sorting the bolt bins

[ship]

Spent the weekend sorting my bolt bins, this as opposed to torcher in making people at work sort them when caught putting stuff in the wrong bin, or in the distant past for the non-for profit theater, dumping out a 5 gallon bucket of misc. un-sorted fasteners on the center table of the "business meeting" so as to give them something to do as they discuss the budget.

For me, sorting the bolt bins is like a once every ten years zen type of thing needed in growing. Elsewhere and especially at work, it's a necessary thing in people just not getting it that a side lock is not a top lock is not a normal nut is not a nylock is not a serrated top flange nut is not a..... other type of nut. Gee, and one of the things I don't get in general... "one of these things is not like the other, one of these things just don't belong" I constantly can't figure out what 5/16" snap hooks with tie line attached to them are doing in a bin with photo of deck chain is such gear doing in the bin? Hmm, photo of some deck chain, and a bunch of that gear in the bin... got these snap hooks with taped up tie line attached to them... yep, that's where it belongs.

So here I was at Menards this past weekend, doing the $150.00 the hard way - $0.98 at a time. It was painful for all behind me in that while my cart was not full, the hand basket was. They quickly filed into line behind me in having an empty cart, than left disappointed in line. Time to restock my bolt bins I told the retired guy behind me that stuck it with me in line. What are you going to do with all this stuff he asked? I said, just restock my bolt bins. He asked in seeing stuff from 6-32 nylock nut to 1/2-13x4" screw - what are you going to do with all this stuff.... my answer... tinker with stuff. From lights to furniture, it’s time to re-stock my bolt bins which is like a 6' square wall of individual drawers for them encompassing screws and electrical stuff. Got lots of stuff in the bolt bins from like #4 brass wood screws dating back to the 1920's to rivet nuts in them, but some times it's just the basics in need of re-stock even if Menards don't carry in an economical sense anything 10-32 in size other than individually and expensive or anything grade 5 cost effectivly. Still at some point you just need a 10-24 round head screw.

He in being retired found this concept, much less waiting in line for such an interesting tinkering in having it in stock and not having to run out for it concept curious beyond - what ya got a hardware store... (in some ways perhaps - zat a bad thing?) and at least interesting in that I am not about the age of a tinkerer yet there I was and someone I was in that fastener aisle with as another tinkerer him it seemed. Yea, it was ok for him at least that extra minute or two it took, and in some way it was no doubt fascinating that someone younger was all about such a concept.


Anyway, part of this buy was two “Tool Shop” type 10"x12" 25-drawer organizer bolt bin type things. Searched the store and in the past other sources and these days you just cannot find part organizers that have less than a 1" frame about them of some type which is uniformly modern. Just cannot find any multi-drawer organizers that have like a ½" frame about them these days. In this tool shop type with crappy misc. parts bin, I now had one that matches my olden days style. This granted it came with what’s probably less than grade 2 parts, more like grade 1 and good luck on torquing, it came with a 50 some odd piece set of parts to go along with the drawer unit. All for like $13.00. Even if crappy drawer unit, it came with dividers even if the drawers don't fit so tight and I had a section 12" high x 24" wide to fill and these were all that were available or would fit. So, tomorrow’s project, now that I’m done assimilating the $150.00 the hard way fastener restock, is to stock the various cotter pin to wood screw to seemingly 1/4-20 but possibly fastener packets that came with the hardware bin.

If it’s all cool, this stuff even if very low grade in quality is a really good starter package deal in getting fasteners to start with. That’s what I’m working on or at least more restocking. A bit of everything, and to base a starter kit of fasteners off of. These types of packets while useless later on are I think a good buy if you start from nothing and want to get a lot for as cost effective an investment as possible. Drawer units are just as bad as the fasteners in quality, yet will be sufficient and fill a hole. For me, each 25 drawer unit fits my flat head wood screw, slotted and phillips from 3/8" to 3" in all sizes. Taking such screws out of a larger bin allows it to fit or distribute other stuff better. A difference in drawer between 1" and 1.1/4" drill cons.

Anyway, I’m sorting my bolt bins - a once in ten years type thing for me as opposed to at work a once a year type of thing given I don’t just put stuff away where ever is closest or seemingly similar. For me in sorting, it’s more like I know what it is, more just I need more space to fit more variations in it. Such parts bins grew from nothing and only took like 15 years on a budget. This as opposed to at work eight years but without a budget in having a similar but larger collection.

My next stop will be to re-stock the better and more antique or hard to get hardware. Antiques shops and garage sale type stuff. Something like $5.00 for a small tool box full of misc. rusting old fasteners and I'm all about such a deal. That's the only way to especially for me get the square head and other types of screws with a pitina as it were for replacing missing screws on antique light fixtures etc. Getting to the point these days I can beyond telling between a 1.1/4 and 1.5/8 drywall screw, I can tell the difference between a #5 and #6 wood screw of similar length. Ah' sorting screws... relaxing.

[tech2000]

It could be a short children's book...just add pictures!