Price comparison of T-Nuts on the Interwebz. All Prices as of July 2011.
What surprised me was that these were all the vendors I could find that sold the 4-Prong 3/8″ Zinc plated T-Nut. Other options include screw-in T-Nuts and stainless steel. 4 prong work pretty good and screws-in are seriously time-consuming and only recommended if you can’t get to the back of your wall easily.
Also note that REI carries the Metolius 25 pack of t-nuts at most stores (and local tax is probably cheaper then shipping). Therefore if you are in a middle of a project and just need a few t-nuts they work great and are of the highest t-nut quality that I have seen. Do not do your whole wall with them at those prices.
Quick Tips:
- Standard wall with T-Nuts spaced 8″ horizontally and vertically will require ~72 T-Nuts per Panel
- Based on this design from Atomik Holds: http://www.atomikclimbingholds.com/walldone.jpg
- A tighter pattern will require more T-Nuts, I always order at least 100 per Panel, extras are always nice to have
- Drill Bit required is ~7/16ths” inch to create T-Nut holes
- T-Nut Dimensions: Accept 3/8″‘s bolt, are about 1″sq inch in size on the back of the wall
- 3 LB hammer is an awesome accessory to have to pound in T-Nuts
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Hey there,
My wife and I are in the process of building a home gym in our apartment and needed a lot of t-nuts and have been having a hard time finding them for a reasonable price til I found them at fmwfasteners.com for $0.0734 for 1,000 +. Have you ever used this site for anything, t-nuts, bolts, screws, etc.? Thanks for your info on your blog. Its a good read, has been helpful, and very inspiring to me to build our home gym to its fullest potential. We are super stoked to get it finished!
Thanks,
Jesse
Author
Killer deal, let me know how they turn out. I believe the correct size is 3/8 – 16 and the length being 7/16 for the 4 prong: http://www.fmwfasteners.com/products/Tee-Nuts-3-Prong-Tee-Nuts-4-Prong-Tee-Nuts/4-Prong-Tee-Nuts-Zinc
I’ve gotten very good deals from Bloomington Bolt and Screw (812) 825-5055 ask for Brent Harrison. He doesn’t have a web site, but he will do small orders and his prices for bolts are about 1/3rd of what most places will sell them for. I think I bought the T nuts for about 9 or 10 cents each (I needed another 100 or 200 several months ago). He will ship UPS or USPS flat rate box. Most of the gyms in Indiana get their bolts from him.
Hey Andy-
Thank you so much for your website. This has been an INCREDIBLE resource for the backyard woody project I’m working on this weekend. One quick question for you:
I am more or less following your design with a few tweaks including a hand crack to fist crack up the middle. Now, as I am preparing to buy materials and get going, I have hit a potential snag, the T nuts I ordered online wont be here until after I plan on finishing the structure. So my plan is to drill all of the holes etc, and then use a ladder to hammer in the T nuts after the structure is complete.
Does that sound reasonable? Or will that make for a total nightmare when the T bolts arrive?
Thank you!
Author
Hey James – When you are pounding in T-Nuts it is not a simple little nail but hundreds of hits on the plywood. If you have it mounted to your woody that creates quite a bit of vibration and can lead to t-nuts popping-out that you have already pounded it (and maybe other structural stress?). I would hold off (even though I know the anticipation is killing you), as it will be a lot more work later then if you wait.
The best way to pound in T-Nuts is to find a solid flat surface (concrete, etc), stand on the board that already has all of the holes pounded it and hammer away. I have a 3LB hammer that works great at this task but it is not needed. The T-Nut pounding is one of the least fun parts of the wall but if it is not done correctly leads to the biggest headaches down the road. I have added T-Nuts to existing structures but doing the whole thing might be a bit much; in the meantime you can build and frame everything and get ready so that when the T-Nuts arrive you can finish-up quickly.
good luck!
Andy,
Thank you SO much for the quick reply! I seriously owe you one! I was able to cancel my order online, and find them locally at Tacoma Screw for 6.2 cents EACH!! AND they have them in stock online and in store, and I was able to put 500 on hold to pick up today!
Hooray for instant gratification and no shipping costs!
Thanks again,