E24 Series of Preferred Numbers - Resistor Sorting

Thought I would try sorting my resistors using the E24 series. Turned out much easier than I expected to find the resistor I need quickly.

E series of preferred numbers

E24 series resistor list

Background music from the Youtube music library:
A Rising Wave by Jeremy Blake
Ridge Racer by DivKid

[pneumantic]

Best solution I am seeing so far is a binder with pockets. Not really fan of how big the footprint is on just resistors by using bins.

[ubcxlt]

Thank you, this was very useful. I will be organising my resistors the same way as you have done.
I have just bought a Brother QL-800 Label Printer - this one can do barcodes, etc and can print up to 60mm (2 1/4") wide, so I can start labelling my storage trays the way you have.
I use the small 7.5cm x 5cm (3"x2") ZipLock type bags for my resistors, and I will label them the way Digi-Key have done it as shown on your bags.
I think the color codes in words below the value is a good idea too.
Thanks again!

[TheDefpom]

I have so many loose resistors that I have two values per drawer, using a separator between them, I think I have something like 130 drawers just for resistors.

[UpcycleElectronics]

This organization is great until you buy and want to organize THD + SMD resistors and capacitors in different sizes/types. I've actually used this exact same scheme for the last 2 years. I been struggling with how I want to redo my organization for the last few days though. I recalled seeing this in my sub-feed and came back to watch.

One tip: if you think about the products you use daily around the house, you will probably find things you can recycle for organization, you just have to be very patient while collecting them. My favorite item is Dove bathroom bar soap. The little white boxes each bar comes in make perfect little divider containers. I made a little stand jig that holds a razor blade horizontally at exactly 1/2 the box height. First I hot glue the empty box closed. Then I slide it next to the cutting jig to make an open box with a perfectly square top that is also exactly the same size as all the others I have. If you add a bead of hotglue on the cut edge those little boxes can handle a lot of regular use and abuse too. Best of all, you can remove single boxes as you need them. I have made hundreds of them to use in an old library card-catalog cabinet over the last 2+ years.
Anything you use regularly that comes in a box is the perfect way to make component organizers. Personally I prefer a large cabinet with drawers that contain individual values of removable containers. This means there is no organizational game of leapfrog or Russian nesting doll type shenanigans, and I can keep most of my components within reach of my workbench at all times. The problem with those smaller drawers is the limited number of resistors they hold. I recently picked up a range of most E24 values in 100 piece quantities. That just won't fit with this size organizer any more.

However, if you're looking for these types of organizers, Walmart has been stocking some nice 30 drawer ones for ~$12 each, and they even have drawer stops so things never get dumped out from tipping the container. That's the cheapest I've seen. I haven't found anything else that comes close to that price point for a decent organizer :-)
-Jake

[MusicalBox]

Nice ! What do you do with 1% tolerance resistors ?

[christiannielsen]

I've been looking for E12 or E24 series in bags like yours but I cant find them. Do you have a link?

I unwisely bought a kit with resistors glued to two paper strips and I hate it. I also have drawers like you but the dont come cheap...

[grhinson]

I know some people sort their components by what the value's first number is, say 100k, 15k, 12.5k, 1meg, etc

[johncoops]

I'd go crazy having my resistors all mixed together like Gadget's showing here. Plus those parts drawers are really annoying and space inefficient.
I've just finished moving everything out of those drawers (literally thousands). My resistors are in Pill bottles (tubes/vials), one value per bottle. Each small vial is about 15mm diameter, so 25 for a decade is about 150mm square. Commonly used values liek 1K, 10K are in larger diameter vials, but stored in the same group. The vials are vertical inside plastic compartment boxes.
If I need 20 resistors I lift out the whole bottle, take it to the bench and and pour them out.
The reason I do it this way is because I allocate space based on the volume required, rather than wasting equal space for every item. For example, compare your usage and stock volume for 1K vs 62K

[hoggif]

That's a neat idea but what happens when you have something from E48 series?
I have a linear method like 1-4.7, below 10, 10-47, below 100, .... That is not clearly optimal. As soon as you start to get some E96 leftover any (not range based) system breaks. Even range based are not that nice with too many values though. I like smd with those nice tiny books.

[benbaselet]

I keep my through hole resistors in bags. I keep the bags on rings so I just flip through to find the correct value and then hang the rings on hooks below my storage shelves.

[andymouse]

damm!.... who was it who used to say "shuzbut"?

[TheEmbeddedHobbyist]

I think the original idea was that you can't make a bad resistor! it did not matter what value it measured as there was always a value it would fit in. it was the same the microprocessor speed, when tested the slower ones got marked down and sold cheaper. that way as the process improved less and less slow chips were made, but they still had orders for them, so marked down fast ones as slow. so towards the end of a chips life you could over clock the slow ones as they were no different than the top spec.

[USA-GreedyMenOfNoIntegrity]

How about just have one drawer or half drawer with each resistor value and put TH, SMD and any other resistors of the same size together. Because you still have to go through five different plastic bags.

[mattgring]

I like it but then I would want more drawers for 1/4, 1/2, 1, 2, 5 watt.

[Jaycsee]

Now i'm going to have to go and buy some new trays. That system is much better then my current system, which is the same as your old system. I just spent $800 yesterday buying an oscilloscope, new soldering station and a microscope. D'oh. Good thing i'm not married, i can spend what i like on my hobbie.