There is something that I have been trying to figure out... is there a distinction between scrapping and storing in the workshop mode... I assume once you scrap an item that you have created you wouldn't get all the materials back... I have seen evidence of this... But do you get all the materials back if you store the item...

If you store an item, it isn't destroyed at all. If you navigate through the workshop menu to the item you stored, you'll see the thumbnail icon for it now has a numeric value under it (matching the number of stored items of that type)

Make sure you have no chairs in your workshop inventory (Furniture>Chairs> look at any chair you're thinking about) if there are no chairs stored, there will be no numbers under the thumbnails.

Now walk to the nearest room with a couple of chairs, store them instead of scrapping them, then again Furniture>Chairs> navigate to the style chair you stored, it will now have a 1 or a 2 etc, depending on how many of that type you stored. No material loss

BE WARNED: Items stored STILL count toward your settlement size, so if you're really not going to use it, just scrap it because storing something you're not going to use is just taking up space you could use to build something you do want.

:edit: Also, you won't be able to construct a 'new' item of the type you stored, until you place the one in storage in your settlement first.

Scrapping items give you a reduced resource pay-back no matter what or how you do it. With crafted items mainly guns you can save some of the mods before you scrap them and it might help you save resources. However it often costs something just to do that. Like say for example I have a sniper rifle I love but just found one legendary that has bleeding or has damage bonus that I feel would be helpful. What I can do is switch my costly upgrades back to the low cost 'Standard' version and thus save the more costly mods and then swap them at no further cost to my new sniper rifle.

I sometimes store walls/roofs/furniture into the work bench but, mainly during my first run through settlement. They seem to have things set up when I first arrive in a very space consuming manner. I mean even plants are spread way too thin and I like to consolidate them into more compact rows. Also I do eat up space even constructing say stairs and small floors as I use them as make shift "scaffolding" while I am building up my own house plans. So I just take some time before I decide to scrap furniture or walls etc.. Never know when they come in handy again and I dont like losing the materials already spent.

I have not used the workbench exploit ever and when space gets eaten up or my settlement size is hitting yellow I just lay off a bit and it seems if I give it time the size increases on its own. I dont know what factors into this method.. It may be that I also will scrap other non essentials such as in Sanctuary, I took some time at just going around and scrapping all those picket fences. Also it took me a good few game days just to go around and clear all the buildings of objects.

I have myself not been using my workbench to store items. Items don't seem to transfer by way of provisioner's. I am not sure but what I think is it is just base materials that transfer. So I build a trash can next to work benches just to dump stuff into, Junk mainly. Then when I have time I pull all junk out drop it so it falls in a ring around me and bring up work mode to scrap it all.. This way I have only transferable materials in my bench. I store mods also in my bench but general items like weapons and armor I sort into separate containers. This helps with organizing my items into a fast dump and find system that works better then just emptying my pockets into workbench. Part of my anol item storing method actually drives me to separate, cookable foods from prewar foods, from medical supplies. I even have a trunk for storing magazines so my Misc. section wont get to cluttered.

I was having problems where I was like: ' I know I have a bunch of copper I just collected a bunch, these settlements are connected, so why cant I build a generator?' Then I went to the connected settlement where I dumped a bunch of hot-plates and fuses etc.. Scrapped them and was like "Okay seems like I have copper at my other settlement now.." So this is why I am 90% sure that only base material transfer.

Correct, only materials are transferred as needed. Crafted items are "locked" to a settlement. But being able to store your 1000 junk items for steel/wood/etc at Sanctuary and just set up a supply line makes building at new settlements immensely easier


I've heard some people point out that crafted weapons/armor that are stored in the workbench are fodder for scrapping, so I would advise that any weapons that you want to preserve are stored in a separate container so that they don't get accidentally scrapped when you're building advanced items, like automated defenses that might need nuclear material from one of your precious weapon scopes, etc.

Yeah see that's part of what I was bringing up.. I don't think if you store a fan in the workbench you can use the screw from it at Sunshine mills even if you have supply line there. I think only the base material components get shared. Which is why I store stuff in a junk trash can then when I have time break it down. I was losing materials (not really) meaning I was dumping my pockets at say Grey Garden then when I needed it found I could not use it unless I went back to Grey Garden then broke the fans, cans, fuses and other 'junk' to its base material components.. I am not fully sure on this whole subject but I have been treating it as fact and just empty my pockets into a "trash can" I build next to workbench so everything in there I mentally treat as a "Job that needs to be finished at some point" and wont expect to have copper or screws from those junk items until.. I break them down.

Just trying to better explain as I am not sure if you are agreeing or not on this situation.. Once I came to this conclusion and started my crazy item sorting method I found it has helped me better be aware of what resources I have and where.