Misc screw can

[treesner]

You guys a better system for throwing in misc screws/finding the one you need besides a can and throwing them on the bench haha. I’ve got all my bulk screws well organized but this is generally a mess but always comes in handy 

[wdwerker]

If anyone has a solution to this I am all ears.

[treesner]

My first action is having three cans one for bolts/hardware, one for long screws and one for tiny small screws. I can’t think of a better way than finding the one you need other than spreading them all out flat so I think I might just have tray next to these cans that I can throw all the screws in find what I need then drop back into the can

[treesner]

Actually now that I think of it my woodworking teacher greg pennington has one of those mega tool chests with a section of the narrow machinest style drawers and one of them was for misc screws so he would pull that whole drawer out and put it on the table to find what was needed. I think a small 3 drawer box stack might be nice for this, drawer dimension like 10x4x1heigh 

[RichardA]

I organized mine in jelly jars with masking tape on the tops.  When I need a screw or bolt, I pour them out on and old Woodcraft catalog or sheet of paper.  When I find the one I need, I just curl the paper and they all slip right back in the jar.

[wtnhighlander]

I have pretty much quit saving odd screws. I was spending more time hunting for the one I "just know is in this box" than it would take to go to the hardware store. Especially when I wound up at the store most of the time, anyway.

[Tpt life]

33 minutes ago, wtnhighlander said:

I have pretty much quit saving odd screws. I was spending more time hunting for the one I "just know is in this box" than it would take to go to the hardware store. Especially when I wound up at the store most of the time, anyway.

Similar. Electrical screws I keep forever. Others I keep a year and then purge. 

[Tom King]

I can find the exact screw I need really easily in Ace Hardware.

[Wood Basher]

7 minutes ago, Tom King said:

I can find the exact screw I need really easily in Ace Hardware.

I can find the exact screw I need really easily in my misc screw can -but not until the day after I go to the hardware store.

[Mick S]

I use a Sys-Storage (a gift), but a tackle box would serve as well. I use 4 of the bins for misc. screws, bolts, nuts and washers and the rest for known sizes that I use frequently. I put bulk boxes in the trays.

Not always perfect, but saves time digging through screws.

[gee-dub]

I got one of these screw sorting trays as a gift and thought it was a joke.  Nope, I actually use it a few times a year.  Kinda like this magnet doo-jobber I picked up as a $2 impulse buy at Rockler. Only used it a few times but, was glad to have it.

 

[Immortan D]

Odd screws go in those inexpensive fishing boxes with fixed dividers. They're available in all sizes and since they are clear is easy to see what's inside without even opening the box.

[Chestnut]

I have something like this that is stackable in a drawer but the fishing tackel box sounds like a great idea they make ones that are pretty slim that i could stack in a drawer.

[SCPDX]

I just keep everything in 43 HomeDepot bags - that way I can't find the toilet part that didn't work, the odd size screws, the extra wire, the metric allen wrench that came with the refrigerator handle, the two extra chip brushes, or anything else......gives me a reason to get out of the house Saturday morning with the dog when I need to find something.  

[Immortan D]

12 minutes ago, Chestnut said:

I have something like this that is stackable in a drawer but the fishing tackel box sounds like a great idea they make ones that are pretty slim that i could stack in a drawer.

 

The more dividers the better. One can always use an utility knife to remove dividers and create bigger spaces.

[..Kev]

I don't keep them!  

I keep the standards organized in drawers at my primary work station.  Odd ball stuff left over out of packaging, one off jobs, etc. gets tossed out.  

This thread is actually a great reminder!  During the move we've been tossing fasteners in a small dish incase they belonged to something we moved.  Well, it's been long enough now that I feel comfortable tossing the contents of the dish!

[Minnesota Steve]

I have one of these viewtainer things I bought at the store... http://www.viewtainer.com/

I keep a variety of screws and nails I use frequently.   But otherwise I store most everything at the local Ace Hardware.   They have an amazing selection, including metric.

[Chestnut]

1 hour ago, Minnesota Steve said:

including metric

BLASPHEMY! HERETIC!

in all seriousness i like square organizers they fit in places better with less space waste. those do look nice if they were to stay on a bench and had a chance to get knocked on the floor.

[gee-dub]

3 hours ago, Chestnut said:

I have something like this that is stackable in a drawer but the fishing tackel box sounds like a great idea they make ones that are pretty slim that i could stack in a drawer.

 

[Marmotjr]

At work we are not allowed to put screws back in the bins they came from, in case you accidentally put them back wrong, and the next guy puts a screw through a drawer front.   So we have water jugs, 5 gallon buckets, etc, all over the shop where we throw our excess screws into.  Every so often someone will take home a full bucket and spend a couple days sorting out the screws into their own bins.  They're usually set for a few years on screws then. 

[JohnDi]

I use a big old tackle box that has lots of dividers on the trays that I found at a yard sale years ago.

[Wimayo]

This is my fastener storage. I started with glass jars but have almost completely transitioned to plastic:

I start out by throwing hardware to be saved into a plastic bowl. Then when I have time or want to take a break, I'll sort screws and bolts usually by head type and nails by size and type. I usually don't save used nails. What I have saved are left-overs from new purchases. When I'm looking for something to use, I'll dump a jar's contents into a tray with a funnel like protrusion on one corner. When I've found what I want, I just use the funnel corner to dump the remainder back to the jar.

In order to make one of these, you have to have lots of friends that like peanut butter.

[Mark J]

On 12/15/2017 at 7:19 AM, Tom King said:

I can find the exact screw I need really easily in Ace Hardware.

I absolutely disagree with Tom King.  I find the screws I need at True Value .

Actually, I' m sort of a hybrid screw finder.  If I need ten specific screws for a project I go direct to hardware store and buy 12 of the right ones.  

The leftovers end up in a set of little plastic drawers.  If I need a couple of non descript screws for something unimportant I'll look through the drawers and see if anything will do.

I keep a bucket for metal recycling in the shop.  Lately I've been eyeing that bucket and my screw (screwed up?) hoard and maybe it's time for the two to become one.  After all I have some scews I know I've been lookin' at for 30 years.

One thing I suggest is get one of those plastic screw sizing cards.  I find that very useful.  I pull a screw off something and can use the chart to figure out what it was and what I need to get at the hardware store.

[wdwerker]

I've got 3 old drawer cabinets that were used to hold punch cards, about 16 drawers each. I just do the crudest sort, lag bolts, threaded bolts, nuts, washers, wood screws and all sorts of leftover hardware. I'll have to take a picture next week. All made of steel, even with all the drawers removed it was hell getting them up in the loft. 

[bleedinblue]

I just threw away a coffee can size container of odd screws, nuts and bolts. I'm done saving crap like that that almost never gets used.