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Question How do you guys store your nuts bolt and washers ?
- Thread starter ebgb68
- Start date
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2012
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- 2,220
The misc. bolt bin that Jim showed reminded me of the 5 gal bucket I have full of oddball bolts and screws that I got. I've thought about chucking it so many times but it never fails to bail me out of a jam. So, I keep it. Sometimes I gotta dump the whole thing out on the floor to find what I'm looking for. :nuts: Anytime I buy something that has bolts included, there always seem to be extras, and usually they are not your run-of-the-mill type of screw, so I really don't have a spot for them....they end up in the misc bolt bin.
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- Joined
- Jan 20, 2013
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- 275
IMO What I don't like about these is, unless you label them carefully, you have to pull out all the drawers to see what's in them.
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2013
- Messages
- 485
Well I guess I am like everyone else and use a little of all the above. I did find something that works well for my small stuff like 2 - 56, 4 - 40, 6 - 32 nuts as well as the small cap screw etc. It is made from used medication containers. As we age we end out with prescription drugs etc. I remove the labels and print new ones with my tag labeler. The rack is made from plywood, Masonite and hard wood trim.
Paul
Paul
Very nice and yes lots of pill bottles here too.
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2014
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- 991
I have about 100 2lb coffee cans on a shelf, all marked by size or content, 3/8 long, 3/8 short, rod ends, hinges, hose clamps, etc. when i need something I dump the contents in a large gold pan and begin prospecting, it's cheap and it works for me.
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- Mar 10, 2013
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- 1,428
I agree with you and Marcel about how nice it is to have buckets or drawers of just much misc of items----the little plastic drawer organizers are fine for some things--as long as the majority of what is sorted in it is all similar type items---otherwise you have to search through a lot of organizers for a special drawer.------you may not need 10 pounds of cotter keys(pins) but when you need one they should be just where you can find them for the right size-----one thing very nice about having buckets or drawers of stuff you want to keep---is this-----FIRST it is very quick and easy to throw extras in with them to sort later-----SECOND and just as valuable---is when you are scrounging and looking through them for a certain item---your eyes and your memory are seeing all the other items in there that you are searching through--THAT is why you go to that drawer or bucket in the first or last place to look because your memory has lately stored those parts locations for you--------when you finish a project and don't have time to find all the little drawers to sort your leftovers--it's easy to just throw them in the TO SORT bucket or drawer.------I do like to have a lot of items sorted in cabinets--but it does take a lot of time to sort everything----so I have cabinets and organizers full and I also have my mixture buckets and drawers------my memory when I was kid brings back an old neighbor that explained this to me---if I was looking for a special screw or nut with special threads for my bike--he would bring out a flat container of a mixture of nuts bolts washers and many other things--if I didn't find it in that one he would just bring me another one to look through--you know--I always found what I needed---and that's why I value those unsorted mixture drawers-----one for tiny stuff--at least three or more for small--medium--and large----some separate ones for just electrical stuff---and now you get the picture-----one more problem with sorting in the little plastic drawers---you always find some things are just too long to fit in the drawer with with the other similar items------------I am trying to sort all my items but that's the story of my cluttered but interesting and useable shops-------------some day :victory:-------------------Dave
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- Mar 10, 2013
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Paul--yes I use those small med bottles for lots of items also---they lay down in some drawers and make good containers for taps in connection with each size of small threaded nuts and bolts up to 1/4 "-----the small and larger sizes are also very handy to put mixtures of small stuff in--- labeled unsorted misc. ----put the lids on tight and throw them in your unsorted buckets or drawers----the clear peanut butter jars and similar type with screw on lids are also good for this and you can see what is in the jars easily before dumping them out for the item you need-----you don't even have to label these-----when I am stripping an item down for the parts I keep a couple of them handy to throw the parts in to sort later---------- --Dave
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2013
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- 1,428
I do that too and it is nice that the lids keep the items clean and you can label them easy with a marker between the handle grips---yup--at least one a month--they mount up continuously ------and who would throw away such good cheap storage-----not me----I also just dump them out on a tray for seeing misc and then put them back----Dave
- Joined
- Jan 22, 2014
- Messages
- 578
I keep a complete selection of bolts, nuts, lock and flat washers (1/4" - 1/2") in the blue storage bins and the common sizes screws (#4 - 10) in the typical multi-drawer organizers. I also have a selection of Metric allen cap screws/nuts M3 - M8. I optimized my space by building a hidden, sliding door storage space behind my lathe. It's sometimes a chore to get to some of them, but I don't have to do it too often.
The pic that show it best is with my old Craftsman/Atlas lathe instead of my current G0602.
The pic that show it best is with my old Craftsman/Atlas lathe instead of my current G0602.