How do u keep small parts and hardware while working?

[TheCarbideRat]

I used a magnetic bar for a while. Now i usually am putting nuts/bolts/stuff on my cart very careful as i like to not have to go get a new washer or bolt or whatever!

What is your method which works for you, or do you have several, depending on the job? Itmakes me crazy to see nuts and bolts either lying on the floor [waiting for the (kik!) extra point attempt] or on the bench just sitting there [not in a tray] waiting to be jostled, BAM! onto the freeking FLOOR. Or oh hell no, in the engine bay on top of the battery/manifold/air filter housing!!

Or am i OCDC?

 

[ptschram]

I have ADD horribly, but the meds are working.

I set my bandsaw up to cut empty oil bottles so they are about 1" deep. I can arrange them on my cart so I have half the cart with little compartments and the other half for my tools.

It works well for me. I cannot stand to lose hardware in the middle of a job.

 

[therealwormey]

i got a bunch of old freezer boxes from when i cleaned out a 22 CF freezer that when i emptied all the old food out i was left with litereally hundreds of the 4"x4" boxes. my grandparents were from the days of big garden,freeze/can and eat garden veggies year round,,,but a freezer that big just lets a lot of the stuff sit on the bottom for many years and had to be trashed. ive found the boxes have many uses one of which is storing bolts and such while tearing down an engine etc....

 

[Justin1776]

I reuse old hardware plastic boxes. Much of Dottie brand hardware comes in plastic boxes that are actually pretty sturdy.

 

[Mastermind]

paint cups. i set aside the ones we use for clear, as it comes out in one swift motion once hard, have a stack of them on the bottom of my cart, usually grab one for each panel (lft door, lt fender, frnt cover etc.) and stack them to keep things in them. if they get oil or somethig gooey on them throw them out so it doesnt end up on the passenger floorboard.http://www.google.com/imgres?q=ppg+...00&start=55&ndsp=13&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:55,i:257

 

[redwrench60]

Magnetic trays baby....magnetic trays. Note the one on the top right is a HF cheapy and dropping nuts, bolts and tools in it has deformed and sunken in the thinner sheetmetal around the magnet in the base. I also had to glue the magnet back on shortly after purchasing it. The other ones are name brand and don't suffer these problems but cost four times more, just file it under things you notice.

 

[Vvmvbb]

I use an assortment of the smaller AkroBins myself.

 

[cascivic]

I use a small hf magnetic dish. I saw at lowes a few weeks ago there "task force" dual magnet one was 4.99 pretty good size too.

 

[PCO6]

This doesn't work for all applications but when disassembling something I often use plastic drink glasses ... the kind you would serve beer in at a party. They come in packs of about 25 and are cheap and stackable. I can also put them in my parts washer with some varsol in them to soak the hardware before I clean it. When finished I just restack them and put them back in a storage cabinet. If some of them get wrecked in the process ... no problem ... they're inexpensive to replace.

 

[torqueman2002]

I save the tops and bottoms of plastic 'butter' containers.

If its' a long term project, resoto, etc, ... I'll mark some info. to identify what the pieces are for.

 

[Fedwrench]

Magnetic trays

Something else I like to use is an old cupcake pan on a nearby cart for grouping fasteners.

On a side note, it's best to use one of those under hood service trays or a cart to place removed parts and tools on. That way you'll never leave a tool under the hood and **** you've already removed won't fall into the engine compartment.

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

Plastic food containers, tin cans, etc. I'm always looking at containers food or whatever comes in and thinking whether or not I can use them for something else.

Cookie sheets work well with long thin parts you want to give an Evaporust bath to.

 

[slugworks]

Magnetic trays, but if it will be a while before I can put something back together, I put stuff in containers like this and label what the parts are for.

 

[Jawn]

Magnetic trays for whatever'll stick to one. Random boxes or on the rubber bench mat for non-magnetic stuff.

 

[Outlawmws]

Depends on the size and scale of the job, but magnetic trays, old butter tubs, and for complex jobs, bag and tag... (Snack baggies are generally a good size to have around, or old plastic zip locks from hardware buys, I have a big one with all the old smaller ones hanging in the shop on a binder clip and cup hook.)

Another one is old cat food cans, and these days lunch meat "boxes" (Glad) are a good source.

 

[jetmech09]

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/0405310.php

cloth parts bags.

 

[d_rock]

Harbor freight sells plastic "tool box organizers". they come as a set and have one that has 8 sections that I put hardware in so it stays organized. Kinda look like silverware trays.

 

[TheCarbideRat]

This doesn't work for all applications but when disassembling something I often use plastic drink glasses ... the kind you would serve beer in at a party. They come in packs of about 25 and are cheap and stackable. I can also put them in my parts washer with some varsol in them to soak the hardware before I clean it. When finished I just restack them and put them back in a storage cabinet. If some of them get wrecked in the process ... no problem ... they're inexpensive to replace.

I like the stackability, it's aboot time i try that!

 

[davesnothere]

Most of the time I find somewhere in the engine bay to put them. 99% of the time, nothing gets lost.
If there's really a ton of nuts and bolts, I will go grab a magnetic tray.

 

[Kevin54]

Magnetic trays.

 

[TheCarbideRat]

Most of the time I find somewhere in the engine bay to put them. 99% of the time, nothing gets lost.
If there's really a ton of nuts and bolts, I will go grab a magnetic tray.

It's best to keep the stuff as near to it's usage point as possible!

I have done this strategy in the past as well. I'm maybe just getting old and worry wartish, i misplaced a special screw only to find it 5 minutes later on top of the battery right where i left it. FKN Cadillac, get a life Caddy engineer man use NORMAL screws!!

 

[PCO6]

I like the stackability, it's aboot time i try that!

Dem's fighten words eh. NOBODY up here say's dat. If you're from up here you already know dat eh.

 

[ephotrod]

Take an empty oil quart with lid and place it on its side, then proceed to cut a square portion off the side and you have a great container that will also mildly lube your bolts.
Josh

 

[TheCarbideRat]

wned:

Dem's fighten words eh. NOBODY up here say's dat. If you're from up here you already know dat eh.

wned:

 

[TheCarbideRat]

Yeh sure, nobody sez dat, and you hate hockey too i suspect....

 

[EvilWelder]

I have magnetic trays on the truck, at home i use restaurant "hotel" pans of all sizes. They are stainless, available in all sizes, and modular.
http://www.google.com/search?q=hote...gLI7T4QT1tuysCA&ved=0CHIQsAQ&biw=1680&bih=949

 

[PCO6]

Yeh sure, nobody sez dat, and you hate hockey too i suspect....

I won't say that I "hate" hockey but it is far from my favourite sport. I am a life long fan of (and participant in) our national summer sport, lacrosse. It's North America's oldest sport. Unfortunately our government has blinders on and it has had a negative affect on sports in general ... except for hockey of course. (Sorry - rant over).

 

[ihredo4]

Cups, Medicine bottles, butter tubs, bread pans, Akro bins, basically what ever I have available at the time.

 

[BigAl62]

I use magnetic trays. I bought a bunch from the Sears Hardware by me when they were closing. I have 4 rectangular and 6 round and I only paid about $20 for all of them. If I didn't run into that deal, I would probably go with cut down oil and antifreeze bottles (a lot of guys at work do this as they are free). Just cut them to the depth you want, you can fasten them together to keep them from scattering (at work the guys use duct tape, it's free from the parts department).

For really small stuff (like when I took my laptop apart) I use an old ice cube tray to keep the different sized screws organized.

 

[jeffmoss26]

I have a rubber mat that lives on my workkbench, specifically designed to hold all the springs and pins and other little parts when working on locks. It also comes in handy when working on laptops because there are so many damn screws!

 

[zsuperbee]

Magnetic trays for me one for each component I remove

 

[bcradio]

Magnetic trays baby....magnetic trays. Note the one on the top right is a HF cheapy and dropping nuts, bolts and tools in it has deformed and sunken in the thinner sheetmetal around the magnet in the base. I also had to glue the magnet back on shortly after purchasing it. The other ones are name brand and don't suffer these problems but cost four times more, just file it under things you notice.

I love those Blue Point trays... those are huge which is what I like. I'll have to check those out.

Thanks

 

[Squankum]

Magnet trays are awesome. Only problem I've ever had with mine? When my 10mm 3/8" dr. socket hid underneath the edge. Going to Sears to buy (ugh) a new (ugh) one made it appear later in the week.

Otherwise, Ziploc bags with scraps of paper inside them saying what it is, where it came from, if necessary. Yes, snack size do for many things.

 

[metaldad]

pill bottles (?)

 

[bobbar]

Muffin baking sheet...

 

[EvilWelder]

Muffin baking sheet...

That is a classic

 

[Justanoldguy]

I use 2 litre ice cream containers.
They even have lids.
Not sure if you guys get these over there.

Also I have a heap of plastic pot plant saucers of all sizes.
They are very handy too and about an inch high.

 

[JKady]

Whatever box from the last small-ish part I installed was usually, I'll pull a trans/tranxaxle etc... and just toss everything in the box along with any small parts and brackets I've pulled along the way. Oil or coolant bottles with the side cut out work great too. When I'm ready to re-assemble the car I usually have a bench to lay everything out on, makes things quick and easy. I do like the magnetic trays, I just haven't ponied up for them when I have a steady supply of free containers.

 

[machine_punk]

I like the magnetic trays for most stuff.

If I am taking a part off the engine, I usually use blue painters tape or colored electrical tape, to hold the screw in the hole which it came out of, while the part is off the engine.

Generally, I like to use the AKRO-style bins (I use the U-Line bins) for any specific project. I keep all the parts of for one project in one bin.

M_P

 

[TheCarbideRat]

Good ideas, some i am familiar with, some not. Magnets be big huh? Had a few of those trays, one i left on the bottom of an engine oil pan, parked the car in the lot + 2 hours later UH-OH!! Lucky to find the car still there with the magnet tray still on it.

I like those potted plant saucers i'm gonna keep that in mind, they might go well with some rubber mat glued onto the bottom.