Hardware anxiety

[Spyros]

I find hardware is a constant source of stress (I can hear you wallet makers laughing now LOL)

But I'm often stuck not being able to finish a project because I'm missing a particular size loop or dee or something silly like that.  In an ideal world I should be able to walk around the corner and grab what I need like you do with screws and sandpaper, however in this world good bag hardware is actually not easy to find, and sometimes I have to wait weeks because what I need happens to be in China (or worse, in Australia, but sold through some 1990's website that is missing  all essential info like proper photos, dimensions, descriptions).   And then before I order I run endless lists on my mind for days because if I forget something I'm stuck in the stupid situation where I'm missing a 1 inch roller buckle therefore I have to either change the width of the strap or I can't start that bag at all for another 3-4 weeks. 

At some point out of frustration I went on a shopping spree and ordered anything that looked potentially relevant, and now I'm stuck with a shiny pile of various obscure shapes and sizes that I'm probably never gonna use.  I guess it's really not a problem for many of you who make batches of things, that's probably easier to plan for, but I make prototypes and singe piece custom jobs and I need to have some liberty to make design changes as I go without having to plan weeks in advance for every rivet.  

What is your hardware buying strategy?  Do you guys also find it difficult to keep stock of everything you might need or am I the only idiot?

[chuck123wapati]

nope i'm an idiot too! lol

 Living in a out the way place i have exactly three stores i can go look in before ordering on line. All are hardware or feed stores that carry a very limited supply of anything meant for leatherwork or anything else for that matter. So as I rummage through life I have collected tons of hardware for everything from automotive to wood working to leather piled up all over. On top of that my wife used to buy "HUGE LOTS"  to resell from ebay didn't matter what lol. Need a few thousand little white buttons for shirts?  My strategy is to buy anything i run across that may someday work out for something LOL I figure it'll give the kids something to do when I'm gone.

[Handstitched]

I always over order these days. I once only used to buy a ' few  of these, and a couple of those'  etc. But now I find I'm ordering stuff in bulk, buckles , rivets in the 1000's  etc.   Its a case of  rather having too much than not enough .  Nothing more frustrating than having one piece of h/ware, or some dye   short for a customer  order.  .   I  also buy stuff that , at the time , I don't really need, or I don't think I need , but  I buy it anyway, it may come in handy later. Some excess stock can be sold on at markets etc. You'd be surprised what people ask for sometimes.   So, no you're not an idiot  

HS

[toxo]

27 minutes ago, Spyros said:

I find hardware is a constant source of stress (I can hear you wallet makers laughing now LOL)

But I'm often stuck not being able to finish a project because I'm missing a particular size loop or dee or something silly like that.  In an ideal world I should be able to walk around the corner and grab what I need like you do with screws and sandpaper, however in this world good bag hardware is actually not easy to find, and sometimes I have to wait weeks because what I need happens to be in China (or worse, in Australia, but sold through some 1990's website that is missing  all essential info like proper photos, dimensions, descriptions).   And then before I order I run endless lists on my mind for days because if I forget something I'm stuck in the stupid situation where I'm missing a 1 inch roller buckle therefore I have to either change the width of the strap or I can't start that bag at all for another 3-4 weeks. 

At some point out of frustration I went on a shopping spree and ordered anything that looked potentially relevant, and now I'm stuck with a shiny pile of various obscure shapes and sizes that I'm probably never gonna use.  I guess it's really not a problem for many of you who make batches of things, that's probably easier to plan for, but I make prototypes and singe piece custom jobs and I need to have some liberty to make design changes as I go without having to plan weeks in advance for every rivet.  

What is your hardware buying strategy?  Do you guys also find it difficult to keep stock of everything you might need or am I the only idiot?

You most certainly are not. Just last week I bought a THIRD rotary hole punch, a clicker handle and 7 blades, a better strap cutter, a whole bunch of short stemmed double cap rivets got thousands of the damn things but fed up with the stems folding over cos they're too long. Trouble is I can only get small heads with small stems. Who does short stemmed big head rivets? A bunch of extra small buckles for luggage tags, some large chrome plated rings for a couple of bags and a shed load of leather but when the prices are good you gotta do it.

[Spyros]

Ok, phew

[JayEhl]

Probably not the best resource for bulk purchases to answer your question but I've found small one off ideas and solutions from our local Salvation Army thrift stores and the like.  We have several of these not far.   I just buy the belt or whatever pretty cheap (can even negotiate at the counter).  I'm not a fan of garage sales but went to an estate sale and hit the mother lode.  But that was just luck.  

[Frodo]

i might regret saying this.+  because this company is on this site from time to time

I buy the grab bags from springfield leather  I have not bought a d ring or round ring , concho or 1''.3/4''  buckles in over a year

 

[Dwight]

I have a habit of kinda ordering and keeping what I have experienced that I needed.

Now I do have a couple small drawers full of "stuff" . . .  but by experience . . .  I know what I sell . . . so I know what to buy.

And that way . . .  I'm never in any kind of "inventory" problem for the most part.

Works for me anyway.

May God bless,

Dwight

[kgg]

4 hours ago, Spyros said:

What is your hardware buying strategy?

Sometimes I may only need a few of something but for a few dollars more I can get 50 so I will buy them as I will probably use them at some point. In these weird times if you find an item whether it is hobby related or not I buy more then I need because with my luck the next time I need one there will be none available. This morning I needed some dishwasher powder as I was almost out. I went to Wally World and they had none but our independent super market only had 5 so I took 4.  My POS  BOSH dishwasher only likes one brand and only likes powder. 

kgg

[sbrownn]

I buy what I need for each project series from Buckle Guy; it arrives in a couple of days and the hardware is top quality.

[TomE]

My strategy is to hoard what I need.  Weaver Leather Supply has good email notification when a backordered item becomes available - I snap up a few dozen.  My favorite vendor for heavy brass and stainless hardware - Batz Corp - is not long on customer service so I regularly troll their online store to check status.  Using the broken supply chain as an excuse to learn some new tricks.

[Thescandall]

I order chicago fasteners like they are on the endangered list for some reason. must have thousands of them.. i usually plan my build out in advance and order everything then. since i hand stitched for so many years the stuff came in before i was finished anyway. now that i got the MACHINE i do a lot of thumb twiddling.  

[fredk]

Having learnt a bad lesson about having not enough hardware on hand years ago I now buy in bulk. 

If I'm going to make just a few of something I buy in enough hardware for 10, 20 or even up to 50 of that item or similar.

I buy bargains / discounted hardware whenever I spot it even if I have no immediate need for it. 

As I see it, the hardware doesn't have a 'use by' or 'best before' date on it like bread or meat, so it'll stay fresh until I need it.

In the past, I too went to Charity shops [aka thrift stores to you heathens!] and bought cheap belts or handbags et cetera. Good for one-off hardware but occasionally I hit good where a major store had off loaded quantities of certain fashion belts. All made in that cheap pretend leather/PVC, but with quality buckles.

I have no leather supply place near me and getting anything posted to me costs a fortune. It costs as much to post 50 SB buttons as it does 500. Thus, by pro-rata the hardware item works out cheaper in quantity

[Spyros]

1 hour ago, fredk said:

I have no leather supply place near me and getting anything posted to me costs a fortune. It costs as much to post 50 SB buttons as it does 500. Thus, by pro-rata the hardware item works out cheaper in quantity

Tell me about it, I just paid USD$68 shipping for hardware from buckleguy...

[fredk]

Ouch! that hurts

32oz bottle of dye, 20 x 20mm brass loop & 20 x 30mm brass loops. Weight, approx 1.5kg, £18.50 from Le Prevo to me. [not Le Prevo's fault] It was the same price for just the dye, or just one set of brass loops

[Spyros]

37 minutes ago, fredk said:

Ouch! that hurts

32oz bottle of dye, 20 x 20mm brass loop & 20 x 30mm brass loops. Weight, approx 1.5kg, £18.50 from Le Prevo to me. [not Le Prevo's fault] It was the same price for just the dye, or just one set of brass loops

I had a look Fred, I don't think I could shop from there.  For example lets say I want my typical order: a solid brass set with a matte metal finish for a bag:  loops, dees, roller buckle, rivets, trigger snaps, sliders.  All 1 inch, but the finish needs to match because (maybe it's just me) I think it's a bit of an eyesore to have an expensive bag with a shiny buckle with matte snaps and sliders on the same strap.   You go to buckleguy, you select the finish and size you want, and boom everything they have in that size and finish is there, with only very slight variations in finish, a selection of 3-4 options for most things, and big photos with a ruler in the background so you can understand every dimension.   In LePrevo not everything has a clear description of the finish and I can't always tell from the photo (if there even is a photo).  Maybe it's a simple matter of shopping from there a couple of times and then it all gets clearer but I already have too much redundant hardware from doing exactly that: experimenting with various hardware vendors' archaic websites, and I just don't want to do it any more.  And then it's their variety which is not great, if one thing I want is missing I have to go through the same process somewhere else.  And then hope their shipping times are reasonable and their mail service reliable.

The issue with buckleguy is their crazy int'l shipping prices for small items, I can't be paying USD$68 shipping for what is probably a third of a shoebox worth of hardware.  I've contacted them a couple of times to tell them they need to offer cheaper options for smaller packages but no luck, they've linked their system to a couple of couriers that give them automatic quotes which then flow through real time to your online order, and they don't want to touch it.

Edited March 21, 2022 by Spyros

[fredk]

Le Prevo have been cutting back on their buckles, loops and dees type hardware. Its not a 1/10 of what it used to be

Another reason why I have bought in bulk - whilst its available

[Handstitched]

10 hours ago, JayEhl said:

Probably not the best resource for bulk purchases to answer your question but I've found small one off ideas and solutions from our local Salvation Army thrift stores and the like

Op Shops are a good source of old or unusual , weird & wonderful  buckles,  & hardware and various haberdashery .  My Mother sews & knits a lot, she finds buttons,  knitting needles etc. patterns ( sometimes rare) that she can use. Good way to recycle too  

@Spyros I also take advantage of ' specials' , and any discontinued  items that are heavily discounted, I may not need them at the time....but..

HS 

[Handstitched]

On 3/22/2022 at 11:00 AM, Handstitched said:

I also take advantage of ' specials' , and any discontinued  items that are heavily discounted, I may not need them at the time....but..

@Spyros Just ordered  x 16 black  roo hides  from Packers Qld.  It was a " last chance offer" . Some are o/runs, and some are rejects. Don't need them right now, ...but...

....they are good for soft phone  & assorted cases, bags  , repairs , etc.  and black being a popular and common  colour . ' Black  goes with anything' . 

HS 

[Spyros]

2 hours ago, Handstitched said:

@Spyros Just ordered  x 16 black  roo hides  from Packers Qld.  It was a " last chance offer" . Some are o/runs, and some are rejects. Don't need them right now, ...but...

....they are good for soft phone  & assorted cases, bags  , repairs , etc.  and black being a popular and common  colour . ' Black  goes with anything' . 

HS 

Yeah roo is great.  I find it visually a bit boring and yet it keeps finding it's way in my projects because a) it never needs skiving because it's never thicker than 1mm, and b) it's practically indestructible, that's why they use it for football boots, high end motorcycle jackets and whips. 

[Handstitched]

15 hours ago, Spyros said:

it's practically indestructible

Yeh I agree.  I'll be stocking up on leather & supplies  in the coming months as theres so much uncertainty  with costs, fuel,  freight etc. , I'll stock up while I can get it.   Our shop shelves are still mostly empty too. 

HS

[Klara]

On 3/21/2022 at 2:37 PM, Spyros said:

What is your hardware buying strategy?  Do you guys also find it difficult to keep stock of everything you might need or am I the only idiot?

Given that I just ordered some 30 watch band buckles before I found out that I'm actually quite happy with the band I made (with a buckle that I had cut off from a watch at some point in my life. Btw, the spring bar was rusted, so hardware can "go bad"!) - no, you are not the only idiot. 

In my excuse: From Lithuania 5-packs were considerably cheaper than singles, and from China I only bought one each, but in different colours and styles. Don't know what I'll need before I make the item, do I? And with 6 weeks shipping I want stock on hand. 

My favourite supplier for pet hardware only sells 10-packs minimum for most items, and for the cheap stuff like (D-)rings often 50 cost about twice as much as 10. You're not going to say no to 30 free rings, are you?

Besides, during our lockdown(s) I was extremely happy to have things on hand.... (during the first one mail order wasn't a good idea as the postal services cut back as well) 

 

[Handstitched]

15 minutes ago, Klara said:

Besides, during our lockdown(s) I was extremely happy to have things on hand

There was  some anxiety for me here in (west) Oz during our lockdowns*,   and not knowing when I can get anywhere near my supplier in Perth again ( 2hrs away) . But I was able to get through it with the hardware I already had . *It also gave me a chance to finish off some unfinished projects.  That period seems so long ago now . 

HS

[fredk]

A slight deviation; I want to buy some EVA foam, to put into boxes, with cut outs for holding game pieces. The cheapest I can get is a piece 50 cm x 50 cm for £15 delivered. Or, from the same supplier, a piece 1m x 1m for £18 delivered. At the moment I want only a small [about 25 cm x 20cm] piece to check if my idea will work out, but if it does I'll use the rest of the EVA, but if it doesn't I'll have to find a use for it all!

[Klara]

There is no way to scrounge some used packing material? When I cleaned up a bit yesterday I found a foam-padded knife box - the foam looked good enough to keep (even if the usable parts are small).

Today I experienced Murphy's law of hardware supply: No matter how big and varied your stock - when you build something new the exact piece(s) you need is not in there.

Which is particularly sad because Thursday I was at Lidl's, and they had the stuff. Only I didn't buy it because I was convinced I had done so when they sold it last time.