Weighing your toolbox!

[Blacknwhitepit]

My neighbor mentioned to me that recently when he went to a local junkyard, the junkyard owner insisted that his toolbox was weighed. Once in, once out.

Anyone ever had to go through that?

Seems a bit drastic, maybe he is sick of people stealing fuses and other small parts!

Also it seems like fewer and fewer junkyards let you wander around and grab your own parts. (Insurance liability). Kinda takes the fun out of it.

I have a litmus test of junkyards. The crappier the office, the better the junkyard and the prices!

I hate the junkyards that have waxed floors and tell you to wait while they pull your part!

-BWP

 

[Elroy]

They are in business to make a buck you know. Well Elroy needed an in dash wire harness once. Looked two or three yards over until I found the correct doner. Problem was the car had an engine fire that worked its way past the firewall and melted the windshield out. I looked the car over close and the harness Elroy needed was untouched.

Reached over the fender with a rag and pulled the windshield out of the way, got inside and started cutting wires until Elroy got what was needed. When Elroy took the harness to the office, it still had the pig tails from the other cut harness attached. The office "jerk" wanted Elroy to pay up like $500 for the all them "good wires" he cut.

Elroy told ******** it came from that burnt to a crisp POS, this it was the "ONLY" good harness left, he could shove the $500 and this customer was going to pay $15 max.

Be polite, stand your ground and pay for what you take that is good.

About a year later, Elroy was just pulling into this same yard on another mission. The Cops were just pulling out with someone in the back seat. Got out of the truck and asked what happened and "back-up Jerk" said they caught the guy taking some lug nuts. Go figure.

Elroy left right then and has never been back............Too many good yards to put up with that ****.

If I recall, Elroy got the harness for $10 and didn't have to pay for the windshield.

 

[Elroy]

Elroy has several "junk yard" stories. They all piss me off or make me laugh.

 

[Elroy]

One more, Go to this "scrap" yard. NOT an automotive yard but a scrap yard with piles of copper here and piles of aluminum there.

Saw this aluminum oil pan and and asked the "man" if I could buy it. Sure let me get a weight. That will be a $1.32, pay the clerk going out.

It was black. caked with $hit and I almost couldn't tell what it was. But Elroy could tell from the shape. Ended up being a Corba Aluminum "T" pan off a Shelby 289 HP. Took Elroy like a week to get it clean. It was in perfect condition!

That was about 1976. Still got it. Looks real good hanging under the '69

 

[wilbilt]

A friend of mine once went to a yard in the 1970s looking for door parts - mostly trim - for his 1960s Chevelle. He found some good parts on a car, and went up to ask "how much".

He was told "That's a good door, you will have to buy the entire door". Friend said, "Let me go look some more".

He returned to the (same) door and soon it had a large dent in it the same shape as his boot. He went back to the office and told them he had found a bad door with the parts he needed...

 

[Elroy]

He returned to the (same) door and soon it had a large dent in it the same shape as his boot. He went back to the office and told them he had found a bad door with the parts he needed...

That's "priceless". Sounds like he is a quick learner.

It's almost to the point they don't give a damn about the parts till someone wants it then it becomes "priceless".

You have to walk in there with the attitude the parts are junk just better than what I have.

Some things bring good money like tail lamps and mirrors. Elroy says they can shove fuses and lug nuts.

 

[Red Green]

My neighbor mentioned to me that recently when he went to a local junkyard, the junkyard owner insisted that his toolbox was weighed. Once in, once out.

Anyone ever had to go through that?

Seems a bit drastic, maybe he is sick of people stealing fuses and other small parts!

Also it seems like fewer and fewer junkyards let you wander around and grab your own parts. (Insurance liability). Kinda takes the fun out of it.

I have a litmus test of junkyards. The crappier the office, the better the junkyard and the prices!

I hate the junkyards that have waxed floors and tell you to wait while they pull your part!

-BWP

If it was a big hand box an altenator could fit in it.

That sounds a lot quicker and easier than looking in the toolbox to see if they put anything in it.

 

[Rickster]

Back in the 70's we had this boneyard in the area that paid like $50 for your scrap car if you drove it in and $20 if you had to tow it in. My buddy Larry had this POS 67 Mustang to scrap out. So we stripped it bare for parts. The boneyard happened to be off the main road at the bottom of a hill. We towed it to the top of the hill and Larry climbs in and sits on a milk crate. We push it down the hill, he coasts into the yard and fakes like he's turning off the engine, climbs out and lays the keys and the title on the counter, collects his $50 and took off running.

 

[wrenchr]

Standard junkyard policy........If it fits in your pocket it is free!!!! LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[wrenchr]

Now that we are talking about weighing things, I need to start weighing my wallet after I step off of the Snap-On truck.

 

[boiler7904]

My neighbor mentioned to me that recently when he went to a local junkyard, the junkyard owner insisted that his toolbox was weighed. Once in, once out.

Anyone ever had to go through that?

Seems a bit drastic, maybe he is sick of people stealing fuses and other small parts!

Also it seems like fewer and fewer junkyards let you wander around and grab your own parts. (Insurance liability). Kinda takes the fun out of it.

I have a litmus test of junkyards. The crappier the office, the better the junkyard and the prices!

I hate the junkyards that have waxed floors and tell you to wait while they pull your part!

-BWP

If it was a big hand box an altenator could fit in it.

That sounds a lot quicker and easier than looking in the toolbox to see if they put anything in it.

Seems like if the part was valuable enough, you could "loose" some of your junkyard tools (assuming they are cheap Taiwanese ****), put the part in the box and still come out ahead on the deal. Not that I would ever do such a thing. I'm just sayin.

 

[boiler7904]

Now that we are talking about weighing things, I need to start weighing my wallet after I step off of the Snap-On truck.

You don't want to do that. It will only depress you until your shiny new tools distract you.

 

[timgr]

Be polite, stand your ground and pay for what you take that is good.

That's right. And once they turn down your reasonable offer, don't rush off like you're insulted. Hang around long enough for them to reconsider. They might take your offer, or make a counter offer you can accept.

 

[Red Green]

That's right. And once they turn down your reasonable offer, don't rush off like you're insulted. Hang around long enough for them to reconsider. They might take your offer, or make a counter offer you can accept.

I figured I would speak up now My dad and I run a junkyard we had a guy that wanted a taillight out of a dodge charger the one that goes all the way across the the car. $20 was the price the guy said that was too much. well the car crushers happen to be in that day and after the guy said he wasn't going to pay $20 for the taillight my dad pointed to that car for them to crush after the crusher started the guy changed his mind but it was too late. It was worth $20 to see his face when that taillight broke.

 

[Brian]

I have never had my toolbox weighed but I have had it visually checked upon leaving.
The weighing thing seems kind of pointless. I have lots of rocks lying around my yard.

 

[Jononon]

Weighing does seem rather pointless. Go in with a few dead NiCads in your toolbox - spares for your impact wrench, if anyone asks, and you've got a couple of lbs free.

The last self-service place I know of locally works on a) trust and b) the certain knowledge that they'll feed you to the pitbulls if you take liberties, but almost everywhere now strips, inventories, and racks their breakers.

Rather than some half dead owd gadgee, who only stops chain smoking long enough to eye up your watch and your fillings, before pointing a thumb in the vague direction of whatever your after with a cry of 'av at it youth, and dunna f**kin' nick anything while I'm watching' a spotty teenager with a computer processes your order and delivers the parts on a shiny, branded, pallet. It's just not the same.

 

[rsanter]

some friends of mine used to go to pick a part and if they found a bunch of stuff they wanted they would put the stuff inside a door and then buy the door for $25

bob

 

[johnny1290]

Standard junkyard policy........If it fits in your pocket it is free!!!! LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!

LMAO!!! I've never done it, although I certainly could have at pick a part, but in my teenage years I sure knew some guys who did. They'd also put parts by the fence so they could get them after hours, if the dogs didn't catch them first!

I was actually kinda hacked that I totally coulda pocketed this sunroof switch and I declared it and they charged me like 12 bucks or so. Of course, it cost over $100 new, but I'm just sayin', I'd hoped that honesty paid a little better! hehe