Tool haul a scrapper finds in a dumpster...

[KnurledNut]

The whole video is worth watching, but the theme starts at 2:55.
Unfortunately, he didn’t know the value of the Starrett surface plate and left it behind. :-(

 

[woody 73]

Unreal what people throw away, just unreal. He had no idea about that surface plate, but I would bet after reading future comments he will learn about his mistakes.
Love the few tools he found.

 

[Bert_]

I need to make friends with more guys that scrap. Offer them more than the yard so I can get some good stuff.

 

[JuncleJohn]

We had to lock our dumpster after hours to keep divers from making a big mess in the parking lot. Metal chips mixed in with floor dry, misc trash etc just thrown all over.

Yes that Starrett surface plate would have been a good score. Obviously the ones that discarded all the goodies had no idea the value of what they were tossing.

John

 

[Dumber than lumber]

The whole video is worth watching, but the theme starts at 2:55.
Unfortunately, he didn’t know the value of the Starrett surface plate and left it behind. :-(

Did you post a “You ****!!” In the comments?

 

[four.cycle]

DAmn! That is crazy! Tossin' out perfectly good tools!

 

[Shiftless]

I’m not scrapper by any means, but I did pull this Reed vise out of a dumpster. My mailman knew I collected bench vises and he was nice enough to alert me to one that was bolted to a rotted old workbench sitting in a dumpster out at the curb a few blocks from my house.

 

[3baygarage]

Goodbye stir it stone

 

[MushCreek]

If only you knew what businesses throw out! I had recently left a job at one place to start my own business. The company told the maintenance man to clean out the store room, and he got pissed and threw out everything. Precision tools, tool steel; all sorts of stuff. The guys knew I was starting a shop and called me up. "Bob's gone crazy and threw everything out!" I filled my old pick-up until the springs bottomed out.

The last place I worked they threw out a welded steel table with a Wilton vise on it because it was 'in the way'. It's in my shop now.

 

[dchawk81]

I’m not scrapper by any means, but I did pull this Reed vise out of a dumpster. My mailman knew I collected bench vises and he was nice enough to alert me to one that was bolted to a rotted old workbench sitting in a dumpster out at the curb a few blocks from my house.

I wish my mailman knew I'm a prolific amazoner and gave me everyone else's packages.

 

[neophyte]

DAmn! That is crazy! Tossin' out perfectly good tools!

Check the “hoarding” threads on GJ.
Companies toss stuff because it costs more to sort or repair stuff than it is worth to pay the people who work there to fix the stuff, or maybe than the storage space is worth.
I would presume either a new granite plate was needed in a larger size, or that one had become out of spec for some reason, do into the dumpster it went.
The same possibly for the depth gages.
Once the items are thrown in the dumpster, they are legally disposed of, and can be written off of taxes as no longer in inventory, and therefore no longer a “stored asset” on the companies books.

 

[JuncleJohn]

Most likely the business or that part of it had closed and those in charge had no idea on how to handle liquidating the assets. They probably thought the micrometers and depth gages had no more value than a stapler or paper punch. The Starrett surface plate? Just a heavy rock to them.

Quite often big businesses are in too big of a hurry to lay off employees than to wind things down in an orderly manner. I blame it on the bean counters.

John

 

[MushCreek]

I had a buddy that worked for a defense contractor in the early 80's. When they closed the plant, they took all of the NEW carbide inserts out of the packaging and dumped them in drums for disposal. We're talking 55 GALLON drums of carbide inserts!

 

[rust in the eye]

Amusing guy and a nice haul. Not sure I'd want to do this for a living.
There is guy who patrols my neighborhood on trash collection day who sometimes has some interesting stuff aboard. I need to look closer into his haul when he stops here for my scrap.

 

[LXCam]

Last week I spent a day trying to make space in the shop. I’ve had these doors in my way for months

Jail doors - free!

Bet this is a first here. Free to a good home or possibly a really bad one. I’ve got 9 - 3/0 x 7/0 x 2” detention grade doors we had to swap out as they failed a ASTM deflection requirement. They’re set up for a vision pane (not provided) and your very own cuff port (hinges not provided)...

www.garagejournal.com

And decided to test out the tweeker scrapper theory and set them out in the alley. I also had a milk carton crate of the vision pain angles that was close to a hundred pounds tossed on top of the doors.

Within the hour the milk carton crate was gone and the top door had been shifted.

Within three days the entire stack was gone. Tweeker theory proven

 

[rust in the eye]

Most likely the business or that part of it had closed and those in charge had no idea on how to handle liquidating the assets. They probably thought the micrometers and depth gages had no more value than a stapler or paper punch. The Starrett surface plate? Just a heavy rock to them.

Quite often big businesses are in too big of a hurry to lay off employees than to wind things down in an orderly manner. I blame it on the bean counters.

John

Yep, I was once beneficiary of such a disposal.
Turned down a large genset, easy five figures, perhaps six, in a shipping container because I had no place to store and no way to move. Still kicking myself for not investing the time to figure that one out.