Hi,  While reading Bob Yorburg's recent comments, two items come
to mind.  I second Bob's comment about heating the screw.  If you
encounter a screw that is stuck in the hole (usually rusted), the
soldering gun is the tool of choice.  I read about doing this many
years ago in one of Arthur Ord-Hume's great books.  It works like
a charm.

If the head of the screw is rusted, file it a little to expose bare
metal so that the tip of the iron can make good contact with the screw
head.  Sometimes a little solder makes an even better conductor of the
heat.  I watch (and smell) carefully.  Faint smoke or the first smell
of burning wood tells when to remove the heat.

Another important consideration is the size of the screw driver.
The blade should fit snugly in the slot and be the same width as the
screw head.  The blade should also be in good shape.  I slightly grind
at the end of the blade so that the two faces are parallel and the tip
is sharply defined.

If the screws are rusted, I take them for a swim in Evapo-Rust and
then brush them to clean metal.

I wish someone would sell decent screws.  Most places have the ones
with stamped (not cut) threads.  And the big box stores have mostly
Phillips screws now.  Even the screws from McMaster-Carr aren't what
they used to be.

Regards,
Craig Smith