Handles-R-Us. In the spirit of pure surplus, we’ve got these 1-7/8" long x 3/8" aluminum handles for a mechanical counter. Sized for a 5/32” ID shaft with a set-screw to tighten it down. If you don’t have any handle-less mechanical counters, put a handle on something else.

Stick these clear vinyl suction cups with aluminum J-hooks on your shower wall and you’ll have someplace to hang that nylon mesh poof thingy that there’s no place to put. Some of us here (the smart ones) pack these to stick on hotel bathroom walls because there are never, ever, enough hooks there. You’ll get (12) per package: (6) 7/8” dia with 1/4” hooks, (4) at 1-11/16” dia with 7/16” hooks, and (2) at 2” dia with 7/16” hooks.

That would be us. Nuts from America? That would be these made-in-the-USA locking nuts, 1-1/16" hex with an 11/16" - 12 thread, and just under 7/16" thick.

A rubber grommet, 7/8" dia x 11/16" thick, with a brass insert that forms a flange over one face and lines about 3/4" of the length of the 1/4" dia bore. Use it as a grommet, a shock mount, or both. With  a brass wire hanger that is set under the insert flange and extends 1" to the side. The hanger is bent to hold a 1/4" dia wire.

This small compression spring measures 1" dia x 1-1/8" tall and is made from 1/16" dia 316-type stainless steel, designed for marine or other aquatic applications. Go mount a bouncing turtle.

Get your keys organized before everything uses iris recognition. Choose between a set of nickel-plated steel split rings at 3/4", 1", 1-1/4" and 1-1/2" dia, or a set of (4) rubber key caps/covers in red, yellow, green and blue. Karen, our Boreal Studies Professor, says they look like tiny little stocking caps on her keys, and she should know. (Our pkg 2 gets you 8 covers)

Large plastic hook, pointed on one end, blunt on the other. We have no idea what it was made for. Some suggest a meat hook in a pet food factory, which the shape supports. But the red or white plastic suggests not. Maybe it is for veggies? A loyal reader is convinced that it goes over a door and bananas are hung from it. Sounds good to us. The blunt end is shaped to hang over a square beam, 1-1/4" or so thick. The other pointy end, when the hook is so hung, will be 3" from the beam top, and will point out 3" and up @ about 15°. The whole is made of 3/8" dia plastic rod. You figure out what to do with it.

You get a pack of (2) plated steel extension springs, 1" long x 3/4" dia, made from 7/64" stock. Open 9/16" loops at each end. Rated for loads up to 10-1/2 lbs, which means they're perfect for DIY scales and exercise contraptions, keeping heavy doors and gates shut, and hammocks for lap dogs.

These steel compression springs are 3/4” long x 1/2” dia and made of 1/32” thick stock. Compressed right here in the US of A.

Actually, we like hooks and eyes, especially when they have screws on the other end and they're great for hanging stuff from. You choose. Our 1-3/8" long steel screw eyes have 3/8" IDs. You'll get (2) packs with (10) screw eyes in each, which will hang up to (20) things--and we did that math all in our head. Our 4" long screw hooks have a 1" ID and we've got them because the package says they're 4-1/8" long. Ain't surplus wonderful? You'll get (2) packs, or (4) hooks altogether. Let the hanging begin.

Black plastic vented grilles with (19) round holes measure 2-1/8" OD x 3/8" thick with (4) snap clips to hold them in place. Originally for stereo speakers, they were designed to fit into a 2" dia port.

No. Ladder locks are those ubiquitous little flat buckles with rungs not unlike ladders. You thread straps through them so they lock but are still easily adjustable. You’ll get (2) per pack, (16) pieces altogether, made for use with 3/4” strapping. Measure 1” x 1-1/2” x 1/4” thick in black plastic.

These plated steel extension springs measure 8-7/8" long (counting loops) x 7/8" dia x 1/8". Loops are approx 5/8" ID. Rated for just under a 20-lb working load. Good for screen doors and cabinets, and for hanging things that you like to see bounce in the wind.

What do you give a plumber for his birthday? We recommend some longer T-shirts and maybe some of these 3/8” white PVC 90-degree elbow fittings. Fittings are 3/8” ID and a tad over 1” long on both legs; they come with mating nuts and gaskets.

It’s not for your serious security needs, but it will probably keep a 9-year-old out of his sister’s diary. Our smallest brass padlock measures 1-1/4” tall with a 5/8” shackle, and comes with (2) tiny keys. Lose your keys much? Lock them to a belt loop and put the key in your shoe.

In big quantities. And dirt cheap. The dark brown plastic, 1-11/16" squares with one corner cut off at a 45° angle are approx 1/16" thick, with a raised center square, a 9/16" hole in the center, and peel-off really-self-adhesive backing. For art projects, air vents for snake cages, wall plates for cable runs, or something. Please.

The world of surplus works in mysterious ways. Here we have assorted V-shaped aluminum channels 5-3/4" long x 5/8" wide across the 120° Vs. Picture these nestled behind glass thermometer tubes, imprinted with assorted scales, each with a small mounting hole at the top, maybe tiny crimp-clips to mount the thermometer that isn't there, and a diamond-shaped opening at the bottom for the glass bulb that also isn't there. Then add your own thermometers, use them as teaching aids, string 'em together for tracks or marble runs, or get really creative.

What a cool little clamp! Only 8" long overall, the jaws open to 4" when you press the release button and close incrementally as you pull the trigger. The 3/4" x 7/8" pads on the metal-and-plastic tool won't mar the surfaces they're sandwiching. Makes you want to find something to clamp!