Yeah, it says aluminum in the game, but this website is British and will not bow to the whims of seceded colonies. Anyway, you need aluminium for a few items you can build in your settlements, but mostly for weapon and armour mods, and for modding your power armour in particular.
Back to TopAluminium is found in alarm clocks and typewriters, and any bits of junk with 'aluminium' in the name (cans, canisters, and so on and so forth). Any kind of tray you can find is aluminium, so that includes dinner trays and surgical trays. Luckily there are a hell of a lot of trays in Mahkra Fishpacking, which is on the most northeasterly peninsula on the map. You should also keep an eye out for spanners, which aren't hard to find. Arturo in Diamond City will sell you a shipment of 50 aluminium if you're feeling lazy.
Back to TopCeramic is a small but necessary part of most power related objects you can build, including the generators and power pylons. It's also used in radios and you need ceramic if you want to build toilets in your settlement, but the workshop doesn't have schematics for a running water system so toilets may or may not be a good idea.
Back to TopYou can immediately break down most toilets, sinks, or baths in settlements that have bathrooms. Sanctuary is an easy win for this, because there are are lot of houses and a lot of toilets. General junk that breaks down to ceramic includes most crockery – plates, coffee cups, ashtrays and vases, and curiously vases produce more ceramic than an entire bathtub. If you're a flash bastard with caps to spare you can buy a shipment of ceramic (25 units of it) every three days or so from Diamond City Surplus, but that sort of feels like cheating.
Back to TopCircuitry is used in the more scientific weapon and armour modifications, and to build certain useful things for your settlements, notably the defences like turrets. Building turrets increases your settlements' defense score with minimal effort on your part and sacrificing very little space in the process.
Back to TopThe easiest method is to buy it from Trashcan Carla (a travelling vendor from Bunker Hill, often found around Sanctuary and the Drumlin Diner) and Tinker Tom at the Railroad, who both sell shipments of 25. You can also scrounge up circuitry for free by picking over enemy gun turrets and robots you've destroyed, and from telephones and hot plates. The richest sources of circuitry are military grade circuit boards, so keep an eye out at any army buildings.
Back to TopYou'll remember from your science lessons that copper is very conductive, so it's essential if you're planning to build a power network in your settlements. You can't build a single power item without any copper, and even connecting wires use up a bit of it. Copper is also really useful for modding weapons.
Back to TopHotplates are a common bit of junk with copper in, so hunt around the kitchen areas of any buildings you're in. Copper is in lamps and lightbulbs, which are light to carry, and you can find a lot of them in the Wattz Consumer Electronics building south-east of the Tucker Memorial Bridge. If you've got the time and inventory room then medical and scientific buildings are a good source of copper rich junk. Pick up high-powered magnets, bone cutters, and power relay coils.
If you have the Scrapper Perk you can break down weapons to get some copper back (modified pipe guns are the best for this), but the weapons vendors in Diamond City and Goodneighbour also have shipments of copper available to buy.
Back to TopCork is mostly used for weapon and armour modifications. You won't need it in huge quantities, but the trouble is that it's difficult to come across in the wasteland, so even if you don't specifically need it in that moment you should always pick up sources of cork.
Back to TopThere are comparatively very few junk sources. Globes (antique and otherwise) break down to cork, as do baseballs. You can also buy a shipment of cork from strawberry faced baseball enthusiast Moe in Diamond City, but this does necessitate having an actual conversation with Moe.
Back to TopGears are useful for a lot of different things, from weapons modifications to crafting explosives to settlement items. They're not too tough to find but you can also run out of them quickly, so be aware of how many you have.
Back to TopThe most common bits of junk containing gears are cameras and desk fans, but you can also get them from pocket watches. Another great source for gears is the Giddyup Buttercup toy horse. You can come across one of Buttercup's errant legs here and there, but the Wilson Atomatoys Corporate HQ (east from Diamond City) and their Factory (south east in the swamps) are both positively bursting with them. Giddyup Buttercups are also a good junk source for springs, which are a useful crafting resource.
Back to TopOil is used in gun mods and explosives (your grenades and mines), but also important settlement items like gun turrets, water purifiers and generators. It's virtually impossible to build a significant settlement without these, so you should keep oil on your shopping list.
Back to TopAnything that used to hold oil will have a little of it left inside – think flip lighters and canisters. Cooking oil is a good source, and there's a load of Mr Handy fuel at the General Atomics Galleria. If you're an Intelligent sort you can craft cutting fluid from acid, steel, water and a lot of bone. This breaks down into oil and a bit of steel, so you can create your own supply. Of course, there's always the shortcut option to buy oil from the weapon vendors in Goodneighbour and on the Prydwen.
Back to TopAlmost every single weapon mod requires a few screws to put together. What more do you need to know?
Back to TopTrashcan Carla sells a shipment of screws but she moves around, so get your greedy little hands on desk fans, typewriters and toy cars. You should also go for the Giddyup Buttercup pieces (see gears, above). They're heavy but they're full of screws, so it's worth the trade off.
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