What people will throw away

Richard in NC said:
I have always enjoyed looking through junk and reclaiming whatever I could. In my mind a person that will do that is showing a special character trait. All my friends are great people and almost all of them love junk. When I was dating my wife 38 years ago, We were sitting quietly in her house one night when I said, "I would rather be over here with you than in the junkyard".
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i do this deere hunting, I found a porclin plated cup, couple of jacks,
CO-OP Oil container, '62 licence plate, 1946 Chevy paneltruck, freezers, antique washingmachines. A BOMB??? bouwee?? (was on an island in the mississippi) and dozens of SHMIDT beer cans, (even no one has drank it in the last 20 years, most have gone to Bush)
John
 
We had a swap shop shed at our dump,I read a lot and have gotten thousands of books out of it.It was manned by volunteers,people that just liked to hang around at the dump to socialize.They were just to make sure people wouldn't try to drop off junk that they didn't want to pay to get rid of.Junk tires,air conditioners,real junk.That is shut down right now.Some folks got up at arms because they were seeing things that had been in the swap shop show up in yard sales.Well,so what?Big deal,somebody threw it away,who should care if somebody takes the initiative to make a buck on it? We all got shut down on the waste oil thing for the same reason.The state was not bothering anybody at that time,it was being recycled in an approved manner,who cares? It was a handful of people that felt we were getting something for nothing and we shouldn't be.So instead the town pays thousands out,but by god we ain't getting something for nothing anymore.
 
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Brentwood Bob said:
Wick, thats special. On the left coast in our small town you will get a fine for curb leavings. Guess the latest residents have a code of conduct that comes with the mortgage. Bob
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when I lived in an upper-middle class neighborhood in Jacksonville FL, the pickings from what my neighbors put out for the trashman were incredible. lots of bicycles, extension cords, garden hoses, shelf units, lawn chairs &c &c &c.

now that we live sort of out in the sticks here, the neighbors are MUCH less wasteful. very few interesting finds on garbage day.......
 
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I have gotten less wasteful than I was when I was younger. I now live out in the sticks and seem to be able to find a use for almost everything and what I cant use I recycle. Having said that, there is such a thing as too much stuff piling up.....
 
It is Very disturbing what people throw away these days.... i grew up with absolutely nothing & thought that an old TV aerial was a huge find. Wood screws were like gold. There are third world countries that would take junk and reuse it to make or fix for items for themselves but i see it get destroyed, as policy, Not idea what that is supposed to acheive aside from make people borrow more from banks and get poorer...

Good to see you saved that though.
 
In NSW OZ, the dumps now are basically garage sales.

Have permanent staff that keep all the saleable stuff out and you go there and browse and buy it.

I visit about 3 times a week.
 
As a kid in the 60's I would go to the scrap yard and wander over the heap gleaning the iron and steel Model A parts. I believe that at the time they paid one cent per pound and sold it for two cents per pound. These days they would probably not allow that due to safety concerns.

Anyway, the first Model A part that I ever owned was a '30-31 rim. I took it home and spent many hours sanding it and eventually painted it a light primer gray. Seriously, all through highschool and into my college years it was my most prized Model A part (think: Scrooge McDuck and his first dime).

Anyway, during the time from high school to when my son and I returned to my dad's place to get my Model A, someone had (without my dad's knowledge) broken into the garage down the alley and stole most of my Model A parts including my prized '30-31 rim.

You know what, to this day when I hear the "ring" of a '30-31 rim, it reminds me of my first Model A part.
 
Wick said:
In our small county (no Traffic lights) we have a scrap metal dumpster,the opperators keep a long pole with a hook handy....ive picked Model A wheels,a martin house,steel for projects out of there....ive seen a Flathead,T gas tank and vw parts in there also.
Wick
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Wick what is a martin house?:confused:
 
A Martin house is for the birds called Martins, which eat mosquitos.

When I was stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso I went down to the city dump early one Sunday morning to see if I could find some good stuff. NOT A CHANCE! :mad:
There were at least a dozen Mexicans already there to decend on each car as it came in, like buzzards on road kill!:eek::eek:
 
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One of my favorite activities is scrappin". Sort out copper, yellow brass, sheet metal, batteries, etc. and take it to the local scrap yard. I call it a "3-fer". 1 you are cleaning up a property, 2 you are recycling metals to be reused and 3 you are getting paid a nice sum to do so ! Number 4 should be you get to find some neat stuff...since you are paid for the amount of junk you leave in the scrap pile...many times I load up some cool stuff I find that the last guy has dropped off. Kind of a junk exchange. Then you are weighed and paid for the difference in weight from when you went in. I have brought home tools, porcelain signs and light fixtures, cases of welding rods, etc and lots of car parts! Love scrappin !" One man's junk..."
 
Tom Wesenberg said:
A Martin house is for the birds called Martins, which eat mosquitos.

When I was stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso I went down to the city dump early one Sunday morning to see if I could find some good stuff. NOT A CHANCE! :mad:
There were at least a dozen Mexicans already there to decend on each car as it came in, like buzzards on road kill!:eek::eek:
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Thanx Tom i learn sumpin new everyday:D
 
Deluxe Delivery said:
One of my favorite activities is scrappin". Sort out copper, yellow brass, sheet metal, batteries, etc. and take it to the local scrap yard....."
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If the metal was processed locally (like in the same country) it might be ok but these days it helps communist countries. i might be the only person who opposes this anymore.
 
Ghost of elmirage said:
Thanx Tom i learn sumpin new everyday:D
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Ghost,
We built LARGE Martin houses, 2 or 3 stories high, many "doors," like condos or apartments,:D they are very social birds. Nail it on a TALL pole, dig a hole with post hole diggers and up-end it, and here they come!!:eek: Almost as much fun as doodling with an old Model A and hopeing to get it driveable!
A roar in the woods,:eek: run down the road to meet Chief, after a day of working for the W.P.A, first question, "Did you get the new condensor?"
Model A'ing brings back SO many pleasant times and is a BALM for my soul!!:) ( SIGH! )
Bill W.
 
Nope, There's at least two of us! When you find that it's getting hard to find that piece of scrap you once could pick up easily, you start to wonder if we haven't sold too much to the Chinese. A friend, who had his own Machine shop in NJ, was moving to NC and he discarded a lot of stock rather than move it. Now he's finding it hard to get and he wished he had saved a lot more of it. NO more goes out to the scrap man!
Terry


dumb person said:
If the metal was processed locally (like in the same country) it might be ok but these days it helps communist countries. i might be the only person who opposes this anymore.
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