I'll second that. I ordered an 8-foot-long aluminum bar for $25, which, at the time, was too long to ship with traditional shippers. So, a semi trailer showed up at my door. Shipping cost $8.
I wrote them off long ago due to that - guess it's time to give them another try. Thanks for the heads up!
Hardware stores will have grade 2 bolts for the most part (or the metric equivalents). These will be made with weaker steel and will be cut instead of cold rolled. If you’re doing something that needs more strength than that, you can get grade 5 or 8 bolts. These will be cold rolled from higher strength steel and may be tested with a penetrant dye to check for any fractures. You can get those at a hardware store or at many online stores. If you need more strength than that, you’re probably in an aerospace application and I recommend that you don’t ask for advice on HN.
If you’re buying a shit-load of bolts (like, more than a thousand of one kind of bolt), then you can go to a wholesale website.
Hardware store has been my go to, is that the reference people are using for saying McMaster bolts are 4x overpriced?
I see Home Depot has 1/4-20 18-8 stainless steel bolts for $7 a pack of 10. McMaster has them for $8 a pack of 50.
The exception is when I need just one or two of something and it is available in the single-unit bins at the local hardware store. With McMaster the minimum quantity is usually a box of N, but the price per unit usually quite a bit cheaper.
And of course the selection is vastly better. For the above example, I'd usually really buy 316 stainless, which Home Depot doesn't even have.
Self-assembled furniture seems to have terrible bolts more often than not. Instrument stands and drum kits also come with softest imaginable bolts except the most expensive gear. I'm sure there are other products like this.
I did buy a different model[0] this time around and it's been over 5 years since my last purchase, but the quality on this bed is much better. All of the holes were pre drilled/tapped correctly and they've vastly improved the way the mattress slats are secured.
For the drawers underneath, the joining method was much simpler than before and while I still wouldn't look forward to taking it apart if/when I move, I can at least see a viable path for disassembly and re-assembly at my future house. The previous drawers were junk and got stuck or broke within a month.
I'm currently assembling a TV stand[1] and so far it's been great except for the top shelf. It's a veneered wood product and I guess they want you to pick the "best" side and you have to tap the holes yourself. I would have preferred pre-drilled holes since a TV is going to cover 90% of the top anyway, but it's not a huge problem. It's also possible they use the same part number in some other product that doesn't require holes so this way is better for their logistics.
0: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/gladstad-upholstered-bed-2-stor...
1: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/fjaellbo-tv-unit-black-90339290...
I just ordered 8, 1.5" x 3/8" square head set screws from Fastenal. . . . for $18.
That's a bit much.
Small Parts was amazing they specialized in, you got it, small components such as fasteners (you could get titanium screws if you needed them), small mechanicals such as tubing, solenoid valves, bearings, shafting, metal, etc. They were a prototyper's dream.
Also they do not have a massive selection...