Nuts & bolts packages...

[gran racing]

Yeah I know, this sounds like a silly post but...I've been looking to buy a collection of metric nuts / bolts. There have been a few instances where not having a silly bolt or nut has almost cost me or another racer friend not to be able to run because of the need of a bolt. Of course we never have the right size we need and have to wonder around asking people if they happen to have the right size.

I went to Home Depot, Lowes, several auto parts stores, local harware stores, some tool catalogs, ect. but have been unable to find a package of various bolts and nuts. Most places were selling 4 bolts for $.80, the you have to buy the nuts still. It seems this would be the expensive way of getting my assortment.

I'm sure there are places that sell a variety package out there at a decent price, right? Do you know what grade they are? I'm assuming that the bolts should be of an industrial grade?

[This message has been edited by gran racing (edited December 22, 2003).]

[chuck baader]

Grand....supplier mcmaster-carr company in atlanta. Trust me, they have everything, and in stock. web address is mcmaster.com and definitely order a catalog. They are industrial supply, but have most things needed to build and maintain a race car. chuck

[83rx701]

Try Northerntool.com in there 2003 fall/winter master catalog they have a metric nut,bolt and lockwasher assortment box 240 pieces. Hope this helps.


Lou I
NER ITA rx7 #79

[MKB]

Try this www.boltdepot.com (http://www.boltdepot.com) LARGE amount of hardwhare! They ship UPS the same day!

[MKB]

Oh ya

I always forget

Mike
ITA RX7 #21

[Knestis]

I don't know what kind of car you are talking about but we gathered a stock of the right sized hardware by asking a friendly (OK, not so antagonistic) U-pick used parts place if we could buy a sack of hardware for $X.XX...

We just went out and unbolted a bunch of the parts that we need to hold on, from similar model cars and I was frankly a little surprised how few sizes we actually needed...

K

[Ascona1973]

Try Metric and Multistandard Components, they truly have EVERYTHING in metric fasteners, in all grades. Very good pricing too. Not sure of their website, but you could do a search. Their catalog is like 4" thick.....

Bob

[88YB1]

Another good place is Threads for the South in Marietta Ga. Carry just about anything including odd size and hard to find stuff

Chuck

[tdw6974]

Griots Garage has several assortments in metal storage units. pricey but complete. I look at their web site but couldn't locate them but their catalog has them in. TW

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Tom Weaver: Logistics & Technical Support Manager IE truck driver for 1980 RX-7 ITA #63
"Hemi haulin' Rotary"

[lateapex911]

My buddy and sponsor at my local Napa store (Klover Napa in Bridgeport, CT) sold me my "spice rack" of metric nuts bolts and washers. About $100 for it all.

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Jake Gulick
CarriageHouse Motorsports
ITA 57 RX-7
New England Region
[email protected]

[whenry]

I have a Fastenal warehouse in my base town and they are willing to sell me small amounts of hardware.
Unfortunately the average parts or hardware store dont see the need to carry much in the grade 8 or so quality. I did have a "friendly" True Value store close by who kept some good stuff stocked but the ownership changed. I bought out the metric inventory of a Quality Feed & Farm locally when they closed. I keep 3 large bolt boxes in the trailer for the various uses.

[joeg]

I'm with K on this--grab mucho oem fasteners from the JY (or wherever), clean them up and put them in a nice fishing tackel box.

[gran racing]

Thanks for all the help!

That sounds like too much work to go to a Junk yard. I'll just buy one of those kits and hope.

[tdw6974]

Originally posted by lateapex911:
My buddy and sponsor at my local Napa store (Klover Napa in Bridgeport, CT) sold me my "spice rack" of metric nuts bolts and washers. About $100 for it all.


Jake, is there a part Number on the assortment??


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Tom Weaver: Logistics & Technical Support Manager IE truck driver for 1980 RX-7 ITA #63
"Hemi haulin' Rotary"

[EV]

Try this http://www.nutty.com/assortments.html

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Enjoy,
Bill

[Diane]

Dave,

Katz Hardware in Glastonbury has a decent supply of Grade 8 stuff. Don't know prices off hand cuz usually when we go there, it's because we need it. They will look at you a little odd if you walk in covered in grease with a strut in hand though!

Diane

[jc836]

Please don't flame this thought-but has anyone considered buying extra hardware at the dealership? We did and found that the prices asked were reasonable. Our local Pep Boys and NAPA do have bins with Grade 8 and Metric 10.9 grade hardware too. There are any number of fastener houses across the country. Could someone create a FAQ with a list from this thread? I'll add one more -Gateway Fastener in Export, PA.
Happy holidays

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Grandpa's toys-modded suspensions and a few other tweaks
'89 CRX Si-SCCA ITA #99
'99 Prelude=a sweet song
'03 Dodge Dakota Club Cab V8-Patriot Blue gonna tow

[itaracer]

Check your local newspaper for auctions at industrial or mcahine shops. I usually go to 4 or 5 of these a year and buy mixed lots of hardware. I get lots of new in the box fastners. Nuts, bolts, screws, washers, roll pins, e-clips, O rings you name it. I sometimes pick up a deal on tools and shop equipment as well.

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Mark Jeffery
ITA #92 '85 RX7
MiDiv - Arkansas Region

[racer-025]

I have boxes and boxes of assorted metric bolts/nuts for our race team. When we junk a car (many of them over the years) I will personally removed many bolts & nuts from the car and throw them into a box. I use my air ratchet. You would be amazed at how many nuts & bolts you will have just from one car.

[Knestis]

Ummm. I would also caution people against using hardware store bolts - even the 'high-grade' ones - on ANYthing that you really count on: A lot of them are crrrrraaap.

That Azerbaijani metric 10.9 bolt might be hard but it might also be very brittle, just waiting to crack and set that brake caliper free...

Try this test: Take an OE Honda or VW bolt and one of the same size from Lowes or Home Despot, clamp each in a big vise and whack it sideways with a big hammer. A good bolt will ALWAYS bend - a lot - before it breaks.

K

[This message has been edited by Knestis (edited December 24, 2003).]

[gran racing]

What grade bolts should I be looking for?

I'm not sure how the grading works...the higher the number the better?

[gsbaker]

Originally posted by gran racing:
What grade bolts should I be looking for?

I'm not sure how the grading works...the higher the number the better?


The higher the grade the stronger. We use only Grade 8 for miscellaneous connections for crash testing.

You can tell the grade by the "tick" marks on the bolt head. Here is what a Grade 8 looks like: http://www.venturehardware.com/grade8headmarkings.gif

Watch out for fake Grade 8 bolts! Safest bet is US made.

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Gregg Baker, P.E.
Isaac, LLC
http://www.isaacdirect.com

[Diane]

Originally posted by jc836:
Please don't flame this thought-but has anyone considered buying extra hardware at the dealership? We did and found that the prices asked were reasonable.

I do this when I am able to but they're not open on Sundays. Or nights. http://Forums.ImprovedTouring.com/it/smile.gif

My parts guys are great at getting me specs for nuts & bolts and they'll match them up to their bins when the info for my car says "obsolete" (running into a lot of that these days http://Forums.ImprovedTouring.com/it/frown.gif )

Diane

[x-ring]

Originally posted by gran racing:
What grade bolts should I be looking for?

I'm not sure how the grading works...the higher the number the better?



I'm reasonably sure that a metric 8.8 bolt is roughly equivalent to a US grade 5 and a metric 10.9 bolt is roughly equivalent to a US grade 8.

I have no idea if the numbers are associated with any particular units of measurement.

Ty

[jc836]

As GBaker knows the general rule for use of Grade 8 or 10.9 is for connections that require the highest strength. Grade 5 or 8.8 is fine for putting fenders on. It is a personal choice if you elect to use Grade 8/10.9 for things such as battery trays for example.

One reason I suggest the dealership is that they sell the correctly engineered hardware for the car. If the car use "torque to yield" bolts (mine does), then I feel more comfortable with factory hardware since there is no guarantee that the aftermarket part will yield as required.

For those wondering about grading there are several excellent texts on the subject, including Carroll Smiths book and the SAE website.

Happy holidays everyone

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Grandpa's toys-modded suspensions and a few other tweaks
'89 CRX Si-SCCA ITA #99
'99 Prelude=a sweet song
'03 Dodge Dakota Club Cab V8-Patriot Blue gonna tow

[racer-025]

You simply can't beat the quality of OEM bolts! Regardless of the vehicle maker. Sure you can buy grade 12 bolts at a buck a piece, but why? Simply strip all the OEM bolts from your buddie's junker prior to going to the junk yard. They are strong (and free)!

[gran racing]

Well, I've been looking at all of the companies everyone has mentioned. Most sell grade 8.8 metric bolts, but not an assortment of the high grade bolts. One place does have an assortment, but it out of stock and is very expensive. I really want the higher grade bolts.

Here's the question - I went to NAPA today and they have an assortment box of standard and fine metric bolts (and nuts) package for $195. This includes a very large assortment and has approximately 60 of each type. They stated that they typically sell this package to garages in the area. I'll never go through 60 and don't want to spend $200 for this.

Would anyone have interest in splitting this with me? If interested, I can get a copy of the package they sell and e-mail it to you. There are several place mentioned above that sell bolt containers and we could split the cost for the extra container as well.

Just let me know if you have any interest...

Thanks,
Dave
[email protected]
(If someone is, I'll indicate that on this post...)

[joeg]

Dave--Get your mindset toward OEM/ JY!!

We are all dropping big hints here with respect to the more critcal fasteners.

Cheers.

[Knestis]

I'll be less subtle:

Use anything besides OE hardware on any part that (a) you need to stay on your car for it to be safe or finish, or (B) weighs more than a pound, at your own peril.

Most of the aftermarket metric hardware available in the US is crrrrrap, regardless of what number is on stamped on the head and it is VERY hard to tell the good crap from the bad crap.

Kirk

[Bill Miller]

Ok, I'll chime in here. While I know they're free, and I've used them myself in the past, I'm not really a fan of using j/y bolts for critical stuff. Why risk serious injury/death/crash damage to save a couple of $$? Some stuff just isn't worth the risk of using hardware of unknown or questionable origin. I'm sure we've all got "the box" (or coffee can, or whatever) of assorted used nuts/bolts/washers/etc. You just throw the extra stuff in the box in case you ever need it. And I'll admit that "the box" has saved my butt on more than one occasion.

But, as we all know, there's not that big a variety in what we use on our cars. I can probably take 80% of the fastners on a VW apart w/ a 10, 13, 15, and 17mm wrench/socket. I believe these correspond to 4, 6, 8, and 10 mm bolts. Figure out what you use, get a couple of different sizes (lengths), and order what you need from some place like McMaster-Carr or Grainger. You can also deal w/ aircraft suppliers and get AN stuff. I belive Pegasus sells AN sets, but they're not cheap.

For critical, and specialty stuff, I use OEM. For example, in a VW, I always replace the axle nut when I have to remove the old one. They're not much money, and they see so damn much torque, I don't want to risk it. I also use OEM bolts for things like the shock mounts, caliper mounts, etc. And then, in certain cases, there's even better stuff than stock. For example, I think using ARP rod bolts is better than stock. At least you can reuse them.

JMHO

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MARRS #25 ITB Rabbit GTI (sold) | MARRS #25 HProd Rabbit
SCCA 279608

[gran racing]

I went to NAPA today - he took apart a few Mazda trucks and other foreign cars and had a big box of bolts / nuts. He told me to take as much as I wanted for $5. Very cool. (Of course I gave him more than that...) This should at least get me by in those emergency situations.

He also told me how much he would sell me that bolts package for - $85. The mark-up is pretty high; normally $192.

I do understand that OEM bolts are better than most. But I also have been in situations where not having a silly bolt caused me to miss qualifing and a practice session. My other friend almost missed a race because of a missing bolt. One freakn' $0.29 bolt.

At least this way I have something avail.

Hmmm. Another sponsorship opportunity? A parts store giving me at cost prices (plus a few bucks)? Not a bad idea...I'll have to talk to him again.

[Knestis]

Bill does well to remind me that for really important stuff - CV joint bolts, brake calipers, and the aforementioned front hub nut - I buy new OEM, too.

K

[gran racing]

I understand that while two bolts may be graded the same, one might be better than the other. But I have to believe there are bolts other than "OEM" bolts that are just as good as "OEM" bolts.

When people bring their car to a good mechanic shop, what do they use? I know they don't use OEM bolts.

And what are Original Equipment Manufactured bolts? In my situation, I drive a Honda. It is not like Honda makes their own bolts (at least according to the dealership - I was curious so I asked around). Another company makes them cheaply for Honda and other companies. And yes, I do get that a OEM bolt is safer then going to the hardware store and taking a chance. You know you are getting something decent.

Just think of all the bolts out there. UCONN just built a football stadium last year - I heard how many bolts were used and laughed. That's a lot of bolts.

I know it sounds like I'm being a pain in the butt here (and going nuts - sorry, couldn't resist) but it just got me thinking. And yes, I'll be keeping all the bolts I take off my parts car.

[Tom Blaney]

I have collected a large "bucket of bolts" that I strip off of anything that I can get my hands on. The only problem is I'm too lazy to sort them out, just have to dig in and search.

But I also did some digging around with the bolt suppliers and found that it's better to buy a box of nuts and bolts that are close to what you typically use (or lose) from a good auto parts supplier. It's good for you and builds relationships.

The only exception is when I build new motors, then all the bolts are new and OEM.