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Hardware storage

Dustin Pahl

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Sep 9, 2014
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56
I am looking to start a collection of hardware to keep on hand in my shop. I plan to include bolts nuts washers screws and nails along with some specialty cap screws set screws etc. I plan on making a cabinet to hold the harbor freight storage bins something like this. Has anyone used bins like this? How do you have everything organized? I also need help determining what hardware I should get. Sizes etc. I'm starting from scratch. Pictures of your setups using bins like these would be awesome! Thanks! df2edfb29841771ea9451ea664cc9062.jpg
 
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ken w.

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Aug 16, 2012
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Western New York
I have a pretty good selection of hardware and have everything from 3/16 - 7/16 in nut and bolts. For the average guy 1/4" 5/16" and 3/8" is all that's really needed. I buy some at TSC and buy the green grade 5 bolt , nuts and the gold grade 8 flat washers. Everything else I get from a industrial fastener store in Niagara Falls. I get most of my organizers from CL or estate sales. You don't need to stock tons of each size as some of it will sit in your box forever. I'll try to put some pics up later.
 

southalabama

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Jan 10, 2011
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Brewton AL
Try r.m. schaller bins.

You can order from their website or ebay.

I also save oil jugs and peanut butter plastic jars.
 

astroracer

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Jun 22, 2005
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Mid_Michigan
Start searching CL and local auction houses for these large Filecard cabinets.
photo-vi.jpg

I use the HF grey plastic bins to organize the drawers.
photo-vi.jpg

I hot glued dividers into the bins for the smaller stuff.
photo-vi.jpg

I have everything from #8 up to 3/4" stuff organized in this one cabinet. :)
It is on casters also, so it rolls around for cleaning and re-organizing. :)
Mark
 

NUTTSGT

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Northern Central Ohio
I have a pretty good selection of hardware and have everything from 3/16 - 7/16 in nut and bolts. For the average guy 1/4" 5/16" and 3/8" is all that's really needed. I buy some at TSC and buy the green grade 5 bolt , nuts and the gold grade 8 flat washers. Everything else I get from a industrial fastener store in Niagara Falls. I get most of my organizers from CL or estate sales. You don't need to stock tons of each size as some of it will sit in your box forever. I'll try to put some pics up later.

I'd agree with buying bulk at TSC. I have 1/4", 5/16", 3/8", 7/16" and 1/2" on hand. I originally bought their grade 2 but as I restock, it's either grade 5 or 8.
 

Blazinzuk

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Mar 13, 2016
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637
Location
Afton Wy
We don't have TSC we have Cal Ranch. But buying online is usually cheaper.

Working at a hardware store some years ago I talked to our nut and bolt rel. He said you would be surprised how many private garages/ shops have a company put in a certain amount of nuts and bolts. Set up just like a store would but much smaller
 
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Richard Cranium

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Apr 22, 2011
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18,552
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central Washington
Emptypockets, I got all the Hillman stuff at an Ace hardware that had built a new building and had put all new fixtures in and was selling them contents and all.
 

jonfleck

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Joined
Aug 14, 2014
Messages
4
I use Harbor Freight containers along with Plano storage containers for my small hardware storage. So far it works great. I've been able to store a really wide variety of hardware and it only takes a few minutes to set the whole thing up.
w800_Storex_Literature_Organizer_Combined_with_Harbor_Freight_Storage_Containers.JPG
 
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crewchief888

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Dec 3, 2009
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13,744
Location
NW indiana
i collect all kinds of misc hardware, bushings, spacers, knobs, springs, mostly stuff thats sorta hard to find.

all the bins were salvaged, slightly damaged, broken ect.


:beer:
 

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TheBadDog

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Dec 9, 2012
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112
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Phoenix
I got a big set of bins of craig's list years ago. Held 96(IIRC?) of these type bins, but was missing 5 of them. Pretty much perfect for standard hardware storage, and came with lots of little dividers so you can subdivide. So all my hardware from 1/4" to 1" is stored in these, separated by size to different bins, subdivided bins separating different types of bolts from each other, washers, and different types of nuts. Got lots of other similar stuff too.

Strong-Metal-Steel-Storage-Bins-Garage-Car-Motorcycle.jpg


Smaller than 1/4" goes into smaller examples of the same type of storage, each subdivided making finding stuff relatively easy. I really like that type of storage because I can take out the bin (or bins) and carry all my options to the point where convenient, pick through as needed, then return them to their position in the rack.

I've also got the wide flat tray with a lid and lots of sub-compartments too. I keep stuff my electrical terminal fittings (spades, eyes, splices, bullet, wire nuts, etc) and such organized in them.

[Edit] Found some better links.
These are like my large bins, except the bins are larger, and the cabinet rack is about 7' tall or so. Enco used to have them a lot in the sale catalogs a few years back.
Large Bin Rack
This is what I put the smaller (than 1/4") fasteners, screws, etc. in. The one pictured is almost exactly what I have, except mine is brown, and has one more row on each of the 2 stacked cabinets.
Smaller bins
Then these for smaller still. Stuff like electrical connectors, clips, pins, springs, etc.
Drawer dividers
And cabinets like this for mostly tooling for lathe/mill, taps, MT shank and large drills, setup blocks, parallels, and on and on. Mine are made by NuEra and Lyon, basically the same as the more familiar Lista and Vidmar cabinets. I LOVE these things, basically impossible to beat and IMO make Snap-On look like Craftsman (well, "pro" series I maybe, but still a solid notch above)
Tooling cabinets

I also got several bundles of the cardboard fold up bins that look a lot like the popular plastic ones. But the plastic ones get brittle and eventually break, so I prefer the cardboard for anything not wet/oily, and it's CHEAP! I use these for organizing the box quantity desck screws, drywall screws, different size nail boxes, and so on. If I need larger deck screws, they are all in the boxes they come in, and all of roughly the same size are in one cardboard bin. Easy to find. And many of these go on a HF metal tapered shelf/rack that originally held a bunch of the aforementioned plastic bins that break. The plastic bins are long gone, but the cardboard bins will last as long as I care, plus they appear on shelves all around the shop keeping various related bits together.
 
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TheBadDog

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Joined
Dec 9, 2012
Messages
112
Location
Phoenix
Aha, I finally found an image that matches my bolt bins. For standard fastener hardware storage, when you've got more than a small collection to manage, there is nothing I've ever encountered that I believe is superior for the task. The attached image is almost identical to mine, except that it appears to be missing more bins than mine. Fellow is asking almost $500, which is a LOT more than I paid for mine, but it does appear in nice condition, and if I were setting up a new shop without the one I have now, I would seriously consider trying to get it for around $300 or so. Otherwise, maybe hit Enco before they no longer exist...
 

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