Where do you guys buy hardware.

[EddieWalker]

In Texas we have a family owned small chain of stores called McCoy's that I like.

McCoy's Building Supply


I think they get overlooked sometimes but they usually have what I need and they are conveniently located throughout Texas for me. All around great people to do business with also.


TBS

My favorite place when buying a lot of building materials because they load it all up for you.

 

[John_Mc]

I use the local hardware store for the easy stuff. One of the tractor dealers in my area stocks a good assortment of the larger sizes of grade 8 bolts - not the cheapest option, but great if I need a couple of things and happen to be in the area.

For much else, I hit up one of the Fastenal stores (two within 10-20 miles of me). WHat they don;t have in stock locally, they can get in a day or two. I also order from their online catalog. They also sell bearings, which have come in handy, though I did have a problem where 8 wheel bearings I ordered for an antique UTV did not quite fit the way they are supposed to. I ground the inner race on one of them out by a few thousandths of an inch to get me by, and returned the rest.

 

[Firemanbuck82]

For common stuff, HD. Convenient. Tacoma Screw for tougher to find... and I can buy the exact quantity I want. And for all you folks that don't bother to put your 'bad pulls' back in the right bin... Com'n Man!!! I find this behavior extremely lazy, very inconsiderate, and a reflection of your character. :thumbdown:

T-Screw for the hard to find things. And I totally agree with your sentiment regarding folks who can't be bothered putting their bad pulls back in the correct bin! :drink:

 

[two_bit_score]

My favorite place when buying a lot of building materials because they load it all up for you.

That they do!

TBS

 

[dragoneggs]

Don't even get me STARTED
I snapped this pic of my own bolt bin. I myself am guilty of being lazy....View attachment 519379

Criminy! Terry, at least you are trying. Now show us you bin of unsorted fasteners? :licking:

 

[ultrarunner]

I'm spoiled... found this at a going out of business sale for an old time auto parts store...

 

[PJSprog]

Depends on what hardware I need. For bigger stuff, I usually try our local Rural King first. For smaller stuff, Ace Hardware is literally right around the corner from RK. If I can't find it there, I'll drive to Menard's or Lowe's. Beyond that, I go to the internet.

We have a Fastenal in town, too, but they never seem to be open except during Mon-Fri business hours. That doesn't work for me.

 

[N80]

Went to HD out of desperation. I actually found most of what I needed but it was all scattered around and disorganized. Needed a few 7/16-20 nuts. They were loose in a drawer with the bolt. Bolts were in bags.

Got to check out and I told the lady what size the nuts were and what the price was. They were unmarked. She poked around in the computer and then told me that they must be 1/2 inch since they did not sell 7/16-20 nuts (even though they do sell 7/16-20 bolts). I took one of the bolts out of its package and screwed the nut on. I did not do it to be smart but there was a line of people behind me and all I was getting was a couple of nuts and bolts. She got a little huffy and said they were not in the computer. Then she banged on the keys for a minute and gave me my receipt. I never looked to see how much I paid for those 17 cent nuts.

The problem is, this is ALWAYS my experience at Lowes and HD. It is not an exception.

 

[ultrarunner]

Sounds very much like the Big Box where I live but totally different when I shop big Box in Washington State...

Here the Bay Area the help is always changing and many do not have any experience in hardware or home improvement.

The Depot and Lowes I go to in Olympia have people running the departments that have been in the trade... and many are older... 20 to 30 years older than in the Bay Area...

Not to over emphasize the the difference is night and day...

 

[fatjay]

For smaller projects, I head to the local mom and pop joint that I've been going to my whole life. I like to support them when ever possible. For big stuff, home depot. Lowes tends to have higher prices and fewer raw materials, which I typically look for in a project. Lowes has nicer finishing/prebuilt and a better selection of cabintry/sinks/faucets. When I am building it from the ground up I go to HD, when I want to make it look fancy, I go to lowes.

Also I have a pro account at HD, which automatically tracks all my purchases and sends me my receipt to my email automatically when I use my registered cards on my account. It's really convenient. If i need a return, I just swipe my card and it automatically finds all receipts so I never have to worry about hanging on to the receipt.

 

[ultrarunner]

The receipt tracking is a nice feature... one I never appreciated prior to experiencing it...

 

[Teachu2]

One advantage to living where agriculture and oil are big business is there's a local vendor, Budget Bolt. Open M-F and a half day Saturday, same hours as my favorite steel vendor and on the same street. About two acres of fasteners, very neatly organized, and very helpful staff. Everything from automotive specialty fasteners to turnbuckles to shackles to spring clips, and bolts from tiny to huge, SAE and metric, stainless, and taps, dies, and QUALITY drill bits. Every time I go in there, I find something else I didn't know I needed. They're not cheap, but their products are excellent quality.

 

[N80]

One advantage to living where agriculture and oil are big business is there's a local vendor, Budget Bolt. Open M-F and a half day Saturday, same hours as my favorite steel vendor and on the same street. About two acres of fasteners, very neatly organized, and very helpful staff. Everything from automotive specialty fasteners to turnbuckles to shackles to spring clips, and bolts from tiny to huge, SAE and metric, stainless, and taps, dies, and QUALITY drill bits. Every time I go in there, I find something else I didn't know I needed. They're not cheap, but their products are excellent quality.

I could spend hours in a place like that and solve problems I didn't even know that I had! Wish we had something like that around here.

 

[ultrarunner]

We had an old time hardware store that took an entire city block... with plenty of free parking...

It opened in 1946 and had lots of old time hard to get items and one room devoted only to fasteners, chain and cable...

It's gone now with condos planned... I really miss the place because staff was career... some 25 years.

Foothill Ace Hardware Oakland CA RIP

 

[buckeyefarmer]

When i drive thru AR, i see some large local farm supply stores that I'd like to stop and look thru. They sell utv's, boats and who knows what else inside.

 

[4570Man]

Tractor supply is my first choice. Their bins are pretty organized in my experience. Lowes sucks because they sell each piece individual VS TSC selling by the pound. Not only does it take the poor cashier lady forever to sort out my mess of 20 different pieces it's a lot more expensive than TSC.

 

[4570Man]

There's a Buchheit hardware store in Sparta Illinois ( along with 7 other locations that I've never seen). It's the nicest hardware store I've ever been in, and the selection is the best I've ever seen.

 

[newbury]

Surprised no one mentioned Agri-Supply.

Last time I was there in Virginia they sold bolts by the pound like TSC.

 

[N80]

We had an old time hardware store

My family opened and owned the local hardware store in the small city I live in. I think it was opened in the late 1800's. My Dad worked there when he was young. It was still around when I was a child and I remember it well. There were still plow hardware and tack in there for mules and horses. Ace and the chain hardware stores put them out of business in the early 1970's then the big box stores put Ace and those types out of business.

The building is just a few blocks from my house on main street. It is still there but there is an architect firm or something like that there now.

I have a Winchester cartridge board that came out of the hardware store. It has condition issues and is missing a few cartridges but it is really cool. The reason I mention it is that it was in the store for a long time and there are no modern cartridges on it. No 30-06 so I imagine it dates to prior than 1906 anyway.

After my grandfather came back from WWII he became known for being very even handed. I met an old plumber who told me that after the war it was hard to come by pipe and other plumbing supplies and that around the state other hardware stores sold all they had to larger contractors. He told me that my grandfather rationed out the supplies in equal portions to all buyers. This plumber told me he would have lost his business otherwise.

Sorry for the OT story but figured you guys would appreciate it.

 

[ultrarunner]

I love posts that delve into the rest of the story or the back story... it's what makes TBN so interesting.