I made a cherry chest and I'm finally putting the hardware on it. The handles went on first. Bought them from Lee Valley and had no problems
Then I tried the hinges, Ives brand from Home Depot. The screws are CRAP. I pre-drilled the holes to the size stated on the package. Three screws broke and two heads stripped before they could break. I learned a lesson on this buy. No more hardware from the big box stores. Ed
Yeh, I drilled and soaped the screws and about half stripped. I wound up using screws from other packages. When I returned the hinges without the screw and started to explain, the cashier cut me off. Apparently she had heard it all before.
I'm careful even when buying from litle boxes like our local Ace. The Hillman stuff they carry is made from an alloy of lead and moonbeams called "sleazite."
Bob
You have to be careful what you buy at HD. It's all about profit. I found much of their hardware items are overpriced and low quality. Their lawn fertilizer selection is usually good.
It is too bad but HD is no longer a supplier of quality goods IMHO.
Strictly a commodity supplier these days, and that especially applies to power tools.
The recent 20% discount for power tools was attractive; however, the acceptable choice of tools available was very limited.
Just my view point.
YMMV
Hindsight is so comfortingly accurate, isn't it? Just about the time when I think I'm ahead of the game, somebody comes up with a newer, sleazier product and I have to make another trip to HD for the fix that will make it work. "Travel twice, fit once."
You have to predrill the holes and take your time and GO SLOWLY. Of course having the right size screwdriver helps too. I do not mean this as being smart aXX but I just installed about a hundred of those itsy bitsy screws and none broke. If I felt one getting a bit tight, I stopped and backed it out and drilled the hole a little deeper. Brass looks nice, and most of these screws must be made out of aluminum, then plated. I just took my time and they all went in with no problems.. I did run across the occasional screw that had "flash" in the phillips slot. I chunked them and got a replacement from the BORG...
I drilled pilot holes, used the right size screwdriver, soaped the screws and went slowly. About half stripped out.
And none of them were aluminum. Why on earth would they use brass plated aluminum! (ignoring the fact that you can't brass plate aluminum)
I agree. I just broke several screws on a project just by snugging them down.
Rich
So you're saying that their BS is high quality? Now why doesn't that surprise me. Dave in Fairfax
And their best fertilizer is found in the spiel from the tool manager, in my experience.
Kevin
I've used brass screws from other sources with no problems. On the same box is Lee Valley hardware and I did not even drill pilot holes and used a power driver. This stuff did not work with the pilot holes and a hand screw driver. I'm going to buy replacements at a real hardware store and expect to get better results. The head should not strip out in just three or four turns either. They must be made from 2% brass, 98% lead.
Perhaps the itsy bitsy screws you installed were of good quality. Ed snipped-for-privacy@snet.net
Annodize it? It's definitely possible to get a brassy-looking substance onto aluminum. I have no idea how it's done though.
Sure can. I've silver plated it too.
Not commercially/economically. You can brass plate your lunch if you wanted to, but that doesn't mean it can be done reasonably.
So the hardware is crap, and the crap is good crap?
-- Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)
How come we choose from just two people to run for president and 50 for Miss America?
Yeah, I've found the same.
Keep >I made a cherry chest and I'm finally putting the hardware on it. The
-- jc Published e-mail address is strictly for spam collection. If e-mailing me, please use jc631 at optonline dot net
I was doing it commercialy.
I've had the same problem with their woodscrews (thank goodness for McFeeley's), wound up throwing away the last batch, it just wasn't worth the hassle. So far, I have had no problems with any of the Borg's nuts and bolts (1/4" and larger); of course, I haven't tried using that hardware on heavy duty machinery either.
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