Bolt Storage Bins

[hackberry jake]

I have seen a growing need for bolt bins in the shop. I checked on prices online for the cheap plastic storage bin sets and they are higher that I would like to pay for brittle plastic trays and a thing to hold em. Even cheap chinese suppliers like Harb... (better not mention names) are pretty high. I think I will just build my own out of 3/4 pine or MDF or something. Has anybody else built anything like this? Got any design ideas? 

[ancjr]

The type of drawers like the old apothecary or library card catalog type are great for small parts bins, and easy to label.

[thecfarm]

ancjc,that is right,IF you can find them. The wife and I was antiquing and guess what? I found 3 of them. I think about 3 wide by 8 deep. I forgot. I had to make 2 trips. I would almost make a shelf and make some boxes so you can bring the box or boxes to the job. My draws are about 3 inches wide by a foot deep.

[ancjr]

Well, I was assuming the OP was going to build.  I've never seen any for sale!  :)

[Den-Den]

Here is a sketch of some that I use (side view)

 

1/4" ply or mdf for the sides.  1/2" thick scrap for the rest  Mine are ~4" wide and ~8" long
They are easy to remove and take to a job and easy to put back on the rack.  The biggest problem is that they collect wood dust and shavings.

[PineNut]

I guess I am too lazy to make special boxes. I will take a corrugated box that is about the width I want. Then saw it off to the height that I want. Most of the boxes are cut at 3 inches high but some may be cut at a different height. If you need a little more strength, cut the box at double height, cut the corners half way down and fold the flaps into the box to make the sides double thickness.  It may be necessary to use a little tape on some boxes. These are then placed on a shelf.  Shelves used for these boxes are spaced rather close together. Usually I will make several of these at one time, and then paint the end with white paint. That makes it easy to label. I realize that these are not as durable as a wood or metal box but it makes a quick and cheap storage tray. 

[hackberry jake]

Thanks for all the ideas guys! And for the drawing den den. I have found that the cheapest place to get nuts, bolts, and washers in my area is tractor supply. They sell everything by the pound instead of by the piece. Once I build my storage system I am going to get at least a dozen of every size tractor supply has. No more going through the "bolt bucket" trying to find what I need.

[clww]

I use coffee cans, or containers, since many are made out of plastic usually.

[ancjr]

Dad used coffee cans.  My inheritance when he passed was over 1000 lb of coffee can magic.  :)

[Lud]

Being a cigar smoker who orders from the factory by the box, I have an endless supply of boxes that I cut the lids off of.  The UPS box they come in is good too.

The other thing I use is recycled 2L pop bottles and whiskey jugs (plastic for the cheap stuff I use for the daily, medicinal purposes).  A sharp knife cuts the top off and you have see thru disposable buckets........and you get a funnel out of it too!

Hack, I use TSC's bolts too........but on the important jobs, be sure to use the grade 8's........way stronger. 8)

[navycanoe]

empty motor oil quart jugs sawn off to the required height.  line up nice, portable, and I would think would hold up better than cardboard...

[Brad_bb]

I've gone through the same issue you are now facing.  Originally I started out with plastic organizers and used a couple dozen of them for my car restoration original hardware.  I finally decided to also properly organize my wood screws, nails, bolts nuts and washers, etc.   I discovered that the price of the plastic organizers has risen substantially.  $12-$19 is significant.  I had already made a wooden cart with drawers, but it was woefully inadequate.  So I bit the bullet and stepped up to Durham organizer boxes/drawers.  Actually these metal boxes with the plastic insert are about the same price as the plastic organizers at the box stores.  Average $18 ea.  So I'm not really biting any bullet there, but I'm getting a better organizer for the money.  I did then buy the cabinets for them and they were about $70 ea(I needed 2 of these).  So i spent a little more there, but I really think it was worth it.  There are many drawer compartment configurations available.   I used them for most of my drawers, but for one drawer I am going to make my own wood dividers so that I can have smaller and shallower compartments for my oddball hardware.  The best pricing I've found for the Durham drawers and cabinets is from Zoro tools on ebay.   I've had them for a couple months now and I am really happy I went this direction.  I use my label maker to label everything so I save a lot of time finding what I'm looking for and it's easy to see when I need to restock something.  Note: There are two sizes for the Durham drawer/boxes.  I recommend the larger ones.

[Larry]

I to checked out Horrid Fright for suitable bolt containers.  Not impressed so I thought of building something but never came up with a good plan.  I really wanted something a bit better than a hack job.

While browsing craigslist I found this one.  It was in really bad condition but the price was right.  I was able to straighten out most of the wrinkles and new paint made it presentable.




The real jewel is this Shaw Walker file cabinet made back in the 30's.  Solid brass fittings and the drawers glide almost as well as one of those fancy Snap On boxes.  It was at an auction and I did war with an antique dealer to bring it home.  Fortunately she didn't push me too high.  I'm using it to hold tooling but it would work great for bolts...maybe better than my other cabinet.  Even though I paid more than I wanted, I couldn't have made anything near as nice for the $75 it cost.




I've found good stuff cheap at used office supply places right after the recession started.  Now there pricing is up close to new prices.

[Don_Papenburg]

I use the metal one gallon rectangular thinner cans I cut a corner out removing the pour spout and leaving the handle then I hem over the raw edges to stiffen the can and also eliminate hand shaving . I set them on their narrow side with the opening up , handle ready to pull and go or check inventory.  I use 2x lumber for the shelving  because I like to fill mine full.  I put two or three lengths in a can (3, 3.5 &4) then I use one shelf for each dia . 1/4" 5/16" 3/8" on up to 1" all have their own shelf.If you do a lot of painting or finish work that requires reducers and thinners the containers are very economical.

[m wood]

I was a coffee can guy, still am to a degree but its a hassle.  Then my ex landlord hooked me up 3 months ago.  None of his 3 boys were interested at all, go figure.  I took these gladly then took he and his wife out to dinner, what a score!


 
3 of these racks and they were acually mostly full of various stuff

[thecfarm]

Got the bins and full of stuff too?? Talk about having your cake and eating it too.

[m wood]

yeah cfarm, his brother was a clock maker befor he passed some years ago, so most of the hardware is too tiny for my usual project.  But there's a bunch of household fixins in there too.  If I remember right, somebody DID have cake when we went out to dinner :D, musta been me!

[Brad_bb]

Here's a couple pics of my Durham drawers.  This is the best solution I've found for me.  By the time you add up the cost of the drawer slides and other materials and your labor to make something similar, I think they are a bargain.  They are also a very compact solution.  You can also remove the drawer boxes and take them with you if need be.

[hackberry jake]

I think I have found a lead on one like Larry's.  I asked him how much he wanted for it and he said "a case of bud light". I think I can handle that.  8)

[bedway]

So happens Jake i was going thru my piles yesterday thinking i have to get away from this coffee can, mason jar system. Id hate to think of the time ive wasted over the years pouring stuff out, sorting thru it, and putting it all back in because i didnt find what i was looking for. GEEZE!

[redbeard]

 

  saw this idea a while back at a barn auction. If you had a supply of these type of tins with the handles.

[hackberry jake]

Well, the bolt bin fell through. Guess ill load a pine log on the mill and and whack it into
3/4" boards. Then ill just build my own.

[hackberry jake]

Well, one down and 95 to go.


 
I took more pictures of the building process and the shelfs but I removed my sd card from my phone and it had most of my pictures on it. I'll post some more Monday or Tuesday. I cut 2x10s down to 4' wide and made shelves that are just slightly taller than the bins so dust won't settle in them as bad. I just used 1/2" mdf and 1/8" hardboard. The front piece and back piece are dadoed at the bottom with my new (1954) dewalt radial arm saw, and the front, back, and bottom have a trough cut out using the table saw for the 1/8" hardboard. I just used titebond I to glue it all together. I was wondering if the glue would stick to the hardboard so I made a couple test pieces out of scrap mdf and hardboard and I couldn't get them apart for the life of me. I can get 8 bins per shelf and I will have 12 shelves. The dimensions of the bins are 4-3/4" x 4-3/4" x 9". I have two friends that saw it and had to have some, so it looks like I'll be making at least a couple hundred of em. One of the friends is my neighbor and we agreed that he would stock metric and I would stock standard sizes. That should work out pretty good.

[kensfarm]

Wow.. I like the full size engraved label..  don't have to look twice to read that.  Will you paint the front? 

[yukon cornelius]

man that thing looks great! how in the world did you engrave that in there? ive been looking into some for my shop. I need to make some for bolts and parts and all sorts of things. I work on so many different things.