often referred to as "star" in my experience by average people.
FYI, that's wrong. The proper generic term for Phillips, Frearson, Posidrive, and similar is cruciform or cross drive, not star.
>Best to just use the proper terms.
"Star drive" is the proper generic term inclusive of the trademarked Torx, its security Torx version, and similar 6-sided drivers.
Just as Robertson is a tradename for a type of square drive.
A quick search seems to only list Phillips as "star" drive for some Indian web sites.
[0]The hexalobular socket screw drive, often referred to by the original proprietary brand name Torx or by the alternative generic name star drive, uses a star-shaped recess in the fastener with six rounded points.
FYI, it's not wrong, because it's my lived experience: all my life a Phillips screwdriver has been called a "star screwdriver" by everyone around me (I'm in Ontario). I'm not saying to use the generic terms, but the actual terms; that is, Phillips, Torx, Robertson, etc., because those are unambiguous. The generic or "official" terms are irrelevant, just as the generic term for velcro, hook-and-loop, is irrelevant, because everyone calls it velcro.
Also, as far as I know, Robertson is the only tapered square drive.
Similarly they work well for bolt applications with a lock washer or other point of weakness to handle over tightening.
Torx screws really should be used with a driver with an adjustable torque setting, which is pretty standard on most cordless drivers now, but rare for manual ones.