Thread: Fastener identification

Hello,

First off, I did a quick search and couldn’t find much here on the topic of my question (didn’t really expect to) however, I did find an interesting discussion of tap/drill sizes etc.

My question is somewhat related and whilst possibly not ideally suited to this forum, I will ask anyway.

I have several boxes of assorted screws, bolts, nuts, washers etc and it drives me mad every time I need to find something. I am looking for some tips on how to best go about identifying the size and type of each, so that I can begin to organise them.

I am going to buy some thread gauges for the bolts and nuts and I have callipers to determine diameter. However, will these help me with the numerous “wood” screws that I have or are these only useful for bolts?

I have done some searches for identification charts and guides through Google but have not found too much that has been of use. Did find some on here which I think will help but I am certainly open to any suggestions and comments.

To complicate things, I have a mix of SAE and Metric fasteners.

Thanks in advance.

Chuck em all out, go to Bunnies, buy new ones in box with size printed on same.

Al

lol - not the answer that I was expecting from somone with Old Man Steptoe as his avatar!

I did find the following info very useful: http://www.jamesglen.com.au/training/training.htm

Would still welcome any additional info/hints/tips

Originally Posted by ds2006

Would still welcome any additional info/hints/tips

I have the usual problems of assorted bolts, nuts, screws etc. I thought the best way to organise them would be to go to a very large site on the web that sells them and see how they organise them.

Having found what I needed, I began to organise the little beggars into some semblance of order. I bought some containers that would not allow moisture in and would allow me to attach labels.

Finally, I began to print labels using my Dymo labeller. Each label contains a pic of the head type and a description of the gauge and length etc.


Hope it helps.

Something with a hex head on it, AKA a regular bolt should have some kind of marking on it. I am not up with what's what, but if you check that marking and google it, you should work out what grade of bolt it is pretty quickly if that's important. Generally, just looking at the bolt can tell you if it's a good quality one or not.

Thread guage is handy, but it won't work on any wood screws. On the thread guage, take note and see if it just mentions pitch, or what pitch it actually suits. If it says "Whitworth", then if you get an imperial bolt that matches perfectly, then it's Whitworth. If it matches, but you can see some light between the guage and the bolt, it's prolly UNF/UNC. If it doesn't match very well, metric.

Get a piece of thin steel sheet and drill a range of different sized holes in it. Much easier to just poke the bolt in a hole than to measure every single one, especially if you have a big mixed bag.

Hope that helps you out a little.

On the other hand, Al does have a point. Again... :eek:

Originally Posted by ds2006

I have several boxes of assorted screws, bolts, nuts, washers etc and it drives me mad every time I need to find something. I am looking for some tips on how to best go about identifying the size and type of each, so that I can begin to organise them.

I suppose it depends on how pedantic you are. And also, how many of each type of fastener you've got. I don't know your situation, but if its like most, you may not really have many of each part, and of the types, maybe you'll find yourself using only a few anyway. So, are you wasting your time over such cheap things? Also, a lot of the old stuff may have the same name, yet is different to new stuff.

Personally, I would get an array of small parts draws and screw to the wall. But use it, to store left overs of new boxes of screws you buy. Handy to pull a draw out and take it to your work.

I wouldn't bother about organising screws into their types. When I need the odd screw, to work out the pilot hole I'll need for it I just line up a drill bit to the light to work out what 'looks' right to give the right amount of bite. Usually thats fine. I mean, you don't need the screws name, to get the job done.

With the bolts, I just group them broadly, ie. imperial or metric. A box each for small, medium, and large bolts, so I can easily sort through. else, its can be hard finding small bolts at the bottom, behind the large ones. But I wouldn't organise much more than that. But thats me.

A quick check with calipers confirms your choice.

And get yourself a Whitworth thread checker. Always handy to check TPI. You'll get a feel for it anyway, and won't need it mostly after a while.

With mixed up stuff like this, I just put them in small parts drawers or tins, roughly graded to size but otherwise mixed up. I have nuts, washers and bolts in seperate drawers, and have about 3 different stashes- large, medium and tiny. Any further fasteners you buy, keep them seperated and labelled, but treat this original stash as a mixed bag, somewhere to go when you need the odd fastener, or hope to match a ruined one.
For containers, I'd like to have an array of matching units, but use batches of whatever I can find. One of the best, most robust containers are old bread baking tins, often joined in threes. Sets of jars, like salsa come in, or baby food jars are handy too, just get a swag and make a set of shelves to hold them. I've also made up drawers from old gallon kero-type tins, and lately started using plastic tubs from commercial ice-cream vendors. I'd like to say those fishing tackle style of box are good, they certainly seem so, but in reality most of them break at hinge or clip lock, and can be annoying to get stuff out of...and if they tip over and mix the stuff up !

Cheers,

Thanks – I actually do a lot more work with metal than I do with wood and in particular, a lot of service and repair work. As such, it is important for me to be able to quickly put my hands on a 3M bolt or a 10-32 external tooth lock washer.

The fact that I have a mix of metric and imperial makes it a bit more difficult but I have managed to find some good online resources. The James Glen info was particularly helpful as was the McMaster-Carr web site, which has the dimensions listed for a lot of their fasteners, so figuring the diameter of their gauges is now possible.

For custom jobs that I do, it is simple enough to pick some fasteners to achieve the desired result. However, a lot of what I do is having to replace broken or worn fasteners.

Now I know that I will have to throw a lot away for one reason or another but last night I picked out a couple of hundred 6x20mm self drilling screws.

I know that you may be thinking that I should have taken a bit more time to find a metal work forum but I chose this one as I found the post on the tap/drill size to be good, with a decent amount of contributions.

Thanks for the comments thus far – they have been helpful

One more thing, Bunnings here in MLB sell a sizing gauge. It is just a yellow plastic card about 75mm x 150mm but I found it invaluable for determining gauges and lengths etc.

One idea I saw was a bit of board with bolts and nuts attached of all different sizes - the bolts through holes or epoxied by the head so they are poking up and the nuts epoxied over suitable sized holes through the board - then the thread pitch and size written next to each one. You then take an unknown bolt and try it in various nuts, or an unknown nut which you try on various bolts until you get a match.

I usually just sort my stuff on size (eg, 1/4" 3/8" etc) - that is when I can be bothered. Mostly I've just got a heap of the plastic boxes nails come in full of odds and sods. They have a clear lid so you can see what's in them. I also use the transparent plastic jars that fruit comes in now a days. They have a wide opening so I can get my hand in.

Originally Posted by Groggy

One more thing, Bunnings here in MLB sell a sizing gauge. It is just a yellow plastic card about 75mm x 150mm but I found it invaluable for determining gauges and lengths etc.

I'd suggest the same. I have one of these and find it very useful. Cheap and practical. Just stick the screw through the hole to find the best fit.

Image attached

Thanks everyone for your help