Some of you can probably relate to this story, as I grew up in the late 70s and early 80s suburbia going to 'real' car junkyards as a kid. They used to be those dirty old places on the "other side of the tracks" where dogs roamed the streets and nobo... <BR><BR>To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.
No salvage there. Like 19Fordy said it is, "Painful to watch." Do you think our grandkids will think the same thing when they see a video of somebody crushing a 1989 Taurus, or Camry or some such thing?
yes,he took the words right out of my mouth,,and did you notice the lack of rust. This always hurts,,thank the Good Lord crushing cars in the South really didn't get strong until the 70's,,I remember the local yard still had a lot of cars until that time period. HRP
Wow, what a waste! That certainly wasn't my local wrecking yard, either. Growing up in SoCal in the 50's & 60's, I spent a lot of time roaming around the local wrecking yards also. In my pre driving years, we would check out the lastest arrival hoping to find some loose change, sometimes spending the whole day there. Once in my teen's, it was my source for custom or hop up parts, complete engines, transmissions or rear ends. There were a couple places that sold custom parts, but that would require driving to El Monte or Pomona. Another one of those things that will forever be lost to the ages...
Do any Spokane guys recall the old hillbilly shack on the edge of Spaulding's with all the T's and A's? They were arranged in a "circle the wagons" way. Was there an old timer living in there? Cool music to that video.
While going to college, worked in several junkyards, mostly preparing cars for the press. Almost everything got made into a cube. We had "junk" plates back then in Connecticut, and if if ran well we'd drive it until a better street car came along. Wasn't like today, most cars had maybe 70 to 80 K on them. We squished a chopped shoebox, Plymouth pickup,and many other nice runners from the fifties, and forties. Cars came in, got turned on their sides, and the gas tank was punctured with a pickaxe to get gas for the tow trucks. They were all set on fire every morning...(this was maybe 1/4 mile from downtown Stamford), the frames and motors cut out, and next door to the press. Kind of the same attitude that led to Indy cars being made into supermodifieds...no EPA or OSHA either. Thank you very much, and sleep well.
I can remember Sunday afternoon walks after a big lunch with my Grandfather down to the junk yard. We would walk row after row and he would tell me the year & make of the cars. What excellent memories.......climbing in and out of them and finding all kinds of cool stuff. It was nothing like the video!!
Dang, that was hard to watch! Best junk yard memory... when I was about 10, Dad brought home an old steering wheel which I promptly nailed to a big hackberry tree. I then had a "car" to drive, while sitting on a box. When that got old, I'd climb up the same tree and zone out in my treehouse! Now, my seventeen year old loves to go to the junk yard with me. We've found many parts for his 63 Mercury restoration!
Being from the Midwest,we keep everything until there's nothing left.But olderstuff usually had rust.On the other hand,we could find like-new interiors.After college,I would drive a VW to Phoenix,sell it,stay with friends and find a straight old car with no rust,but a crapped out interior and wasted rubber parts.I'd bring them back up here and redo them with salvage parts and have a no-rust vehicle.
That makes me sick to my stomache Thankfully, there are still some old salvage yards out there... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=312402 Malcolm
In the mid 80s, I had a 65 Impala. I knew of one yard that had a few 60s Chevys, and that's where I went when I needed something. But the yard owner was a bit temperamental. If you caught him on a good day, he'd let you just go look for whatever you needed. A bad day, he'd cuss for 10 minutes about everybody ripping him off, and tell you he didn't have it - whatever it was. So I'd go back a week or two later, hoping to catch a good day. Or maybe get him after the hangover, and before his second 12-pack...
When I would go to visit my Grandad in Western Colorado, we'd go to the junkyards. there were many that still had some really good cars in them. He knew all the owners so we could go and roam around in them. My great uncle owned several junk yards in Washington starting in the thirties, He would sell used cars to servicemen for a good price, then buy them back when they shipped out. From, what I understand, He had a yard near some swamp area and he'd push junk cars into the swam then dirt and keep doing it until the ground was stable-i guess he grew his property quite a bit this way. They were just old cars back then.
ahh the good old days when a car would be at the junk yard for years. one more thing, most of the cars were wrecks, nowadays most of the cars are towed off the streets, many still have a ticket on the windshield. I can remember going to the yard and having several GTO's to look through trying to get a $100.00 posi rear end. GTO's in the junk yard that would sell for $5,000.00 to $10,000.00 today. crazy
Most cars being wrecks back then gave junkyards a little more of an eerie atmosphere.I remember looking for late model Mustang parts (70s) when I walked into an area that they parked fresh wrecks.There was a Mustang convertible that had personal belongings most people wouldn't leave behind.Then it hits you like a train in a Drivers Ed film...this was Death Valley.
Cool and creepy at the same time. Lots if 49-54 GM saw their fate in that video. This video reminds me of the days of me and my brother riding our bikes to the junkyard by our farm and digging for spare change, owners manuals. Or whatever treasures kids back in the day thought was neat. Thanks for the throwback. Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad
that is damn scary! the music makes it feel like a slaughtering yard, like the old and sick cows they are pushed into the killing machine, whooo... gotta go down to the shop to see if my beauty is well ...
In the early 80's, when the breakers yards were full of stuff from the 60's and 70's you could pull parts off one car and do an upgrade on your daily driver - I fitted oil coolers from Skodas to my 2CV, bigger alternators, better seats etc etc. Nowadays nothing can be used in anything other than its intended location. I used to turn up on a Sunday morning and when the bloke asked me "What're you looking for?", I'd say I don't know until I see it ;-) Happy days...
The year was 1964 driving a '40 Olds in need of a cherry grill. Took a trip one Sat. to Long Beach and actually found a grill after hitting several yards but would have to pay $75 to buy the whole car in order to obtain. Got another lead but this time a old antique yard out in the Riverside area. This place was filled with nothing but pre war and it was a true pickers dream seeing all those large classics such as a Duesenberg or Cord stripped of their various parts. I miss the freedom we had when roaming those yards back then, different world now days, attorneys win another round.
I remember a 57 Ford that came in, the story was that five gentlemen had gotten in a knife fight, and hit a thruway post. Engine was in the front seat, (could have used the front of the car as a mold for more posts), and all were killed. Was a bitch to cut the motor out.
Jive-Bomber, are you mad at us? That kinda ruined my morning Im gonna hug my cars when I get home.. lol
I still go to a couple mom & pop bone yards, Back in the mid 50's til late 60's my Grandpa own a yard,i really never gave it much thought til he passed & i ended up with about 200-300 titles of cars he "recycled" he must have single handled crushed 50 + merc's & just as many shoe boxes,back then they were just $25 junkers some as low as $12.oo!
Didn't watch the video. After reading the comments won't either. I also grew up in so cal (Fontana) in the 50's-60's and loved to go the 'junk' yard. It was a treasure hunt and there were always grizzled old timers working there that knew everything AND if you were respectful would help out a kid. Remember towing cars in using a chain and 10' of 2" pipe (no brakes). You learned how to drive to survive! We got $20 and almost never went home with the $20. There is one yard left in San Jose where I live now and I hope they never close!