One Saturday afternoon. The week’s work is over, and the housework is over. There is still almost a week before Christmas. There is enough leeway to deny that there is still a lot of work to prepare for that event. This seems to be the best time to escape the store and complete a quick project that has been put aside since at least March. If I am not good at procrastinating, I am nothing.

This is a simple project-add an aluminum plate to the plastic shell as an antenna entry point into my cabin. It's as simple as a pie-cut out a rectangular piece of aluminum, cut and drill a few holes, and it's over. Almost all of my projects start this way, almost every time I forget that almost all of these builds are off track at exactly the same point: when I realize I don’t have the fasteners I need. This is what happened with this build, and it has been swimming until then-no major mistakes, no blood draws. So it went to the hardware store I was dragging, looking for suitable fasteners to complete the job.

For a long time, looking for hardware has always been my inefficiency. Although I am only a stone’s throw away from at least six stores, each of which has a large selection of hardware, and is open most weekends and evenings, the power loss caused by changing from the construction model to the procurement model has always been fatal to me s project. I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one experiencing this problem, so the question is: What can a hacker do to prevent having to run out of the correct fasteners?

Walking into almost any hardware store, it is easy to find the root cause of this problem. Somewhere in the store will be an aisle with boxes and drawers lined up with all kinds of fasteners imaginable. There are everything from lag screws and carriage bolts used to hold wooden structures together to small packs of M3 screws that can be placed on a 3D printer at home. Coupled with different pitches and styles, ranges of diameters and lengths, the diversity of materials and finishes, the wide range of drive types, and the mixed effects of different nuts, washers, lock washers and other decorations, you have almost unlimited combination.

Another problem is that there is really not much room for replacement with fasteners. Each type of fastener has a very specific engineering purpose, and in some cases, making changes to existing things may be risky. I learned this the hard way, and this alone is why I ended up wasting a lot of time on a recent project to install trucks with solar panels. The van will carry six solar panels on a foldable mount. Using the wrong fastener may cause the storm to tear the panel, or worse, cause something to break from the trailer when the trailer is towed off the highway. It is very worthwhile to avoid this fate, and go to the store a few more times to get the fasteners in place.

There is another factor that may have more influence than others, and that is aesthetics. Sometimes, the fasteners you have on hand do not look good. I remember when I was looking for cap screws at Lowe's, my wife helped to find them. When she announced that she had found them, all I could say was, "I need socket screws, but those are round head screws. Are you crazy?" Sometimes it just needs to look like a certain way.

All of this is to say that the range of fastener selection is far beyond the methods that ordinary hackers can reasonably master, although this has not stopped me from trying this brute force method to solve the problem. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to purchase the entire fastener display stand directly from a closed hardware store. The whole thing-trash cans, drawers, even plastic bags with parts and ballpoint pens, these little things have never managed to write inventory numbers on the bags-may be mine, but at a certain price. This is a tempting proposal, but since I have neither the ability nor the space to store such things, I refused.

If I really pick it up, will it solve the problem? It may be a while, but I doubt that I will end up with a lot of things that I hardly need, and not enough good things. To make matters worse, my needs have changed significantly. At that time, I often worked with wood, only occasionally doing some metal processing projects. There is not much crossover between the fastener requirements of the two media, so switching from a lot of carpentry work may strand many of the fasteners in the original distribution.

I think the closest I can get to this problem is the model shop where I have been working for 23 years. This is a complete machine shop that supports scientific research, and the people who built it from scratch really hate to be caught without hardware. He has two Lista cabinets, each with a dozen drawers, and each drawer has a pile of small plastic boxes filled with screws, nuts, and bolts. In metric cabinets, the range of fasteners ranges from M1 to M12 and can be up to 50 mm in length. He restricted the materials to stainless steel and black oxide, and restricted the head type to round or round heads. The other cabinet contains fasteners of equal inches, and each cabinet contains nuts and washers. It is limited, but also very comprehensive, allowing him to complete about 80% of his daily work without having to run out or place an order.

Although most of us can't afford such a solution, I think shooting for the Pareto distribution like my mechanic friend might be a good goal to solve the problem. I would be very excited if I could grasp the fasteners needed to complete 80% of the project at any time without the need for replenishment.

The question then becomes, what is the fastener combination that best achieves this goal? Once I have decided on a combination, what is the best way to obtain them? MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Operations) vendors, such as McMaster-Carr, Fastenal, and Grainger, are widely used, but they charge corporate customers higher prices than individual customers. But is there a place for them in this solution? How to store and organize such a series of fasteners, and ensure that stocks are maintained when parts are used? We would love to hear from anyone who has dealt with this issue in industrial environments and home shops. Please let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Then you are all ready.

...So you push the 1/4-20 head down into the small hill, and then stick it with resin or Beaucoup de Crazy glue so that the dirt will harden around it...then you screw your camera to Above, wait.

Last time I searched for 1/4-20 machine screws, they were listed as "hard to find" on Amazon? ? ? Oh, and it's expensive. With reference to the countless pictures of fasteners found in most American hardware stores above, I found that finding what I wanted was easy in the past, but now it is very challenging. Now, I do most of my searches on Home Depot or similar sites and arrange for store pickups. Faster, easier, and more secure now.

This website is not bad: https://www.boltdepot.com/Machine_screws_Phillips_pan_head_Zinc_plate_steel_1_4-20.aspx

Very good.. I have used them for shipbuilding screws, electronics and building construction. Good price and fast delivery. .

I like them very much. I try to buy 100 bags of theory, if I need it once, I'm more likely to need it again. It is a challenge to have a good storage solution that does not need to spend a lot of money and is easy to organize. I work on a lot of old construction machinery. In the past, they had better use a set of small universal fasteners. More modern equipment has all the fasteners you can think of. As for the hexagon socket head screws discussed above, I found that for any given size and grade, SHCS has a higher capacity than the same hexagon bolts. I think this is very interesting.

I will never buy any related hardware on Amazon. Most Amazon products are designed for standard homeowners. I did find a sorted set-but the pitch is not in the product label or description-which told me the person who renamed it-didn't know their product.

Example 1/4 20 Hardware: https://www.amazon.com/Piece-Standard-Screw-Assortment-Hardware/dp/B08CTH4JJH/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=sae hardware screws&qid=1610402552-sr=8

In general, I found that Amazon's hardware is too expensive and the quality is problematic. I have started to buy mainly stainless steel hardware because it is good indoors or outdoors, and it is usually not the cheapest garbage. I guess they think that if you like stainless steel, price is not that important. When I received some "level 8" bolts that seemed to be made of toffee, I stopped buying from Amazon. Dangerous, obviously not up to specifications. I got good luck from boltdepot.com. It is best to buy in bulk from them to get free shipping and the best unit price. Just a satisfied customer.

If I want Amazon fasteners, I usually search for A4 stainless steel or marine. These are always correctly formed, and only a few lists are used for overpriced products.

Have you checked eBay? In the UK, there are many local hardware suppliers selling their products in quantities ranging from 10 to 1,000. Products of all sizes are sold directly from eBay at reasonable prices. Usually provide fast and free delivery service

I found these to be useful, and there are a few available:

Item/unit price/quantity item/total product STC 18-Gauge Roof Truss Clip Store SKU #1000075189 Internet #205326041 $0.85 30 $25.50 https://www.homedepot.com/p/Simpson-Strong-Tie-STC-18-Gauge- Roof truss clamp-STC/205326041

Product TP 1-13/16 in. x 5 in. 20-Gauge Galvanized Tie Plate Store SKU #464236 Internet #100375260 $0.65 20 $13.00 https://www.homedepot.com/p/Simpson-Strong-Tie-TP-1 -13-16-in-x-5-in-20-Gauge-Galvanized-Tie-Plate-TP15/100375260

It is also easy to spot welding.

Access denied You are not authorized to access "http://www.homedepot.com/p/Simpson-Strong-Tie-STC-18-Gauge-Roof-Truss-Clip-STC/205326041" on this server.

Is this because I am not in the United States, because I do not send referrals, or because they messed up the server?

I don't know what happened on your side, but both links opened normally to me.

I was also denied access. Not even in the United States.

Yes, homedepot is made for non-US tourists. I guess it's super lazy GDPR "compliance".

I find that the tie plate is useful for brackets and strapping. If you have good scissors, you can cut them into simple shapes. The round file has a good taper, and you can quickly ream holes of any size.

But for welding, everyone knows to be careful of the metal fume heat of zinc, right?

Last fall, I needed to repair my deck stairs, but I couldn't find any children with deck stairs brackets in the local big store. Must be ordered online: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Simpson-Strong-Tie-Adjustable-Stair-Stringer-Connector/3339394

1 to 1/4-20 at the bottom of the Pareto Pyramid.

There may be hundreds of pounds (or more) of nuts, bolts, screws, nails in my shop and garage...

This is what's in my fastener box.

All you need is to choose a threaded rod and matching nuts, and some Loctite that makes one of the nuts immovable. Then you have every fixing screw of every length imaginable. If you want a stylish look, buy some dome nuts.

For this reason, this tool is mandatory:

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https://toolsfoundary.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/1238741654-1.jpg&f=1&nofb=1

I bought one of these tools and it was 100% useless. There is no cut relief, so it is just rubbing. I am ready to believe that my design is terrible, maybe some of them can work.

I also do this often, thinking I have loosened the screws, but it looks like I am with all the other nuts

Out of necessity, I do this more often than I am willing to admit. Just last weekend, 8 M3x10 screws are needed, with M3x30, hacksaw and files. The problem is solved.

Glad I am not the only one. But I have no patience with hacksaws. I like to run a few nuts to the head before cutting to a certain length with dremel. Give me something that can be clamped with pliers, and you can pull them back to clean the threads.

For M3, I think the hacksaw may be faster than Dremel. Especially if you need to replace Dremel with a cutting disc.

One of my common observations is that YouTube manufacturers almost never use hacksaws and always like noisy, messy angel grinders.

Although there are exceptions. Allen Millyard used a hacksaw to cut the entire motorcycle engine block. For example, his video used two 1.1-liter inline-6 ​​engines to make a 2.3-liter V12.

Maybe you all have inferior or blunt hacksaws?

People often use the hacksaw incorrectly and end up damaging the blade, then spend a long time cutting anything and exhaust themselves. Next time they will pick up the angle grinder.

When you apply too much pressure and try to cut quickly, you will overheat the blade and quickly lose its edges, leaving only small round teeth.

If you shorten the screws often, it is worth making one of the following tools: https://a360.co/3skgsgU I found one in my grandfather's effect a few years ago and made my own in the metric system. It is used to fix the screw in the vise for cutting and trimming the end. It clamps on the thread without damaging it.

I have a lot of "parts boxes" that separate compartments, filled with SAE, metric, some Whtworth (I used to like old Land Rover), popular rivets, bronze shipbuilding fasteners, square head bolts, etc. My policy is to always buy more than I need when buying fasteners. If I need it today, I will need it again." Hardware stores are expensive!

If you want to stock up, BOLT DEPOT is an affordable online retailer.

I did the same thing, at least my organizer tray for all the little things.

Larger things are often divided into general sizes. I tried my best to separate the scores from the metric fasteners, just to prevent any confusion when I reached for one...

Fastenal sells socket sorting kits, which may be exactly what you are looking for https://www.fastenal.com/product/fasteners/fastener-assortment-kits/socket-fastener-assortment-kits/600046?categoryId=600046&level=3&isExpanded = true&productFamilyId=25439

I would yell at one of my favorite manufacturer sites: Bolt Depot. As a former web developer, I can say that their websites and products are well thought out, taking into account their target audience...Of course it is me, or you.

All they did was fasteners. You can buy one. You can buy 1,000. Everything has a usable size, and I went there more than once to help plan a project. Metric, American units, various materials... For those of us who have not done this for decades, the best part is that they provide information about when a given material or fastener style may be used. Buy screws? Go to the simple link for recommended washers/nuts.

The packages are all labeled, so my parts box is full of bolt warehouse zipper bags with the parts dimensions on it. I just bought a small parts box to help organize, but instead of pouring the screws into the parts box, I left them in the bag because they are already clearly posted (they are not labeled with marketing like yours Label) stores, they are labeled for easy identification/shipment by warehouse staff). The price is competitive, and the effect of the site is much better than trying to buy fasteners on sites such as Amazon.

So yes, it sounds like a plug-in... but these people really got it right.

Oh my goodness...My wallet I wish I had never read your recommendation!

The same-during the COVID, I started to take my fasteners seriously. In fact, I really tried very, very hard to switch from SAE to metric, but in some cases, I actually didn't want to use such fine threads on machine screws. An example is when trying to "tap" threads in 3D printing with the fastener itself (or use a suitable faucet) and use the plastic itself to hold the fastener. This is very convenient for light-duty or non-load bearing fixtures, etc. Therefore, smaller parts (6-32, 8-32, 10-32, 10-24) make more sense in smaller sizes. Both M6 and M8 are suitable for the metric system, but I find M4 and M5 a bit awkward. However, it may just be me.

In the end, I ended up stocking a limited length of M4/M5 with only countersunk (flat) heads and pan heads. I searched for a long time trying to find a website that can be used, and I found the same thing you did. Although the site is not pretty, boltdepot makes it easy to finally buy what I want. If you don’t care about the material properties (such as stainless steel, black oxide, zinc, galvanized, etc.), I really want to be able to more easily identify the cheapest of all material types.

I have always wanted to check if they have wood screws (better head type, if it is remote economical, try to stay away from Phillips). No calculations have been made yet, but buying certain fastener lengths by pound at HD/Lowe's will become PITA, especially when the quality of fasteners varies within the same product range. Think of Lowe's in the category of construction screws...

If anyone has a lead on the best blast/pressure reduction for construction/wood screws (including Kreg pocket screws or equivalent), please help me research!

Why do you think M4/M5 "embarrassed"?

M5 x 0.8 is almost exactly the same as 10-32, most of the time they will be worn together, especially in plastic. M4 x 0.7 is very close to 8-36, if it is only about 0.2 mm thinner.

They are roughly the same size and spacing, so why does one work and the other not?

If you use the filter on the boltdepot site, you can select the size you want to search for, click "list", and then sort by price. Then you can find the fasteners you need at the lowest price.

/McMaster Carr has entered the chat/

Seriously, Bolt Depot knows nothing about MCM in terms of website design. very exciting

right? I have never encountered a well-designed online market like MCM. I would love to learn more about the effort behind the intuitive and powerful organization system. Internal expertise? design company? The lonely mastermind? It's worth podcasting.

I went to the bolt warehouse and wandered around, hoping for a project that uses fasteners.

Choose a standard. I recommend Whitworth.

Then always buy more things than you need. I never buy articles with less than 50 pieces. In no more than a few decades, you will have almost enough collections.

It is easier to shorten them than to lengthen them. Boring, I try to avoid it, but it is easier.

I have not fully used the compartments and drawers. I have a shutter panel with a dustbin on the wall. M3 socket head / M3 other / M4 socket head... (I am not serious about Whitworth, they are stored in a drawer and used on my 100-year-old motorcycle when needed). The drawer only contained plastic bags of each type of that size. It is not as convenient as it thinks, but I have no room for further separation, and the amount of work I have done is of little significance.

M2.5 to M8 are on the wall. I have other things that are not very convenient in size, as small as M1.6 and as large as M20.

What I want to say is that a half-way solution like mine might be enough for amateurs.

Look at those plastic bags... my box contains hardware and plastic bag fragments...

I rarely ride my bolt collection on horseback :-)

Lol, funny idea! Neither do I. I'm just a lot of years old, what time has done to most plastics...

Sometimes it's not a lot of time, and things are broken into pieces in just a few years. I also got a bolt bucket full of debris, because a mouse entered the garage and built a nest in it... Hmm, Hantavirus.

"I seldom carry my bolt collection on horseback"

Because if the horse bolts, singularities may appear.

Although my other reviews are mysteriously reviewed (why?), I just want to mention that eBay and Amazon can be a convenient and cheap source.

I ~ hate ~ Amazon's fasteners. Search for metric sizes, and they usually place close US sizes in the search results. Finding what you want, especially if it is not mainstream, is a nightmare. However, some varieties of packages are very convenient.

Amazon UK doesn't have that many problems. If you request indicators, it will list the indicators.

I just did a sanity check to see if the US website gets better. I searched for 4m screws and the first search result was "#8 x 1-3/4″ Phillips Flat Head..." So... not very good. Thankfully, they added a new filter that actually seems to work , So this is an improvement.

Try "M4" instead of "4M"

In the past, I used to do a lot of business with Small Parts. Amazon bought them around 2005 and included them in common stock shortly after. They said: “Continue to sell more than 10,000 products under the SmallParts brand, and they maintain the same high quality standards.” However, the spectrum of parts that used to resemble white light now has only a few narrow lines, and even those products that are difficult to find are much different from the previous ones. Compared with supply, it is of marginal quality.

'This is a shame, but they are never cheap and unable to compete, so they were acquired. Nowadays, many things they carry are difficult to find ready-made.

Especially for fasteners, Amazon disappointed me. In terms of quality, they are rarely better than box stores, and often worse than box stores, when I can find parts.

> When she announced that she had found them, I could only say, "I need hexagon socket screws, but those are round head screws. Are you crazy?"

How does this make her feel?

My second question. I hope you apologize from then on.

The hardware store I often go to sell fasteners in bags. Set a standard price according to the size of the bag, and as long as the bag can be closed, you can fill it with as many nuts and bolts as possible. So every time I need something I don't have, I get it and fill it with a bunch of other fasteners that I may (or may not need) in the future.

Wow! How much is a bag? I like tractor supply. I can buy 3/8 inch long bolts with nuts and washers for $0.12 each. They are sold by weight.

In most cases, I seem to be able to quickly find anything 1/4 inch or 6 mm and larger in the local store. What I lack the most is the decent smaller size options. Ergo's stuff is combined with oversized fasteners, and weight is not important. I have a few "scratch" boxes containing all the things I sell in the yard, and a random hardware shelf is the same. Then there are several bathtubs filled with fasteners recovered from things I personally disassembled. When I need something, these are handled well and are about the same size, so it won't take long. I also easily buy screws and nuts in random packages at the dollar store, mainly because the convenient small diameter is usually obvious. (If you need it to support 20 pounds, you still think it is too small)

If I need something special, I may need to go to Princess Auto for an expedition, or I can order it through the local Brafasco. Then I know that places like McMaster-Carr exist, but there is nothing worth paying for shipping yet.

What I actually miss are those little bags that Radio Shack once owned.

Ah yes, it's kind of funny, I think I'm suffering from the mental torment of fasteners now. A type of surplus store, (mainly household goods) bought a large amount of hardware store inventory not long ago, and sold it at a cheap price... 5 minutes walk... But I have been in the last few years "Medical leave" most of the stock will involve heavy items, so I can only watch it decrease. I kind of tried to visit to store some basic knowledge, but the brain quickly switched to "Buy everything!!! 11" and became greedy when faced with wealth. It doesn't matter that they are not so cheap, it is more like half price. Therefore, it does not seem to make sense to buy 10 packs of things at a price of $50 to save $10 on the hardware store price of two things actually used in 5 years. However, please continue to check the 10c when the U.S. dollar price is reduced, and then it makes sense to start grabbing anything that seems to be useful.

I very much agree with Andy P and your opinion... If you are a DIYer and have owned houses, boats and other things for more than ten years, you can't help but accumulate inventory. I also like to take things apart and get quite a lot of small metric hardware from it.

For people starting from scratch, Princess Auto sells various hardware in the form of segmented boxes. As you use things, you can start to acquire more of the types you use most often.

It's really great to get an idea, start a project, and have enough to complete it without having to go to the store. Especially during lockout. :-)

Yes, when I get rich next year and build my 1000 square foot heating store, I will go to buy every one of the Princess car parts assortment. I almost bought an O-ring once, and it was difficult for me to seal it... Then I was attracted by the spring ring, when I wanted to increase the line pressure on the transaxle (the rigid spring in the regulator).

So... no one will admit, for "future usage"?

No, I would be happy to propose this collection strategy.

My shop fastener boxes are almost all of this type, although they are usually separated to keep metric and decimal things separate.

My only really organized choice is my 3D printing and CNC consumables, because these are new products that I have purchased in sufficient quantity and variety.

I have bins for sorting items, and two bins for unsorted screws and nails. If you need something uncommon, the unsorted bins are really great. I can almost always find useful "odd" lengths or shapes of screws or nails there. Together with dead centipedes or two.

What? You don't want yours? I'll take it!

So... no one will admit that for "future use"?

In my case, there are multiple 5-gallon buckets.

Mine has no dust! I have a variety of different organized sets, leftovers and used ones (like the others here, I always over-buy for each item to improve the collection), but I also have one full of various Suitable screw jar-except for junk products. Given the huge weight of the can, it is disappointing that it does not have more variety... But if I continue to look for a specific fastener, I can usually find it. Sometimes I can even find a pair. :)

Really, it may just mean that I am not very picky, but I like to be able to get to the next stage without going to the hardware store. (I also like to go to the hardware store)

I have at least 4 different recycling fastener containers. One of them contained about 2 pounds of fasteners (mainly nails and M6x100 bolts with nuts) taken from the old sofa. It used to contain a pound of herring in a sour cream sauce...

It needs to be clear that the so-called food is stored in containers rather than sofas, right?

I have 40 years of value. I have disassembled two complete cars for the hardware. I disassembled the floppy disk of the metal hub, it can make an excellent fender gasket.

But I mainly use various drywall screws and glue.

I admit it, and I posted it, but I used 2 words in the spell checker, so I guess it's hanging in mod hell.

I will prove it. When I get enough things that I can't use anything, they become the ballast of "sandbags".

Hey, for some reason, it took me 5 years to realize that it’s not a good plan to keep throwing bent and peeled things back into the "stock" and start throwing them into a can of scrap... and then it changed It’s heavy enough to keep calm, so I think I’m a bit there now LOL

I totally agree! I found that as soon as I try to use their "parameterized" search, everything crashes. I don't know who designed or wrote the algorithm, but it seems that they have never actually built anything or purchased parts in size. I have better luck searching Google for something I particularly need. Almost magically, it can be found on Amazon, but it is also "not found" in Amazon. Strange.

Search is becoming more and more useless. Whether you use quotation marks or other operators, it seems that they are all interpreted as "you can find any of these words and synonyms regardless of the context", and then Buff... a bunch of mess Search for vomit. "We did a great job, we got 10,000 results! *Pat your head by yourself*"

I have a complete standard size vertical metal cabinet, which can accommodate from No. 4 machine screws to 1/2 inch-13 nuts/bolts/washers, 60d hot-dip galvanized rods, and drywall. All the items of screws and rivets, the coiled nail box, the jars of random fasteners I have collected over the years, and everything in between. To be honest, I might need two cabinets.

I rarely throw things. As we all know, when they clean up the backlog/unused fasteners, I will search in the trash can at work. Before I go to the local farm supply store, I will look at what fasteners (usually nuts and bolts) I am missing, and then pick up a big bag, several of each size. In addition to bulk purchases, I try to purchase fasteners only during clearance. This helps significantly reduce the cost for hobbyists to keep a large number of fasteners readily available.

The nuts and bolts I use most often go into separate storage boxes for quick access when I need them.

"As we all know, when they clean up the backlog/unused fasteners, I will search from the trash can at work"

I have already done this. Once I found a beautiful bag of nuts and took them home. When I tried to use them, I discovered that they were stripped and "crushed" nuts. (sigh!)

I personally use a stack of 12 compartment bins, which are locked together for my hardware organization. I use Milwaukee brands in particular, but as long as they are sturdy and have large bins, it doesn't matter what brand. The special containers I use are detachable 8x 4"x4"x4" and 2x 8"x4"x4" containers, which can be disassembled and rearranged. I find that having a larger container allows me to put a small number of larger items (such as 6-inch carriage bolts) and a large number of small fasteners (such as 2-inch 8-32 machine screws) in the same easy-to-carry container. I initially filled about half of the compartments with items that I would definitely use, and over time I filled the rest of the compartments while checking the things I bought regularly. I found that buying a mix of metric and SAE bolt/screw/washer/nut packs and seeing which compartments become empty quickly is a cheap and effective way to allow me to decide what to buy in bulk. Not everyone requires their storage system to be portable, but I have to say that even in a store environment, being able to bring fasteners to where you work can save a lot of time.

In our work, we obtained fast service for most fasteners from several local suppliers (for example, 16 mm, 300 mm long, A193-GrB7 studs on the door can be completed in 30 minutes to several hours ), which is related to and reasonably close to some of them in urban industrial areas. What we can't get, we can usually make, although it is less now than 20 years ago, because our facilities are smaller and we have less inventory on hand.

Myself, for my purposes, I tend to use a lot of smaller hardware, so I have 1 mm to 12 mm and #000 to 3/4 inch socket heads and hex heads, as well as some other small size. I use the lesser ones I keep longer lengths and cut as needed, usually full line if I can. The screwdriver is one of the most commonly used tools I have. In many cases, the cost of cutting them is lower than the cost of getting the "right". General fasteners are often Gr5 inch and 8.8 metric, stainless steel (304) and nylon, and a small amount of brass/bronze options.

I also keep the threaded rod, generally, the medium strength type of steel and stainless steel (austenite, 316 is preferred).

This will not take up much space-a stack of Akro-mils type cabinets, a few divided trays and a cabinet for the less used boxed fasteners. Occasionally, I need to actually make a fastener myself, but I always design around catalog items as much as possible.

What I can’t live without are some sizes of hanger screws (Teco or Simpson-designed to connect steel joist hangers and similar wooden structures), star drive deck screws, etc., because they may be the biggest items when I don’t have them on hand They are killers for me.

"If you can, it's usually a complete thread"

Ten and a half years ago, there were some weird places here. No store seemed to reserve any full threads longer than 30 mm or about 1.25 inches. All longer bolts were threaded only at the end. I need a fully threaded 50mm M8, and I went to 8 damn shops. In the end I had to use a socket head with a washer because the head was not fat enough (the original screw had a little flange head on it), because this was what I could find. A few years later, looking for a short M8 for other things and anywhere I have seen it, a 50mm full threaded M8 with a moderately sized hex head, it’s weird. It's not only on those M8s, but it's like the whole series has forgotten that full thread is a 5-year option.

What is a decent and reasonably priced screwdriver like?

For small bolts, a pair of strong edge cutters or fencing tools with knives... Just put a nut under the cutting position, cut, then hold the nut and take the screw out of it to restore the thread. Or wait until you file off the sharp pieces. Big bolts, real bolt cutters, the same method.

For small sizes, electrician crimping tools have them. Both imperial and metric systems are available. No need to complete the work.

In the absence of such a situation, as RW ver 0.0.1 said, and used for larger size rod cutters, and then contact with chamfering tools (I made it myself-O1 and used cemented carbide blades-because the commercial quotations are all It's terrible.)

I once participated in a project that mixed hat head, Phillips, metric and SAE. I threatened the designer with death with a soldering iron.

For my own use, for almost anything I build from scratch, I can use #4-40 and #6-32. So I have various lengths, washers, nuts, brackets, ground lugs, etc.

For other small things, I have a fishing tackle box full of dozens of medicine cups, which are filled with all imaginable and classified screws. Coarse screws for plastic toy keyboards? Yes. Self-tapping sheet metal screws? Um. Screws are so small, you swear they even exist? a lot of. If the box is dropped, I will throw it away and start again.

Now try to use the Rover V8 engine from the 1980s. UNC, UNF, Whitworth, British imperial system, metric system. Socket head, cap head, hexagon head, stud. Cross head, flat head. You name it, and it got it. And the size will change over time, so the thread gauge is essential. full of joy!

In that era and in the 90s, there seemed to be some automakers who had forgotten that they had imperial engine tools when proudly announcing that their cars were now "full metric", and ended up having a hodgepodge in the engine compartment.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_screw_drives#Robertson

As it happens, yes! only one. In front of the bank head on the left. I don’t know why it’s there-I hope it’s not original, and I’ve never used it to do anything...

"For my own use, for almost anything I build from scratch, I can use #4-40 and #6-32. So I have a variety of lengths, washers, nuts, brackets, ground lugs, etc. "

When I decided that I needed a #10 to do something, I not only got the #10 1 inch long, but also shorter and shorter varieties to cover my base.

correct! You can buy a variety of 100 pieces of 5 lengths and 500 pieces of nuts, washers, etc. online for a small amount of money.

I have a bunch of small unmarked jars from the last homeowner. This covers all carpentry around the house. For everything else, I would walk to a mom-and-pop shop one block away. Mixed use development ftw.

As early as the 1990s, a national chain store went bankrupt. They threw all the hardware trash cans into a large pile and began to sell them by the pound. Just single after the divorce, I spent a few weekends there, sorting 8th grade and stainless steel nuts and bolts. It rebuilt the Jaguar XJ6, MG Midget and Volvo Amazon. I have quite a lot of hardware left.

Is that Ernst? When they went bankrupt in the 90s, I remember going through the fastener box with my father looking for good things.

Fleet Farm in the United States has boxes of fasteners, which are sold cheaply by the pound. It is easily the best place to buy larger metal or wood fasteners that the project may require.

Other bulk fastener companies in the United States that I frequent include: – Tractor Supply Company – Rural King – Family, Farm and Home

Finally, I remember that Rural King has the best choice and the most favorable bulk purchase price.

I recently spent a few hours trying to find a good source of fasteners. I have always wanted to buy all kinds of screws, but each one is too expensive. The best option I've heard is Tractor Supply and some other hardware stores that sell fasteners by the pound. So once the pandemic is over, I plan to go there, maybe with a bunch of cabinets, and buy a hundred pounds of fasteners.

If I can find a good price on a large order, I will make a project and go with my friend to buy a thousand pounds of fasteners, and then we will get together to sort for each of us.

For small size metric bolts (up to M5), I recommend buying a pair of bolt cutters like this: https://nl.rs-online.com/web/p/crimp-tools/0534806/ and buying bolts/screws than your usual Need longer individual lengths. If you only need one or two bolts, you can easily cut them to a certain length. If you need 40, you may need to make a purchase, but you usually only need to make the length you need. These cutters are perfect for this purpose (but not for any other functions they should have).

If you can screw on the nut before cutting, if it is long enough. This helps to easily clean the threads on the incision later.

I found a good solution. I have boxes with #4 to #10 screws, plus some metric, but each has only 1 length, usually 1.5-2 inches. When I need a shorter fastener, I use a screwdriver (those holes in the wire strippers) to cut one off. If you need 10 fasteners per piece, it would be too wasteful, but usually I only need 1 or 2. If I need more, I buy the exact size from mcmaster, they are fast shipping and basically have anything you want, so it is quite convenient.

For brackets and sometimes washers, I just use my 3D printer to print them on demand. The maximum size of each of my screws is #10. I have nuts and washers, but I don’t use them often. I just tap on my hole or screw in the screw for 3D printing without tapping.

Over the years, I’ve been spoiled-I live about 10 minutes away from an industrial supply company that specializes in fasteners (Tacoma screws for those in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest), and they almost have Anything I need-they are also owned by locals-if their local store is usually not in stock, they have a local warehouse-usually overnight to the store to pick up the next day.

There is another regular hardware store owned locally, where there is a very good stock of parts

Fastenal may be one of the cheapest options for bulk ordering, but you need a customer account. I think as long as you have some official business numbers, you can set one. I believe anyone can establish a sole proprietorship (John Doe Prototyping) and set up an account through it. Maybe it's a bit overkill, but it's definitely worth it, especially if you have already made something on a commission/requirement basis.

Fastenal also has a Brick&Mortar store open to ordinary people...

Although Fastenal claims to only sell products to customers who have accounts. A few times I walked in and was able to buy what I needed. However, if they are busy with other customers, please don't try.

For imperial fasteners, local Menards sell them in medium-sized bags at very reasonable prices. For metric cap screws, I ordered directly from China, the price is 70% or more lower than the local price.

For special fasteners, I would go to McMaster Carr or equivalent products, where the products are of higher quality and the prices are corresponding.

When the local Menards moved to a new location, I bought many bags of small nuts/bolts. Twenty-five points per person.

I also bought a few bags of odds and ends they provided, but I haven't seen them recently.

I scored like this several times. For a Canadian tire store, if you need to return it, I guess I guess it’s not worth the time to sort out and replenish it, so they just need to put it on the discount shelf for tens of cents. I don't know if I was out of luck for a while or they stopped doing this.

I build a fastener inventory in the same way as I build an electronic component inventory:

First pass: Choose a value close to the 1-2-5 series, and buy a small amount (10-12) of each.. 1/2", 1", 2-1/2", 5" length bolts and screws British system, 10mm, 20mm, 50mm metric system.

Between a small supply and a small value, you can buy anything that looks interesting without feeling guilty or wasting storage space.

Second time: For anything you actually use, please purchase a small amount close to the value of the 1.5-3.5-7 series at your convenience...3/4", 1-3/4", 3.5" or 15mm, 35mm, 70mm.

Whenever you need a specific part for a project, buy about a dozen of any parts you don’t already have.

After that, everything is based on replacement. When you run out of a certain value, buy more supply of that value. If you do not have these parts, you can also buy a small number of parts with sizes higher and lower than the parts.

Over time, you will get a large number of the most commonly used parts, as well as some convenient sizes. The total value of the collection will increase over time, but you will not pay a sufficient price at any time.

J&M Fasteners in Covington Ga. We can ship anywhere. We are a local distributor of nuts and bolts, with only 4 employees, with an annual turnover of more than 1 million US dollars, and the cheapest price.

Simple solution: do anything with M series machine screws and nuts. You only need to buy several different lengths in several different widths. Try to keep standard sizes for everything you design for yourself. Use larger or smaller sizes where you absolutely need them. Maybe M3 is suitable for most of your work, but keep some M5, M6 and larger for real heavy-duty And some M1 is used for tedious things. Just use pan-head crossheads, if you are unlucky, they will peel off, but at similar torque levels, the same is true for hex wrenches of similar sizes. Then the only time a weird screw is needed is if you connect to a prefabricated item that you did not design (for example, when you find that your limit switch needs an M2 screw and you do everything else in M3, or if you are unlucky Yes, you encountered non-metrics). In general, the only non-metric fasteners you need are fasteners for various items you buy, these fasteners are used for projects, disassembly or general use. If you pick up some suitable spare parts for strange fasteners when you buy/discover something that uses strange fasteners, then there will be no situation where you need to use strange fasteners but don’t have them on hand, when you do have a choice , You would not choose to use non-metric screws, would you?

So I will share my locked project...

It started with plans from 5 to 67 items...I collected decades of hardware in every imperial, metric, custom, and imaginary size container ("container" is loosely called), every type of container All are beautifully classified by the number of fasteners in each container (/- 73), these containers are combined in any of the random boxes of 13 locations and 2 properties, or may be dumped on the floor. Some of these hardware are bought, some are salvaged, some are picked up, some are found, some are talents...

So I happened to come across a used upright metal parts storage library, 72 trash cans, I think it can solve all my problems. I run around, collecting every container I can find...Of course, 72 bins are enough...8, 9 down. So I chose my most commonly used column size... I quickly found out that I needed 2 storage units. Then I started to organize by hex, socket, P2, P3, torx... Now I need 4 units. Fine thread, coarse thread, very fine thread... Now I need up to 17 units and a new workshop. Hysteresis, full thread, fixing screws, integrated washers...

Should I sort them by length? And, oh wait, these are just bolts, they haven't even touched the screws...

Okay, so I filled up all the trash bins after working for a few hours, and I still have a lot of hardware in my container...

At this point, I might just dump everything back into a big pile on the floor. never mind.

I don’t know if I can talk about what is effective, not as close as the organization, but in the face of a limited trash can rack or other series of containers, I think I’ll do this... Mixing easy-to-separate sizes, 3 To a trash can. For example, M3, 1/4″-20 and M8 are used together. I kind of made this with my capacitors, but dumped them by value, I can easily see whether it is ceramic, polyester, tantalum or electrolytic .My resistors in my cabinet only have enough drawers to sort by the first two frequency bands, so 100, 1K, 10M are all in the same drawer, I choose brown, red or purple as requirements.

I am completing the first organization of my TTL logic. I think the current system will not support 74 numbers multiplied by 10 seconds. There are a large number of clusters. Some holes in the container are full and some holes are not. It may only be decomposed by AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR, FF, Buffer, etc.

Anyway, you are you, I stare at the little jar I kept, wondering if I have enough to make a "rotisserie"...

One of my thoughts about DIP IC (but never implemented) was to cut the foam sheet to match the width and height of my electronic parts tray, stick the IC in the foam by any sorting method, paste the label on the edge of the foam, and place them Into the pallet label. Make it like a card catalog.

I call it "a omni-directional, non-hierarchical, large-area organizational system. My wife calls it "pour everything on the floor".

I laughed at this name...Thank you!

For mechanical screws, I have 3 adjustable tackle box organizers. I have various M3(x10,15,20,25,30,40,50,70), M6(x15,20,30,40,60,80,100) and M8(x20,40,60,100) lengths (all within Hexagon screws, M3 black oxide and M6/M8 stainless steel) each has its own box, as well as standard wide washers, nylocs and regular nuts (all stainless steel). There is also a standard length M4x20mm and some small 623zz bearings in the M3 box. There are some threaded inserts for furniture in the M6 ​​box for CNC fixing. There are 608ZZs and LM8UUs in the M8 box. As long as I always buy in quantity, I can purchase products of all these sizes and lengths between Amazon and Ebay at a reasonable price. 100.

For wood screws, I specially store Spax #8 in 1-1/2", 2", and 3", and put them in the box. If I need a washing machine, M6 is. Their price is quite proud, but more The ease of being or less impossible to strip and/or split the wood makes them more worthwhile for home gamers like me. These are picked from any large hardware store I have seen in the southeastern United States of.

I found that this collection definitely covers 99% of my use cases. Everything else is ordered on a per-item basis.

The choice of M3/M8 is mainly because it is the basis of the early RepRap movement, while M6 is because of its similar relationship with CNC fixtures.

Another convenience is that M8 and 5/16 are interchangeable in all intents and uses except for the pitch, while M6 is almost 1/4-20 (same as M3 and 1/8"), so I can often get away with it. Metric parts replace those SAE holes.

I did what many people wrote here and ordered almost everything I bought. A year ago, I started to organize them into plastic boxes and made a T-slot rack for the labeled boxes. It saves me time and money to repurchase hardware that I own but cannot find.

Hardware organization https://imgur.com/gallery/tm3PWgL

For mechanical screws, I have 3 adjustable tackle box organizers. I have various M3(x10,15,20,25,30,40,50,70), M6(x15,20,30,40,60,80,100) and M8(x20,40,60,100) lengths (all within Hexagon screws, M3 black oxide and M6/M8 stainless steel) each has its own box, as well as standard wide washers, nylocs and regular nuts (all stainless steel). There is also a standard length M4x20mm and some small 623zz bearings in the M3 box. There are some threaded inserts for furniture in the M6 ​​box for CNC fixing. There are 608ZZs and LM8UUs in the M8 box. As long as I always buy in quantity, I can purchase products of all these sizes and lengths between Amazon and Ebay at a reasonable price. 100.

For wood screws, I specially store Spax #8 in 1-1/2", 2", and 3", and put them in the box. If I need a washing machine, M6 is. Their price is quite proud, but more The ease of being or less impossible to strip and/or split the wood makes them more worthwhile for home gamers like me. These are picked from any large hardware store I have seen in the southeastern United States of.

I found that this collection definitely covers 99% of my use cases. Everything else is ordered on a per-item basis. Another convenience is that M8 and 5/16 are interchangeable in all intents and uses except for the pitch, while M6 is almost 1/4-20 (same as M3 and 1/8"), so I can often get away with it. Metric parts replace those SAE holes.

convenient? Hey, is M8 and 5/16 close enough that you have to make sure to measure more than half an inch of thread, if you pick up one nut and put it on the other, you will get 4 or 5 before it gets stuck It came out... Some of the shallow ones, you will keep getting it to where you tightened, and then strip it or the wire.

>Hey, is M8 and 5/16 close enough that you have to make sure to measure more than half an inch of thread, if you pick up one nut and put it on the other, you will get 4 or 5 before it gets stuck Turn out...

Well, I don't keep the screws for both, that's for sure, but yes, you are right. Before I finally learn the lesson, I only need to make a few mistakes. ;-)

1 On Spax (don't call it Torx haha) T drive screws. Like you said, they are proud of the price, but made in America, the frustration they save is worth every penny. After I found Spax, I really threw away all the Philips driver screws. My only regret is that I cannot open a direct portal to hell and throw them in, lest future generations encounter them in the landfill and try to use them.

I am lucky to live near Skycraft Surplus. They have various types of fasteners and many small things that the homeless warehouse does not have. In addition, almost everything has a stainless steel option, and I usually grab it because it is only a few cents more than ordinary old steel. Haven't checked their fasteners on their website, but if you need something, I believe you can call to order, they do not list everything on their website. Strip old electrical appliances, computers, etc. How are my many weird fastener size/type jars filled. I'm glad I removed our old microwave oven. The new one burned out the 2 micro switches of the door. The old one popped out directly. The strange thing is how it lasted for 2 years and then turned off another switch, and then it looked like 8 months later and another 8 months to say a good time for a new one! Microwave magnets are very suitable for working on cars. You can stick it on your working place, stick bolts and nuts on it, and use it to fix car covers, etc.

Judging from the lack of responses that include people actually sorting, I guess everyone actually uses the BBB (Big Bolt Bucket) method? My adult life has been searching for the best organization method for my workshop and garage. I have gone through countless iterations, but my current place is in one of the stores, there is a trash can for line spacing, and then there are bags of different sizes and types. Then I use other trash cans for other odds and ends. If something has special tools, such as staples and staplers, they will be placed in the same trash can. (Please note that this is illegal excessive embezzlement, you can buy about half of almost the same thing in a hypermarket) https://www.amazon.com/Seville-Classics-Commercial-8-Tier-Storage/dp/B00W7G792C /

I used to have a large number of random fishing tackle containers with screws and other items, but they were not stacked or stored well, so I ended up getting 6 of them from the auction https://www.amazon.com/Greenpro-3309 -Hardware-Storage-Organizer/dp/B073Q6GWPJ/ I hate them. The drawer is too small to hold a considerable number of small things, and too large to hold many other things. If you have to move, the drawer has almost no support and will not cover, so have fun. The best way I found is to wrap them up and hope for the best. And it's easy to put something in it and then completely forget that it is there.

So, I also applied the idea of ​​suitcases in the garage to the workshop, but used tote bags. Very similar things are put in the bag, the bag is sometimes put in the bag, then all the hardware is in the handbag, all the electronic devices are in the handbag, and so on. This seems to be the most space-saving way, and it does not waste time. It seems too big when searching. Please note that, as others have pointed out, the choice of bag is important. The true transparency in the craft shop seems to eventually split on its own, so this is not good. Ordinary ZipLock also smells bad. ZipLock storage type is good, but not suitable for mechanical stress, so avoid folding and moving too much. Some of the best bags I found came from DigiKey parts, so I stocked them. This method is also one of the easiest ways to mark. I didn't find myself becoming so lazy and saying "Oh, I will mark it later" just to lose part in the abyss.

Adam Savage uses Sortimo, which looks great, but at least $50 for a drawer...: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ps4vbQ6Tk0 A similar 3D printing (also requires woodworking) storage solution from Alexandre Chappel: https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=VntGnLuwoeY

I don’t want 14-minute Adam Savage, so...

https://www.mysortimo.us/en_US

All of the above, and double it, because you also have to get it in the left hand line.

Then, if you are unfortunately dealing with equipment designed to use a grade system as the point of calibration failure, it is 5, and you can use shear pins if you want. No, you can't put level 8 there, it needs a level 5 because it's a damn fuse.

I encountered it once, but now I can't remember what it was.

If you need Grade 3 bolts, Grade 8 in China may be sufficient.

What, none of you have faucets and molds? I bought my things for a long time, and then throw away the things I don’t need, or thread them all by myself. Then there is the pump rod nut for connecting the threaded rod.

The hypermarket is a destined proposition for me-mainly missed. If you encounter anything unusual (I basically think that anything in the sliding bin instead of anything in the bubble is "unusual"-for them-not for us) , You will end up with a very thin inventory ("3 screws?") or a full horror show showing semi-randomly scattered things in the drawer ("Well, I will do a spiral search on the adjacent dividers , I hope to find the other two misplaced things.​​.....").

McMaster-Carr is my first choice, with clothing like Fastenall as a backup. McMaster has one of the best digging sites I have ever seen, lives near major warehouses and offices, and the ground delivery of almost everything is almost always the next day.

The Internet has opened the door for them. In the pre-Internet era, McMaster catalogs were indeed worth the money. When new catalogs appeared, people would sell old catalogs. In the 1980s and 1990s, the wife of a high school friend of mine worked there for many years, and even though I kept begging, she could not provide me with a catalog for free in those days.

Being able to find specific hardware really quickly combined with a large amount of inventory solved the hardware access problem for me. I am a mentor of the FIRST Robotics team, and getting the right hardware quickly has a big impact on building the right thing.

If you pre-drill a large enough hole, the drywall screws will self-tap into the aluminum. Popular rivets are amazing for blind holes. Epoxy can eliminate most design problems.

Epoxy resin can also be used to adjust the size of the fastener holes you have: -D... (If you wish to unscrew them at some point, please coat them with wax, graphite or other lubricating oil first)

I use strict metric hex screws for R/C related items. I always lose screws on the garage floor, so I bought M3 button head screws of various lengths from AliExpress in case I need them. I can usually buy a pack of 50 pieces for less than $1, and I can ship to the United States for free.

Since about 1994, I have been supporting maintenance organizations for a living. Large organizations employ hundreds of wrench turners. This is how we determine our inventory.

Write down the parts you use in the central location. Then look at the importance of the material and decide how much you need on hand. This is basic warehouse management. I am reading many "just in time" solutions and the advantages of what to use-all of which are irrelevant and distracting. If you find that you have used a particular solution in the past 12 months, please bookmark it. Obviously, you are very satisfied with using it and have identified suitable applications, etc. Talking about bodysuits and bodysuits in the warehouse is a waste of time, but only if you have data support.

Measure your material usage for a year. You will be surprised (and probably happy) to see the results and finally solve your problem.

Every time you encounter a shortage of fasteners, buy two or three more. In any case, you will lose and lose at least one. Over time, you will build a respectable collection. By the way, I suggest you use peanut butter (not glass) plastic jars as your growing collection.

http://www.mutualscrew.com is best to be mutual.

I usually use M2, M3, M4, and M5 hexagonal bold and nuts, and in some cases self-tapping screws. The main way I make things is a 3D printer.

I try to buy stainless steel. I prefer Torx and PoziDriv, they are uncommon and rare respectively, so I rarely get what I want.

https://www.fastenere.com They sell imperial and metric mechanical screws with free shipping

Thank you for explaining that every fastener has an engineering purpose. I think I can exchange them like other tools. But I will proceed with caution and only use them for their design purposes.

Please be kind and respectful to help make the comment section great. (Comment Policy)

This website uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how to handle your comment data.

By using our website and services, you explicitly agree to the placement of our performance, functionality and advertising cookies. learn more