The Fastener Quality Act defines a fastener as a screw, nut, bolt, or stud that has external or internal threads, or a load-indicating washer, with a nominal diameter of five millimeters or bigger, one fourth of an inch or greater that contains any quantity of metal and is held out as meeting a standard or specification which requires through-hardening.
This act also prevents sale of illegal and unauthorized sale of fasteners to any industry or company. However buying of wholesale fasteners is not illegal and wholesale fasteners can be bought at any wholesale market. Internet is also a good place to find dealers who are ready to sell fasteners at wholesale rates provided the buyer buys them in bulk.
An advantage of buying fasteners in bulk at wholesale rate is that the intermediary is removed from the financial equation thus increasing the savings of the buyer and augmenting the sale of fasteners. The price of any commodity (let alone fasteners) is inversely proportional to the amount of the same. However, it is illegal to sell fasteners at wholesale prices to anyone without taking the prior permission of National Institute of standards and technology, commerce (NIST).
According to the guidelines laid down by the NIST – Distributors, who are not private label distributors, and people who buy fasteners at wholesale or retail, may mix fasteners of the same type, grade, and dimension from different lots in the same container. However, if a buyer of fasteners asks the seller to mark the container of fasteners with the lot number from which such fasteners were taken, either before the sale or at the time of sale, the seller shall noticeably mark the container of fasteners with the lot number.
The demand for fasteners is slowly but surely increasing because of wholesale pricing methodology. The Internet has also increased the number of wholesalers in the market and has improved the sale of fasteners not only in the United States of America but also on a global scale.