The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk What to do with "scrap" parts?

I know a lot of you guys have much larger piles of "spare" or "scrap" parts, but what do the rest of you do with the parts you're not going to use in your project?

I am attempting to restore a '50 3100 in a 2 car garage in a tight residential community that frowns upon clutter. I've already gotten two notices for parking the cab outside overnight. I have a spare front axle that a mechanic deemed unuseable (and quickly sold me a new one for way too much money), a torque tube rear end, a spare hood, a 4-speed tranny, 4 leaf springs and lots of engine parts that were recently replaced taking up room in the garage. And I can't seem to give this stuff away. What's the next option? Scrap yard? Auto salvage yard? Who will take it?

Hey RedGreen,

Weld it all up and make a sculpture. Could be kinda cool!

In texas we get by with calling it yard art. Just put out a sign that says on display from the gallery of Red Green.

Put an ad in the local Thrifty Nickel and see if there are any takers. If not then take it to a local salvage yard and just give it to them for recycling.

There is a guy out here in So Cal that got an airplane fusilage and some other parts and scattered them around in his front yard along with some assorted bodies and other gore for a Haloween display. I guess you could make a truck wreck scene and get away with it for a while.
Fred

Scrap metal is in big demand up here so it must be the same everywhere. People are stealing metal from job sites, taking it out of yards and off existing buildings. Someone left a coil of heavy gauge copper grounding wire on the ground at a local job site and when he came back from lunch it was gone! Companies here are more than happy to pick up junk steel for nothing and then they sell it to recyclers who ship it to the Orient to make KIA's!

I like these ideas. I could practice my welding skills while "making art". I don't know how well the "association" will go for it. But it would be fun to watch their heads spin.

I like the idea of the salvage yards for some of the bigger stuff. I'd hate to crush a useable 4-speed and hood. The rest is going to the scrap metal guys.

Build a second "rat" truck and park that out front in the street, and use it for a daily driver. Then you can store your old parts in the back of the pickup. Leave all the old patina and rusty fenders flopping in the wind.

Is there a local craigslist?

how about a local wrecking yard?

I would think that the 4 speed and good sheet metal would be fairly easy to give away...

you could put it on ebay for a buck? I got rid off the entire drivetrain from my 39 by selling the tranny for $5.00 on ebay... the "winner" was happy to drag the TT rear end, front end, extra (aftermarket) wheels/tires and some other crap away... and I didnt take his $5.00 either...

Don't crush any good used parts. There are plenty of local guys (myself included) that would love to have spare parts for their trucks. Just put the word out and I'm sure that you will have no problem getting rid of them. If nobody wants them, let me know and I'll drive up...the 4 speed alone is worth the trip.

Why not advertise them on the stovebolt in the swap section ? I need a number three grille bar .

years ago before i knew better i took a whole load to a recycler extra engines, complete front suspension, torque tube and a lot of other extra parts. wish i hadn't. i do have three trans, rear springs and assorted parts that i don't know waht to do with. i don't want to mess with e bay. ron

Build a doodle bug thats what I did. Check it out best tool I've ever owned. Park one of these and out front see what the neighbors think.

Try to trade them to another AD fan for stuff you do need.I've done a bit of that. Or just give it to another AD fan. Who knows , maybe when you need something he has spare, he'll give it to you. I've made a couple of friends that way . I don't even care if I get parts, the friendship alone is worth it.
Lothar

I put up a storage facility (a grain bin) for my extras. The day after you get rid of something, someone will ask for it. I would rather give parts to people who will use them than collect scrap price for them,
Scott

List them in the Freebies section of stovebolt.com or try your local Chevy car/truck club. No matter where you live, there are fellow stovebolters looking for spare parts. Horse-trading with fellow bolters for parts you need is also a good option. I hate to see any good vintage parts go to the recycler. Explore every other option before you do that.

Don't know bout the scrap, but I really love the Doodlebug. When I like something a lot I alway's proclaim "Mongo Likee" but it seems redundent in this case so..... Me likee.

The parts that could be buried, are behind the barn.

I posted a few things in the freebies section and ended up moving a few extra pieces to that stovebolter, including some old bedsides. But it seems the parts that I'm trying to get rid of, everyone else is also.

Ebay has come up as an option, but have you ever tried to sell a transmission and/or rear axle for $0.99 with $100 shipping? I always seem to loose money on shipping when I sell through ebay.

I like the idea of burying them in the backyard. Then they will always be there if I need them. Maybe I'll post some things in the 'parts for sale' forum. Rocketman, holler at me next time you're heading through this area. I'm sure we can make a deal on something.

I've got a couple of cars and a bunch of wormy sheet metal buried in my back .04... and it's a PITA!!!! :mad: . it's all in a washout area, and it is constantly being undercut, then I fall into it...

I would try and locate someone in your area that restores old cars and trucks. Also, try posting on some of the local free want ads. If you attend swap meets, make a list, and take it with you. you never know, maybe you can work out a trade for something that you need.
I agree with Rusty, try Craigslist. I read it all time. If you have no luck in your immediate area, branch out a couple hundred miles, and try again.

Good Luck

John

Hey guys, make sport of burying if you will, but it is true some guys do it in the dirt so to speak. In a certain county in Colo, the county commisioner told by in-laws to "clean it up" so the parts that fit the shed went to shed , and the overflow parts got coated with wd and buried under a 68 chevy hood along with notes to the finder of what the parts are,then and covered with topsoil and grass seed. We know it there when we mow and it pops in the center. So far no need for the parts, but a great story. Jon

Might as well toss in my $.03! Old truck parts here in Florida, are really getting hard to find.
A local salvage yard recently crushed 20, 40's& 50's relatively complete vehicles, complete engines,
transmissions, carbs, PowerGlides, 848 heads, open diffs...stuff they aren't making anymore.
Of course, he saved that stack of Pinto's and old Dodge vans, as they will probably be in great demand real soon!!!!

I had a perfectly good sm420 with TT 3.90 diff, 4-6 lug spoke rims w/ tires that came within hours of going to the scrapper! Fortunately, a guy on the Gulf coast (1 hour away) needed the whole bunch so they are now under a "Burb" he was restoring. Mr. Red Green has scored some brake drums....too heavy to economically ship but delivered to him personally on a trip through his town! Really great guy with a neat project! Friendships were formed.

What we need to do is identify the "Stovebolt" folks that live within our respective states, and catalog a list of what is available. Simply adding the 'state" as RedGreen did in his recent swap meet post is a step forward.

The key is communication....the vehicle should naturally be the computer, and some of you savvy folks should be able to come up with a plan that would get the job done. A network of Stovebolt builders within each state that could list their freebies. Hold that thought!!!!

We have a "Craigslist" but it takes time to sort through all the dead "Tuner Parts" to score a Stovebolt engine, transmission, or set of perfectly good used niffly pins.

I personally think that we have a responsibility to keep our "passion" alive or the next generation will think that playing with an "X" box is what life is all about!!! Preserving and sharing our extra hardware should become a priority. And besides that....my backyard is so full of buried parts that I can't find an open spot to stash away a sparkplug!!!

How about it computer guru's.....can it be done...before I start welding up some "art"?

I work for a machine shop that has a large scrap dumpster. I take all of my scrap there. This is easy for me, since I go there everyday. If just getting rid of it is your concern, I'd call local scrap dealers, larger machine shops, or your local goverment recycling center. Scrap is high now, you won't have any trouble getting rid of it.

I had to laugh following this thread. The idea of buring parts really hit home. A buddy and I were at my in-laws building a retainer wall along a creek with sacks of Ready-Mix concrete. I noticed something in the creekbank shining and dug out a nearly perfect chevy hubcap. Further investigation uncovered a buried '55 Chevy Belair convertible. Of course it is way past restoring now but...what a shame! We did scrounge a second hubcap, both wiper arms and some chrome, all in very good condition.

I was serious about the burying. My shop is built on top of a pond someone dug, then filled in with a Corvair and lots of sand. I have contributed to my landfill

HEY do you still have the extra hood??? I am looking for a new hood....I remember you had one in the garage...also do you still was mill work with aircraft metal???/ Call me if you want 685-2867...Later.....

Sean

Redgreen Another idea is to post it on a site called freecycle. go to www.freecycle.com and find the one for your area. I guarantee someone will come get it... Also put in free want ads on this site.

go to sell at parts arama.next what you don,t sell stop at the scrap yard.about time anyone want,s anything it will turn to rust and junk

Sean,

Yes, I still have that spare hood in the garage. And it comes with a 4-speed tranny and torque tube rear end and 4 leaf springs. ;-)

Give me a call.
David

post it for free on craigslist.org in the section nearest you... in the stovebolt swap meet freebie section...

the 4 speed tranny, I figure some off road guys might want...

-W

Try www.freecycle.ORG (not .com)