Screwdriving apparatus for use in driving screws joined together in a strip

An apparatus for driving with a power driver, fasteners such as screws or the like which are joined together in a strip comprising:

• housing means;
• elongate drive shaft means for operative connection to a power driver for rotation thereby, the drive shaft means defining a longitudinal axis;
• slide body means coupled to the housing means for displacement parallel to the axis of the drive shaft means between an extended position and a retracted position;
• spring means biasing said body means forwardly relative to the housing means parallel the axis to the extended position;
• guide channel means for said fastener strip extending through said body means;
• the body means including guide tube means coaxially about the axis of the drive shaft means adapted to receive correspondingly sized screws when advanced therein via the guide channel means and to locate the screws axially in alignment with said drive shaft means for engagement in driving of the screws from the guide tube means by the drive shaft means;
• the guide tube means removable from the body means for replacement with other guide tube means adapted to receive the same or different corresponding sized screws,
• a forward portion of the guide tube means comprises a cylindrical screw guideway of an inner diameter marginally greater than a diameter of a head of the correspondingly sized screw,
• the guide tube means having a screw locating sidewall about the screw guideway to engage the head of a screw and coaxially locate the screw in alignment with the drive shaft means,
• the guide channel means opens radially into the screw guideway via a screw access opening in the screw locating sidewall and exits radially from the guideway via a screw strip exit opening in the screw locating sidewall on a side of the guideway opposite the screw access opening.