A screwdriver does work Pete. No question about it. The leverage is a bit better with a key and it's a lot more convenient to leave on the drum during a gig.
As to rugged, they have a rather weak attachment of the lugs to the shells - small cross-head screws that are easy to strip if you are not very careful and a slotted washer that is quite thin. The tom holder isn't very strong (more like what you'd find on an MIJ set), the single wing on the bass drum rods is a typically British concession to cost reduction and is less convenient for applying tension (they tend to break off too). I think they are cast as opposed to steel. We say the negative results of cast parts when CBS moved to cast collets on the Rogers drums.
Construction issues that were typical of their cars in that era show up too, where there seems to have been a lower factor of safety employed. At the time, they appear to have had a differing view of manufacturing things and that may simply been the result of a less robust economy. Their auto industry basically imploded and was mostly taken over by continental makes due to quality issues.
One thing I recall is that they sound quite good and are relatively light and easy to haul around, which is probably a result of the shell construction.
Just some observations from a limited period of ownership. But that is also why the ownership didn't last.
In general, I ended up preferring the Rogers line from 64 to about 1970. Pretty rugged overall and they have a nice look and great sound. The one thing they had issues with, but is correctable, is the edges. They also had some wraps that gave out too easily. But I've never had anything let go during playing and they are easy to dissemble and reassemble for cleaning and so forth without parts breaking along the way.