Craftsman CMHT68129 Ratcheting Screwdriver Review: Speed Drive on a Budget

Introduction

The Craftsman CMHT68129 is a ratcheting screwdriver with a trick most of its rivals do not have: Speed Drive technology. Priced at around $15 and made in China, it is an inexpensive tool with an interesting design, and it raises the question of whether the extra gimmick is genuinely useful or just clever marketing.

What Makes the Speed Drive Different

Speed Drive works like this: hold the collar near the shaft and turn the handle in either direction, and the bit only turns one way, but essentially twice as fast. Anyone who has used a speed handle will recognize the benefit. It is especially handy for zipping long screws in or out quickly without changing tools.

Reversing direction is handled by a push-pull collar, and those are your only two choices. Unlike a conventional ratcheting screwdriver, there is no middle position that locks the mechanism into a fixed, manual driver. That is a real trade-off. When working with plastics or soft metals, being able to crank a fastener down and then back it off by hand is something this tool simply cannot do, and there is no in-between setting to lock it up either.

Bit Storage and Compatibility

The bits are double-sided, and a carousel in the back of the handle holds six more of the standard types. The bits have small notches that catch a locking collar inside the chuck, so they are loosely proprietary. Third-party bits are a mixed bag: a quick-lock style bit from another brand stays in quite well and is definitely usable, but generic double-sided bits slide in and out easily, and a nut driver wedges in at the end with a lot of play.

Two more practical notes on the storage. The bits do not pop out on their own; the hard plastic carousel means you have to push or pry them out, which took some effort at first. On the upside, removing the carousel lightens the screwdriver noticeably, and the deep tube behind it gives you a place to stash spare bits.

Where This Tool Actually Shines

The clearest use case is low-torque work with slotted or Phillips screws. Think outlet and switch plate covers, furnace vents in older homes, door knobs, mirrors, small fixtures, and vintage furniture, which is almost exclusively slotted screws.

Holding the collar transfers turning force to that collar, so for higher-torque fasteners you have to grip it tightly, which is awkward. But on low-torque screws you can zip them in and out effortlessly, and the pull-down collar makes fast extraction of longer screws genuinely quick. You can also operate the tool up on the shaft itself, using half the ratchet action, which is handy for lining up and starting a screw before switching to the collar.

Ratchet Feel and Finishing Touches

As a plain ratcheting screwdriver, the CMHT68129 has what feels like a very fine tooth count, roughly 80 teeth by a rough count, which allows small swing angles when space is tight. The mechanism itself is held together by tiny Torx or hex screws, so at least it looks serviceable, though long-term durability is an open question.

Build Quality and Longevity

Craftsman deserves some credit for still innovating in this category, even if the Speed Drive carries a bit of a gimmicky, gift-tool flavor. For $15, an easy on-the-fly push-pull direction change plus the speed function may be exactly what some users want. The lack of a locked manual mode remains the main compromise, and the loose fit of non-proprietary bits limits versatility.

Buying Advice

Buy this only if the specific jobs it suits are ones you actually do. If you regularly work with low-torque slotted screws in older homes or vintage furniture, or you frequently back long screws out, the Speed Drive function earns its keep. If you want a general-purpose ratcheting driver with a locking middle position and universal bit compatibility, look elsewhere.

Conclusion

At $15, the Craftsman CMHT68129 is a cheap experiment worth trying if its two tricks match your workload: fast one-direction turning with the collar, and quick push-pull reversing. It is not a do-everything driver, but it shows there is still room for new ideas in ratcheting screwdrivers.