Treasure at the scrappy..

[KemppiFrog]

So, buying some tube for a terrace awning, I wandered around the shed. My supplier is a recycling plant, that munches huge quantities of cars and other scrap but also has a section with discounted new steel.
Noticed a box in one of the scrap bins, so had a closer look. It contained hundreds of tungsten lathe tips, in various sizes. All unused.. I know the guy quite well and pointed this lot out. He had no idea, said it was part of a scrap load. I suggested he look into this a bit harder. He thanked me and said I could grab a few.
How anybody could chuck them out beggers belief, there might have been a 500 to a 1,000 in there.

 

[roofman]

So, buying some tube for a terrace awning, I wandered around the shed. My supplier is a recycling plant, that munches huge quantities of cars and other scrap but also has a section with discounted new steel.
Noticed a box in one of the scrap bins, so had a closer look. It contained hundreds of tungsten lathe tips, in various sizes. All unused.. I know the guy quite well and pointed this lot out. He had no idea, said it was part of a scrap load. I suggested he look into this a bit harder. He thanked me and said I could grab a few.
How anybody could chuck them out beggers belief, there might have been a 500 to a 1,000 in there.

The last wooden box of tungsten tips about the size of a microwave i picked up at my local scrappy weighed in at £800...they soon got put back

 

[Blobber]

Maybe they are faulty/not up to spec so be careful if you use them
The stuff companies/manufacturers throw out has always been shocking and still is, its one of my pet hates

 

[Johnnybravo]

They go for about £12 a kilo as scrap

 

[Barking Mat]

I used to regularly weigh in scrap at my local scrappies, and have a wander round, I used to find industrial distribution boxes and strip all the trip switches, single and three phase, they'd let me have them for free as they had no scrap value, saved a fortune on workshop wiring.

You seen the price of new three phase stuff, it's 'shocking'.

 

[bricol]

The stuff companies/manufacturers throw out has always been shocking and still is, its one of my pet hates

If you aren't using it, but storing it, stockaking it every time, it's taking up space you could use for stuff you do want, the time of employees you want doing paying work, therefore it's costing money several times over - so get rid. Most painless way to get rid, avoid prolonged sales efforts or negotiations, or comebacks over quality, quantity etc - let your usual waste disposal company take it away for the usual fee they charge.

Off the books, written off against taxes, frees up space, time - win win in all directions.

 

[Blobber]

If you aren't using it, but storing it, stockaking it every time, it's taking up space you could use for stuff you do want, the time of employees you want doing paying work, therefore it's costing money several times over - so get rid. Most painless way to get rid, avoid prolonged sales efforts or negotiations, or comebacks over quality, quantity etc - let your usual waste disposal company take it away for the usual fee they charge.

Off the books, written off against taxes, frees up space, time - win win in all directions.

I know how the system works, its how I get most of my stock!

 

[Morrisman]

The worst bit of treasure I ‘missed’ at a scrapyard years go was a huge V twin engine, think Harley, but twice as big. There were two, painted in military drab green, each one on its own little trailor. Single small carb in the v and a distributor next to it.
I have no idea what they were for, driving something like a siren or generator maybe. I procrastinated a bit and never bothered asking about them, my little shed at the time was already full with a car project.

A few days later I went back, intent on buying one, but they’d both gone.

 

[KemppiFrog]

The worst bit of treasure I ‘missed’ at a scrapyard years go was a huge V twin engine, think Harley, but twice as big. There were two, painted in military drab green, each one on its own little trailor. Single small carb in the v and a distributor next to it.
I have no idea what they were for, driving something like a siren or generator maybe. I procrastinated a bit and never bothered asking about them, my little shed at the time was already full with a car project.

A few days later I went back, intent on buying one, but they’d both gone.

Could have made yourself a twice scale Morgan 3-wheeler

Which, reminded me of a tale from the States, in the 70s. Bloke out in the sticks, farmer, happened to have a Packard Merlin in his barn (as you do...) and decided to build himself a plane. Not any old one, but a three times scale Fokker Triplane, à la Red Baron. Used what ever tubing he had around for the frame and some decent wood for the wings. Finished it and was running up the engine for tests, when it jumped the log he was using as chocks and took off. He managed a circuit and put it down OK. (he had flown in WW11) Since then, he had flown it about a bit. Obviously he broke several regulations so sent the story to the EEA by various routes, so they couldn't chase after him, included a photo of him leaning up against the lower wing of this humungous triplane.
Fokker DRI had about 100hp. Merlin 1500..

 

[arther dailey]

in a previous life in factory a scrappy in a rough old transit was loading scrap , he had two forty five gallon drums full of pen nibs , when I asked , he smiled from ear to ear , yup paid to clear em, and they are all gold plated...he knew his job !

 

[RichardM]

Many years ago the scrappy at my old employer used to take away the old rotary print screens free of charge, scrap the screens and return the end rings for reuse. The end rings were aluminium, the screens pure nickel.