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Apple's custom screw hullabaloo, hollow-ground bits, and why a vintage sewing machine repair brought me to the gunsmith's
As for the Singer screws.couldn't you drill & re-tap the holes for modern machine screws? I know, I know, it's not "vintage," but it's a modern solution to your old problem.
Odd example: where 18 guage 1x1" square tube used to be common, and is why it was used for the original Lotuses, this particular format is now considered an "aircraft" thing (due to its difficulty to weld I suspect), and so it's quite a bit more expensive than 16 gauge despite it actually being less metal.
Apple may do what they please, they are large enough to not take much of a hit by using less common parts (because they will make them common enough), but the intent is clear. They want you to buy a new phone, not simply grab a $10 screen kit from ebay to fix your clumsy issues. Again, it's their prerogative. And perfectly fair. It will probably keep one more level of curious tinkerers out of their wares.
It won't really hold up, of course, because like all things it will just make for one more cheap tool set you keep around the garage if this is something you're in to. When they decide to get serious they will start gluing things together with things that require restricted solvents to undo. Try pulling apart a camera lens some time. Without a hacksaw.
It's also fair that some of us think that this is another "you don't own your phone, you rent it from us until we abandon it" issue. Which is how business works these days. That's where people are getting a real issue with it.
It isn't exactly fair to pick on apple alone in this either: my nexus one uses torx screws, which are just a previous attempt at "tamper proof."