I have stopped modeling for a week or so to remodel my modeling bench. I will have more pegboard area for tools, so I had to buy more hooks. I could no longer buy those small packages (say five hooks of one size), but had to buy a big expensive general package.
When I tried to put them into my pegboard I was pretty upset. They are junk. The spacing between the pegs varies by an eighth of an inch! They must be made by piece workers with cheap crappy machines in their home, with the resulting package containing items made on a dozen machines for each style hook. How do I find hooks that fit the pegboard!
Yeah, there seems to have been a change in design, maybe 20 years ago or so.
I remember buying hooks of various configuration, fitting out a bench in the 90s. They were all made with a small peg welded on the back, below the end of the hook. The end of the hook and the peg fit into adjacent vertical holes in the peg board.
The next time I had to buy some hooks, about 15 years ago or so, I couldn’t find that style of hook anymore. All I could find at any hardware store were hooks without that peg on the back, but provided with plastic straps that fit crosswise at a right angle to the hook, anchored in adjacent holes on the board. They do not stay set as well as the old ones do, but I can see that eliminating that step is probably simpler and therefore cheaper to produce them this way. But they don’t work as well, so the consumer is the one who is stuck.
I buy my at the local Home Depot, so far, I have not run into any problems, anyhow, if I do run into problems I can always return them to Home Depot. They are supposed to be of a standard size so they can fit into the holes. You probably got a “Made in China” batch,
Yep, they were Chinese. I’ll try HD and see if they are better quality. I am getting tired of drilling an oversize hole every time I put in another hook!
You know what they say about ASS-U-ME (the nanny-bot may catch this)
In the States, pegboard comes in 2 standard sized hole categories. Lightweight pegboard ( a bit thinner) comes with 1/8" holes. Lightweight pegboard is recommended for hanging lighter objects: single hammers, wrenches, pleiers, etc.
Standard/Heavyweight pegboard comes with 1/4" holes and is recommended for hanging items such as sledges, multiple hammer racks, or other heavy items.
Hooks are sold in two size wire in accordance with the weight of pegboard installed. The OP’s issue may be that he bought the wrong hook for the type of pegboard he has. Likely not an issue with ‘defective’ or non-American product
The problem I have is not really the hole diameter, it is a varying distance between the two pegs that go into the boards.
I did a check recently of the hooks from an assortment. The distance between the holes varied by plus or minus a sixteenth of an inch, which presents problems fitting them into the eighth inch holes. The only reason I have to drill the bottom holes larger is to get those longer or shorter hooks into the bottom holes. I also measured some of the pieces of pegboard I have, and the hole spacings were right on. The problem is a quality control one. The makers do not weld on that bottom peg accurately enough.