Old Fastener Storage: Do you indulge or refrain?

[Strouty]

I don’t save anything, people that do that are insane.

 

[jeffmoss26]

now THAT is cool!

 

[southalabama]

Akalain - well done. Looks better than my wife’s china cabinet.

Read stroutys post and did a double take until I saw the emoji at the end.

 

[unknownroad]

I feel like an amateur with my generic hardware store slidy-bins full of scavenged bits and bobs, but they've certainly saved me more than one 45-minute round trip to the hardware store.

Ain't nobody got time to sort anything smaller than #6 x 1/2"

 

[LifeLongWNYer]

Just a word on my experience.... for several years I searched for a system of uniform sized containers to store hardware in. It seemed that every time I selected a vendor who made suitable cabinets, within a year, or two, they discontinued that particular product, and moved to a different configuration. Thus, I always had a mix of drawers, and compartments. Probably good enough for most people, but I wanted more uniformity.

Finally I happened along a bolt storage system at Harbor Freight. I know their reputation, so I watched. After several years, they were still selling the same bins, so I figured "what the heck" and jumped in. Well, now I have quite a set up of HF bins, they are still selling the same set, so I can expand with matching bins, when needed, BUT.....

I find the plastic drawers "dry out" after 3 or 4 years, and then they crack very easily. While I met my goal of consistently sized bins, I now have to buy extra bins to replace the older ones when they crack.




.

 

[Outlawmws]

Here's what I did to solve my fastener problem.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/album.php?albumid=6355

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VERY impressive!

 

[harley jim]

Rifleman
It was a lot of storage for a long time. Since I retired I spend about 7 hours a day in the shop and rarely need to go to town for anything. I know where most of it is even tho it is a mess. I use it every day to fix something
Strouty
I resemble that remark!
Unknown road I have cap screws smaller diameter than toothpics.
I dont know that a standardized system would work for me as I have so many different types of things in my cabinets and drawer units because of the different things I do. Some are for automotive restoration/ hot rods, some are for woodworking, some are for art work so it's a big mashup of stuff.
It will make sence in the end. Besides I cant leave a mess for the estate liquidators!!!

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[harley jim]

Had to go to Heaven today, bought a bed frame and it needed some metric fasteners so no choice but to go.

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[Outlawmws]

Harley, I have most machine screws down to #2 in aluminum versions of the small Accro drawer bins. (I believe a pic is on page one) Smaller than that (yes I have them too) are in small plastic trays in larger, but still small drawer sets.

 

[jeffmoss26]

I regularly (daily) use 3/48 flat head machine screws...

 

[Outlawmws]

Which lock is that on?

 

[jeffmoss26]

pretty much all mortise cylinder cam screws.

 

[Alchymist]

Have screws down to 0-80 for modeling work. Amazing how many can fit in a little prescription bottle. Even more amazing how far they can travel when the bottle tips over.

 

[Outlawmws]

I have a bunch of 0-80 SS socket head cap screw from a former career...

 

[PelicanPines]

I don’t save anything, people that do that are insane.

Neither do I... I also keep things all over the place without labels ...

Pffft my place looks like a hardware store had a litter of OCD label machines.

Strouty's looks like a used truck salvage yard... basically because it is...

Yes. We hardware... we are nuts... all sorted and labeled.

 

[harley jim]

Neither do I... I also keep things all over the place without labels ...



Pffft my place looks like a hardware store had a litter of OCD label machines.



Strouty's looks like a used truck salvage yard... basically because it is...



Yes. We hardware... we are nuts... all sorted and labeled.

I got a large tote from a sale it is full, 2 label machines and a **** load of tape cartridges all for free. I'm going to label every drawer.

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[Murph1945]

There are some sick puppies on this forum. My old fashioned hardware store is 5 miles away. When I don't have time to look for something I can run to town. I usually tell Katie that I need " two to use and two to lose". She just shakes her head.

 

[Alchymist]

Ran across this today:
https://www.grizzly.com/products/Gr...nt=Pony+Jorgenson+Bessey+special+&+New+inlays!

Also waiting for warm weather to build a platform on casters to hold a eighteen drawer Equipto cabinet, and 4 of the Lawson cabinets with removable drawers.

The Equipto holds 5/16" thru 3/4" bolts, nuts, etc. The Lawson drawers will hold anything smaller. Right now the smaller stuff is in anything from peanut butter jars to misc. plastic boxes to pill bottles, several shelves full.

 

[harley jim]

Alchymist
I have a bunch of the older style boxes like the grizzly one, I'm trying to paint them and get them back in service but probably won't have enough so that may be an option. I worked at equipto in the 70s and made a bunch of those drawer bin units, it was all piece work then I think they paid around $1.10 per 100 to press the drawer fronts and it was less for the body. I have several of them also.

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[Dumber than lumber]

I got a large tote from a sale it is full, 2 label machines and a **** load of tape cartridges all for free. I'm going to label every drawer.

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When you make your labels you will be well-advised to use the label tape that has "permanent" adhesive. Some of those name-brand labels come with non-permanent adhesives.
Imagine going in the shop one day and you have labels on the floor after you had stuck about 50 of them on your cabinets.

 

[harley jim]

DTL
Ouch, that would not be fun. I did not know that, I'll have to look at the label first. Thanks.
I got a couple of the bins finished and put on the shelf for now

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[Outlawmws]

I used to use Dymo lablers, which are slow and a PITA. I use the card holders whenever possible/available.. Print them on heavy paper and cut them out.

 

[harley jim]

I used to use Dymo lablers, which are slow and a PITA. I use the card holders whenever possible/available.. Print them on heavy paper and cut them out.

I have a box of old business cards that I kept for that same thing

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[Elmonosabio]

This is great stuff, but now I have a question. What’s the system or “rules” to use when sorting fasteners, etc. into different categories?

 

[jonshonda]

My ideal setup would be something I can never afford.

 

[harley jim]

This is great stuff, but now I have a question. What’s the system or “rules” to use when sorting fasteners, etc. into different categories?

I dont think that there is a cut and dried answer for that question. Everyone has different criteria as to what is important or not.
Once I get a couple of items out of my shop that dont belong here, I will set up the left side as primarily wood related tools and hardware. I have a large wooden bench with lots of drawers for the tools and cabinets and drawer units for the walls, all of my wood type fasteners and such will live there.
The middle area of the shop will be for metal type tools and fasteners and such also my painting supplies, at this point I have some 12" deep shelving to go on the back wall with all of my drawer units and bolt organizers. Also the machines will be in this area.
The right side will stay the fab shop, it will be bare minimum on storage as everything there gets a bit dirty from grinding, blast cabinet and welding.

The hardware will be sorted into categories such as nuts and bolts, screws, machine nuts and bolts, rivets, and so on, each having there own cabinet.
Now all I have to do is do it.

 

[harley jim]

My ideal setup would be something I can never afford.

Yep, an electronic retrieval system like Amazon has!

 

[PoorUB]

I live in a city of over 100,000 people. I have two decent hardware stores within a mile of me. I have Menards, Lowes and Home Depot all within 10 minutes. A couple industrial tool and hardware suppliers, Fastenal, and more I probably missed.

I keep a bolt bin from 1/4" to 1/2" diameter up to about 2-1/2" long, nuts, lock, and flat washers. I have six Milwaukee job site boxes with a bit of plumbing, nails and constructions screws and a couple more plastic boxes with smaller screws and that is about it.
Some times when doing a remodel when I an done I will just toss the excess hardware. Hardware is cheap and readily available so no sense in taking up a bunch pf real estate to store it.

 

[finn]

I ended up with my dad’s and grandfather’s collection of cigar boxes filled with miscellaneous screws, nuts, bolts, nails, and miscellaneous fasteners. I started sorting the mess last spring, but realized that most of it would never be used by me, so I discarded a couple dozen boxes. Still have at least a dozen.

I found a WWII card file cabinet and bought some hardware store bolt bins at Habitat to go with my HF wall cabinet.

I buy mostly SAE bolts, nuts, and washers, primarily grade 8, in commonly used sizes at Fleet Farm and TSC, by the pound, and stainless sheet metal screws. If I need five, I will buy a dozen. I found that despite having all those old cigar boxes of used hardware, there was never the correct assortment or quantity to complete a project. It’s ten miles one way to town, too far to pick up one screw, but close enough that it’s usually not impractical to put a project on hold for a day or two until I have sufficient just for a town trip.

Wood screws have been obsoleted by construction screws, so I stock them in their plastic tubs in the HF cabinet (with doors) or a Walmart/Kellogg’s end cap wire rack mounted to the enclosed lean to wall.

 

[FredWanaker]

one could buy an old Navy or AF aircraft hanger, stock it with containers and there would never be enough room for all the hardware that finds its way into a collection.

 

[Bucko]

one could buy an old Navy or AF aircraft hanger, stock it with containers and there would never be enough room for all the hardware that finds its way into a collection.

And you would still be missing the bolt you need!

 

[quickfarms]

If you do not have all of your fasteners sorted individually you need sorting trays like this

Harbor Freight Tools – Quality Tools at Discount Prices Since 1977

Harbor Freight buys their top quality tools from the same factories that supply our competitors. We cut out the middleman and pass the savings to you!

www.harborfreight.com

 

[harley jim]

That's my problem, I'm about 15 miles from the nearest store, I cant just hop in the truck and run there every time I need something. I seem to take a lot of heat from people about the amount of stuff that I have but I do usually have the parts I need.
I have cases of hardware that have practically fell into my lap so it isn't like I spent any big money on any of it.
Like last year I bought a metal car port, Me and the installers were talking about hardware, they left me two 50lb boxes of tec screws, 50lb box of anchor bolts, and another 50lb box of mixed nuts and bolts, and angle brackets. They still had 10 times that amount on the truck.
I got a 3D printer for Christmas so I thought I would try to print some bins to fit some of my drawer units, just a thought, it may be cheaper to buy readymade bins and make them fit.

 

[Outlawmws]

This is great stuff, but now I have a question. What’s the system or “rules” to use when sorting fasteners, etc. into different categories?

If you read my fist couple of posts, I went from the glass jars my dad had, to coffee cans sorted by size/thread-nuts bolts wahers together, to further refinements in storage and sorting til I got to by size adn thread - Bolts nuts washers, from #2 all the way to 3/4 and then its "larger"

 

[rayra]

This is great stuff, but now I have a question. What’s the system or “rules” to use when sorting fasteners, etc. into different categories?

Type then size works for me.
Added bonus if you have a big mess to clean up, the first rough sort by type can be done pretty quickly.

 

[22george]

Saving old fasteners etc has saved many many trips into town.

 

[harley jim]

Just wanted to update here. I spent about a week sorting and cleaning, I found an entire bay big enough to park in and filled up a bunch of drawers. It's starting to feel good in here.

 

[nadogail]

I sort by diameter and pitch, consequently my 1/4-20 collection takes more than a single drawer. I also try to keep the "longish" bolts and machine screws apart from the short ones. I do so little with Metric that all the Metric stuff goes into a drawer marked Metric. There is an Industrial Surplus store nearby that sells USS and SAE fasteners buy the pound, so if I find myself without a common fastener I tend to buy an abundance when I need one bolt. I realize that my widow will have to deal with the bins and drawers of Nuts, Bolts and Things eventually; but I am well known by my neighbors as the guy who most probably has an answer to their problem. Often they just need to be told to repair their part with JB Weld.

 

[harley jim]

Nadogail, that will be my next venture, to start sorting by size and lenght. I'm just glad to get the bulk of it off of the floor.

 

[dwouscg]

I used to run alot of work at grain elevators. Would change out the belts and buckets for new and bring some used ones home. They make really good outdoor planters as well.