Fallout 4 features on of the most expensive and in-depth crafting systems in any RPG. The core of this crafting is largely base components, which you use for crafting weapons & armor, and their associate mods.
For more help on Fallout 4, read our Settlements Locations Guide, Power Armor Locations Guide, Character Builds Guide and Unique Legendary Weapons.
Fallout 4 Scrap Farming, Crafting Base Components, Junk Items
Base components however aren’t exactly found in their raw form. Instead, you’ll have to acquire them from everyday objects that are scattered all across the Commonwealth.
Our guide covers Junk, Scrapping, and Crafting Base Components in every manner, and with it, you should be able to craft and find crafting materials with ease.
How to Be an Efficient Junkman
How Junk is Used
Just about anything and everything in Fallout 4 is worth picking up. Of course, some materials are more common than others, but there is a use for everything you find, be it an empty water bottle or some advanced computer circuitry.
Each type of junk actually yields base components, and those are the components you actually need for crafting. For example, a battered clipboard is made out of Springs and Wood. The Springs and Wood here are the base components, and will be used in crafting.
Don’t worry, you don’t have to salvage the junk in order to extract base components. Fallout 4 does that for you itself while you are crafting.
If you need a Spring from that clipboard but don’t require the Wood, the game will break the batter clipboard, use the Spring, and store the Wood in your workbench. It’s efficiency at its finest!
Can’t Find an Item? Here’s a Solution!
Certain items are more precious than others, so there’s a huge chance you’ll have very specific base components missing. The game has a wonderful feature called ‘tagging’ that can help you find these.
Let’s say you’re crafting a weapon on the Weapon Workbench. If you’ve run out of Adhesive for a specific mode, simply press the ‘Tag’ button and Adhesive will be tagged, displayed by a magnifying glass next to the item.
With Adhesive tagged, you’ll now see the magnifying glass icon whenever you are searching around and picking up junk. So the next time you come across some Wonder Glue, you’ll know you should definitely pick it up as it will have the magnifying sign with it.
Storing Junk
While you’re collecting things, there’s a big chance that your inventory weight runs out eventually. You might think that there’s only so much weight you can carry, but in reality there is a very viable and efficient work-around for this.
The workaround is in the form of the Workbench. Even if you aren’t looking to establish Settlements, you’ll have at least two workbenches available: Sanctuary and Red Rocket Truck Shop (where you find Dogmeat).
You can simply transfer all your junk (no matter how much it is) into that workbench. Now, your pockets will be light, meaning you can salvage more junk.
Do note though that the region/settlement you store your junk in is the only one where you will be able to use it. So if you store all your junk in Sanctuary, don’t expect to be able to use it in Diamond City.
Ease of Access
A good way to avoid the location-based restriction of stored junk is to create supply lines. You’ll need the Local Leader perk (Charisma 6) for this, and you’ll also need to have a few folks in your settlement.
When you do acquire the perk and do have a few settlements with some population, you can simply assign one of the settlers to create a supply line.
You can do this by accessing the Workbench menu from the Workbench, then highlighting a settler, and pressing RB/R1. A menu will pop up where you can select which settlement you want to create a supply line with.
For example, if I want to create a supply line between Sanctuary and Red Rocket Truck Shop, I can head to Sanctuary and assign a settler to create a supply line. This way, all the junk stored in the workbenches at both Sanctuary and Red Rocket Truck Shop will be shared.
Remember to Check Your Workbench
If you’ve got plenty of settlements out there, there’s a chance you probably ignore a few and give more priorities to others. That’s fine, especially if the settlements are self-sufficient.
You might not have a supply line running across all of them though. If that is true, be sure periodically head to ‘isolated’ settlements (ones without any supply lines) and check the workbenches there.
Settlers collect and store junk in their settlement’s workbench while you are away, so having it laying around in a workbench you’ll never use isn’t really productive. Grab it and either use it or take it to one of the settlements connected through a supply line.
Fallout 4 Crafting Base Components and Items
There are 31 different types of base components in the game, and hundreds of different types of items that yield them. Many items in the game yield multiple types of base components, and it can be quite difficult if you don’t know where to look for a specific one.
Here’s a list of all the base components, along with every item that yields them:
Acid
Bloatfly Gland, Bloodbug Proboscis, Coolant, Suprathaw Antifreeze, Abraxo Cleaner, Bag of Fertilizer, Ichor Sac, Coolant, Antifreeze Bottle, Suprathaw Antifreeze
Adhesive
Duct Tape, Wonderglue, Economy Wonderglue, Military Grade Duct Tape, Vegetable Starch
Aluminum
Toy Rocketship, Coolant Cap, Aluminum Can, Cake Pan, Coffee Tin, Surgical Tray, Tv Dinner Tray, Applicator, Ear Examiner, Sensor, Recorder, Cauterizer, Distress Pulser, Aluminum Canister, Alarm Clock, Wakemaster Alarm Clock, Industrial Oil Canister, FLL3 Turbopump Bearings, Sabotaged Turbopump Bearings, Injector, Spanner, Tray, Tweezers, Clean Cake Pan, Coffee Tin, Coolant Cap, Cake Pan, Surgical Tray, TV Dinner Tray
Antiseptic
Blood Sac, Toothpaste, Abraxo Cleaner, Empty Blood Sac
Asbestos
Oven Mitt, Chalk, Extinguisher, Biometric Scanner, Cigarette Carton, Coffee Pot, Luxobrew Coffee Pot, Pack Of Cigarettes
Ballistic Fiber
Military Grade Duct Tape, Peizonucleic Liner, Ballistic Fiber, Military Ammo Bag
Bone
Deathclaw Hand, Jawless Brahmin Skull, Mole Rat Teeth, Capless Skull, Upper Skull, Broken Femur, Broken Tibia, Femur, Human Jaw, Left Foot Bones, Left Hand Bones, Right Foot Bones, Right Hand Bones, Shem Drowne’s Skull, Skull Cap Bone, Skull Eye Socket
Skull Faceplate, Skull Fragment, Tibiam, Cracked Deathclaw Egg, Pristine Deathclaw Egg, Left Arm Bones, Left Leg Bones, Pelvis Bones, Rib Cage and Pelvis, Right Arm Bones, Right Leg Bones, Skull, Jawless Brahmin Skull, Brahmin Skull, Rib Cage, Rib Cage and Spine, Spine
Ceramic
Teapot, Ashtray, Ceramic, Clean Coffee Cup, Coffee Cup, Dirty Ashtray, Saucer, Wooden Solider Toy, Bowl, Ceramic Bowl, Clean Bowl, Clean Red Plate, Clean Umbrella Stand, Clean White Plate, Colonial Vase, Cracked Bowl, Dawnshire Vase, Empty Floral Barrel Vase, Empty Floral Bud Vase, Empty Floral Flared Vase, Empty Floral Rounded Vase, Empty Floral Vaulted Vase, Empty Teal Barrel Vase,
Empty Teal Bud Vase, Empty Teal Flared Vase, Empty Teal Rounded Vase, Empty Teal Vaulted Vase, Empty Willow Barrel Vase, Empty Willow Bud Vase, Empty Willow Flared Vase, Empty Willow Rounded Vase, Empty Willow Vaulted Vase, Floral Barrel Vase, Floral Bud Vase, Floral Flared Vase
Floral Rounded Vase, Floral Vaulted Vase, New Floral Barrel Vase, New Floral Bud Vase, New Floral Flared Vase, New Floral Rounded Vase, New Floral Vaulted Vase, New Teal Barrel Vase, New Teal Bud Vase, New Teal Flared Vase, New Teal Rounded Vase
New Teal Vaulted Vase, New Willow Barrel Vase, New Willow Bud Vase, New Willow Flared Vase, New Willow Rounded Vase, New Willow Vaulted Vase, Red Plate, Small Dinner Plate, Small Plate, Small Serving Plate, Teacup, Teal Barrel Vase, Teal Bud Vase
Teal Flared Vase, Teal Rounded Vase, Teal Vaulted Vase, Umbrella Stand, Unused Ashtray, Warwick Pump Part, Warwick Pump Piece, White Plate, Willow Barrel Vase, Willow Bud Vase, Willow Flared Vase, Willow Rounded Vase, Willow Vaulted Vase, Yellow Plate, Yellow-Trimmed Plate, Large Dinner Plate, Large Plate, Large Serving Plate, Vase
Circuitry
Flight Data Recorder, RFID Device, Inactive Distress Pulser, Telephone, Fusion Pulse Charge, Hot Plate, Assaultron Circuit Board, Circuitry, Military-Grade Circuit Board
Cloth
Duct Tape, Oven Mitt, Cotton Yarn, Boston Bugle, Cigar, Cigarette, Cigarette Carton, Jangles The Moon Monkey, Late Edition Newspaper, Pack Of Cigarettes, Paintbrush, Pre-War Money, Rolled Boston Bugle, Straw Pillow
Concrete
Bag of Concrete, Concrete Bricks
Copper
Shadeless Table Lamp, Hot Plate, Light Bulb, Blue Table Lamp, Broken Lamp, Shadeless Lamp, Shadeless Table Lamp, Vacuum Tube, Power Relay Coil, New Power Cables, High-Powered Magnet, Pre-War Lamp, Beaker Stand, Broken Lightbulb, Copper, Copper Bar
Cork
Baseball, Crystal Decanter, Crystal Liquor Decanter, Antique Globe, Classroom Globe, Clean Globe, Cork
Crystal
Crystal Decanter, Camera, Crystal Liquor Decanter, High-Powered Microscope
Fertilizer
Fertilizer
Fiber Optics
Biometric Scanner, Prototype Biometric Scanner, Pip-Boy
Fiberglass
Blood Sac, Jangles The Moon Monkey
Gear
Desk Fan, Gold Watch, Camera, Fishing Rod, Silver Pocket Watch, Typewriter, Giddyup Buttercup, ProSnap Camera, Carlisle Typewriter, Adjustable Wrench
Glass
Alarm Clock, Baby Bottle, Desk Lamp, Microscope, Research Test Tube, Shadeless Lamp, Shadeless Table Lamp, Brown Bottle, Drinking Glass, Empty Milk Bottle, Gwinnett Ale Bottle, Lantern, Light Bulb, Liquor Bottle, Nuka Cola Bottle, Shot Glass, Small Baby Bottle
Gold
Gold Watch, Gold Plated Flip Lighter, Gold Bar
Lead
Makeshift Battery, Pencil, Makeshift Battery, Lead, Pencil, Reporter’s Pencil, 40 lb Barbell, 5l b Weight, 80 lb Barbell, 80 lb Curlbar, 10 lb Weight, 160 lb Dumbbell, 25 lb Weight, 20 lb Dumbbell
Leather
Baseball, Brahmin Hide, Deathclaw Hand, Molerat Hide, Teddy Bear, Mole Rat Hide, Baseball Glove, Yao Guai Hide
Nuclear Material
Alarm Clock, Biometric Scanner, Blast Radius Board Game, Nuclear Material, Mini Nuke Hemisphere Core, Radioactive Gland, Radscorpion Stinger, Sweeper, Mini Nuke Detonator Shell
Oil
Paint Can, Unused Flip Lighter, Blowtorch, Flip Lighter, Gas Canister, Lantern, Used Oil Can
Plastic
Fancy Hairbrush, Toy Rocketship, Broom, Bread Box, Cigarette Carton, Clean Broom, Coffee Pot, Coolant, Dog Bowl, Empty Coolant, Enhanced Targeting Card, Hairbrush, Jangles The Moon Monkey, Luxobrew Coffee Pot, Pack Of Cigarettes, Pepper Mill, Plastic Knife, Plastic Plate, Plastic Pumpkin, Plastic Spoon, Salt Shaker, Suprathaw Antifreeze, Toothbrush, Toothpaste
Rubber
Basketball, Kickball, Plunger, Small Baby Bottle, Unfilled Kickball, Bowling Ball, Spatula, Bonesaw, Extinguisher, Plunger, Thermal Coupler, Kickball,
Screws
Globe, Handcuffs, Toy Car, Typewriter, Desk Fan, Hot Plate, Pepper Mill
Silver
Fancy Hairbrush, Silver Table Knife, Enhanced Targeting Card, Silver Fork, Silver Locket, Silver Pocket Watch, Silver Table Spoon
Spring
Unused Flip Lighter, Camera, Fishing Rod, Flip Lighter, Silver Pocket Watch, Typewriter
Steel
Coffee Pot, Tin Can, Toaster, Wrench, Desk Fan, Ladle, Paint Can, Unused Flip Lighter, Blowtorch, Can, Combination Wrench, Dinner Fork, Flip Lighter, Gas Canister, Lantern, Luxobrew Coffee Pot, Metal Bucket, Screwdriver, Shovel, Table Knife, Table Spoon, Untarnished Metal Bucket, Used Oil Can
Wood
Broom, Screwdriver, Trees, Clean Broom, Cutting Board, Fishing Rod, Paintbrush, Plunger, Shovel
