Fastener Resources
The know-how, in plain English. Guides that skip the jargon, reference charts you can actually read, and quick calculators — the same things our own staff lean on every day.
Not sure where to start?
You don’t need to know the lingo to get the right part. Pick the one that sounds like you:
Rather just ask a person? That’s what the counter is for.
Guides 5
Start here if a fastener is more or less a mystery. No experience assumed.
Counter questions, answered
The questions we field every day — sizing, grades, finishes, anchors, flanges — answered in plain English, the way we’d tell you in person.
Read the answers →How to measure a fastener
Diameter and thread the same for everything — then the right way to measure length for bolts, flat-heads, studs, and U-bolts. Printable ruler included.
Start measuring →Thread, grade & finish explained
Coarse vs. fine, Grade 5 vs. Grade 8, zinc vs. plain — what each one means and when it actually matters for your job.
Read the guide →Bolt, screw or stud?
The names get used loosely. Here’s the difference in one minute — so you ask for the right thing and we hand you the right thing.
Read the guide →Metric vs. inch
How to tell the two systems apart, the lookalike sizes that cross-thread (M8 vs. 5/16″), and how to read the head markings.
Read the guide →Choosing the right part 4
You know roughly what you need — here’s how to pick the right variant for the job.
Tapping screws: which type?
Thread-forming, thread-cutting, or self-drilling (TEK) — what “self-tapping” really means and how to pick so it doesn’t spin or split.
Read the guide →Choosing an anchor
Which anchor for concrete, brick, block, or drywall — wedge, sleeve, drop-in, concrete screw, toggle — matched to base material and load.
Read the guide →Washer types
Flat, fender, split lock, star, structural, Belleville — what each one does, when to use it, and the SAE vs. USS size difference.
Read the guide →Nut types
Hex, nylon-insert lock, jam, castle, flange, coupling, cap — what each is for, plus the nylock heat limit and when to double-nut.
Read the guide →Reference charts 14
Look-up tables for when you know what you need. Printable, no sign-in.
Thread pitch & tap-drill chart
Threads per inch for every common inch size, coarse and fine, plus the right tap drill for a clean, strong thread.
Open the chart →Metric thread pitch & tap drill
Pitch and tap-drill sizes (mm) for M3–M24, coarse and fine — the metric companion to the inch thread chart.
Open the chart →Clearance holes
The hole to drill for a bolt to pass through — close, normal, and loose fit by size. The companion to the tap-drill chart.
Open the chart →Bolt grade markings & strength
Read the head markings at a glance — Grade 2, 5, 8, A325 and more — with proof, yield, and tensile strength side by side.
Open the chart →Drive & security screw ID
Match the recess to find your bit — slotted, Phillips, Pozidriv, square, Torx, hex — plus the common tamper-resistant security drives.
Open the chart →Bolt & screw head styles
“What kind of bolt is this?” — match the head profile: hex, carriage, socket, button, flat, oval, and more.
Open the chart →Wrench & socket size
What size wrench fits which bolt — across the head, by diameter, for both hex and heavy-hex.
Open the chart →Decimal · fraction · metric
The conversions you reach for constantly — fractions to decimals to millimeters, in one tidy table with a live converter.
Open the chart →Lag screw pilot holes
Drill the right pilot for a lag screw — by diameter and by wood type — so it bites without splitting.
Open the chart →Screw extractor size guide
Broke a bolt off? Match the right extractor to the diameter, and the pilot hole to drill — plus how to back it out clean.
Open the chart →Flange stud & nut chart
How many studs and nuts per flanged joint — by size and pressure class (ASME B16.5), with stud diameter and length.
Open the chart →Nut & bolt grade compatibility
Which nut grade to use with which bolt — Grade 2/5/8, A325, A490, stainless — so the nut is at least as strong as the bolt.
Open the chart →Steel hardness conversion
Read across Brinell, Rockwell C, and Rockwell B — plus the approximate tensile strength — for non-austenitic steel.
Open the chart →Fastener specifications (ASTM & SAE)
Plain-English guides to the specs on your prints — SAE J429, ASTM A307, A325, A490, A193 B7, A194 2H, and F1554.
Browse the specs →Calculators 3
Quick answers for the shop and the field. Type in your numbers, get a result.
Bolt weight calculator
Estimate the weight of a bolt or a box of them by size, length and material — handy for figuring freight before you order.
Open the calculator →Torque estimator
A starting-point torque value by bolt size, grade and lube — with a plain note on why these are estimates, not gospel.
Open the calculator →Epoxy anchor estimator
How much epoxy to set studs, threaded rod, or rebar in concrete — by rod size, hole and depth — totaled into cartridges.
Open the calculator →Still stuck? Talk to us.
Give us a call, send a photo, or bring a sample by. Fifty years in, there’s a good chance we’ve answered exactly your question before — and we’d rather you walk out with the right part than the close-enough one.