Hot Rods Do you save your original parts?

I find this happens at my house too.

heheh, it was meant to be an essay question.
I added the true/false poll at the end to make it easy for anyone with no time to write a reply.

I had already decided to sell the tires. Exactly for the reasons mentioned, I wasn't using them, didn't like them and don't see any point in storing them if they will bring $ toward parts I want.

The wheels and covers I'm still undecided, but leaning toward keeping. I supposed if they brought enough $, they can go to a new home. Not even sure the stock wheels will fit over the disc brake set up I am planning.
It will be GM calipers from 70-72 mid-size/Chevelle. I want to keep my GM all GM and use easy to find replacement parts.

The two bbl carb and intake will probably sit on a shelf and collect dust. I doubt there is much demand for the little Rochester 2 bbl and manifold. I already have a '56 4 bbl intake and adaptor to fit a small Holley vacuum secondary carb.
I tossed out the leaky master cylinder, then learned there might be a core value it could be turned in for. Oh well.

The seat was actually my first part collected toward a '56 project. Its a bench seat with fold down arm rest from an mid-70's Chevelle. I bought used from someone that had it in a 57 chevy. I had it in two ot cars myself already.
I think these are the most comfortable seats GM ever made. I hate to part with it, but it takes up a lot of space in the garage.
This car has a nice original seat and my wife has already said to keep it.
-Steve

 

I seemed to have saved a lot of stuff over the years that I now question why I saved them. Some of this stuff I've moved from one shop location to another, 3 or 4 times.
A lot of this stuff has been helpful being re-purposed, but very little was reused as it was originally used for. What really bugs me is when I know I saved something but can't find it. I figure that if I can't find something I knew I kept for a specific reason, I must have too much junk here.

I'm retiring soon. The 1st year will be spent sorting through this collection to see what I will continue to keep, and what will go, probably for scrap. Gene

 

Been retired for just over a year now and have been slowly going through my stash. Found a lot of stuff I've forgot about - organized it a bit better but still have thrown very little out. I too look at something headed for the curb and figure I can make use of it somehow.
Still have all the original driveline parts from my Poncho in case I ever decide to return it to stock (probably not). As well as several bins of spare parts the previous owner passed on. Won't even get scrap value if I tried selling them so I'll just tidy everything up and hold on for now. When the wife retires in a few years and we downsize, thats when a bin gets dropped in the driveway and we do a major purge.


Sent from my iPad using H.A.M.B.

 

In the past I usually put my left over parts on eBay. Regardless of the part, price or condition everything sold quickly. Thats no longer the case. Recently I've listed some pretty nice parts at good prices and have gotten no bidders. For some reason selling parts on eBay right now is not like it used to be.

Gary

 

I find when I kept the parts, I'd move and store them for 20 years, only to give them to friends for nothing after all that time. Probably the main reason I sell most now is to get rid of the clutter right away or move it around for 20 years and give it away. Pretty easy choice for me.

 

LOL I pulled the Rochestr 2 bbl setup off a 307 and replaced it with an iron GM intake and a holley. The 2bbl and intake sat on my garage floor for 2 hours and a guy came by looking for an easy 2bbl intake and carb for his '80s Malibu he was scabbing together for his wife. GONE

I had three 3 bolt GM starters, on a shelf that sat for a couple of years they all went on broke Chebbies on their way to the HAMB Drags. I repaired the broke starters with parts I saved from starter rebuilds and I am down to one starter now. I guess I had zero invested in all 6 starters as I pulled them from projects, and I got cheese burgers out of them so everyone is happy.

Solenoids, distributors seats wheels tires you name it they all sit her for a while then move onto their next home, some get money exchanged some different parts I will never need and some just a smile and a thanks. It works for me. Hell about 10 years or so back I gave 3 complete engines pass through the Pork n Bean Garage. I truly believe that I live in the home for misfit parts.

 

Hello,

As sad as our drag racing history closed back in August 1960, in looking back, most of the HAMB readers would probably say we were crazy. To get rid of those parts from our 1940 Willys coupe build during and after was and exorcism of sorts.


Number 1: While we were building the Willys, parts started accumulating in the backyard garage. Space was at a premium in that small garage, so they were taken to the scrap yards in nearby Wilmington. What little money it gave us in return, went immediately for newish parts for the current build. That helped keep our mom from going berserk for her two sons involved in something so dangerous and dirty.


Number 2: After the explosion and tear down of the remains of the 40 Willys build, there were decisions to be made. My brother was instrumental in the ideas for what was going to happen to the remaining parts and what was left of the Willys. First, even as soon as the day after, he told us to get rid of the body/chassis and keep the rest. He knew our mom, after seeing a wrecked Willys coupe in the backyard, that scene would have compounded the “my son got burned…etc, scenario.” So, we kept the crushed Willys at our friend’s backyard until we could take it apart for the scrap yard.


Number 3: The purists and hoarders here would have had a fit if they saw what we left on the Willys body and chassis after the total removal of the driveline and necessary parts. A pristine set of rear fenders, split window, body, bumpers, doors and actually the hood was still ok. When it hit the fence, the hood popped up and was saved from much damage. The left front fender and the lower grille absorbed the most damage from the fence. Luckily, the fence gave a little and the crushing effect was minimized. But, we left the crumpled hulk in the driveway of the nearby Wilmington scrap yard near Lions Dragstrip for the minimal fee we received.

Number 4: At the time, my brother said to scrap it all, despite the fact that our friend, Atts Ono was building his 40 Willys Coupe. We all (Atts Ono, my brother and me) agreed that what was left, even though it was still in excellent shape, would bring sadness and probably “bad juju” to the next owner, using the pristine body parts. So the decision was made to scrap it all. It slid right off of the flat bed trailer into the scrap yard location.

Jnaki

So, within several months, everything “hot rod” got sold, except for the hydraulic floor jack and tools. We had a clean backyard garage for the next “Naki Brothers” project(s). Within a year and a half later, more surfboards got put in the rafters, a “Surfboards by Huey” repair/shaping shop opened, and a shiny 1962 Greeves “blooey pipe” 250cc Scrambler showed up for some noise and more fun.

Two opposite ends of the geography were being put together for our next adventures. Coastal vs Desert… They included those 50-100 mile, “Hare and Hound” races on El Mirage at a full, tucked in, speed runs, as well as sandy valleys and trails. Plus 400 mile round trips to catch some rare, empty waves in Baja.

 

We save too much stuff, can't stomach throwing away a part that might be needed/used at some point in time. I have a shed dedicated to old parts. That shed was put to good use in 2002 when the wife decided to build her own car. She raided the old parts shed and almost built the whole car from stuff we had "in stock". She made a trade with my son that originally I wasn't too fond of...a nice fresh 383 SBC crate motor for a running 1951 8BA complete with transmission. That engine is still in her truck & running fine. It turned out to be a worthwhile trade after all!

 

If it wasn't for eBay I too would probably scrapped some usable parts. In the past I've sold lots of stuff on the auction site. Very little lately. I'm about done with eBay for selling parts. Still look for buying though.

Gary

 

Depends on storage space, I also ask myself, are they parts or souvenirs

 

Depends on the build
The commercial stuff like my bus and step van, the stock suspension and chassis stuff gets sold/scraped
Normal builds I save stuff not to put back on but for trading material for more cool stuff

 

In fact I still have the spedo and gauges headlight switch heater switch and radio speaker grille from my 48 Olds 98 that should work in 49 cars and 50 88's too. I will give these parts away to anyone who will pay the shipping cost

 

you are repeating yourself better give them away quickly

 

Same here Carl...Suppose we could be called "HOARDERS" ?...Gotta start letting go of this stuff !!

 

Just don't let "keeping" turn into hoarding.
When repopped stuff appears in the market, it's time to sell.
A friend recently passed away and here's just a small part of what he had and would not sell. Inside the house was the same. Buried underneath that pile is a 65 Corvette (left) convertible and a 50 Merc convertible (right). Sad.

 

I tend to keep everything I pull off for a year then sell. Some things though are never tossed, something learned from my grandfather. Keep any and all motor brackets, pulleys, clips. We are always playing with small block chevys that it’s nice to dig through the pile and usually find what we need. We also keep all old radiator hoses as templates and test hoses before making loads of trips to the parts house. Then there are parts that you just hang on to for one reason or another.

 

Sometimes it pays to save spare parts, I saved the Hurst shiftier from my Falcon that I sold in 1969 and I dug it out from under the work bench, cut it up and adapted the shift handle to the T5 transmission in the Ranch Wagon.

Hanging on to the shiftier I was able to use a part that was on another car I owned after 40 plus years. HRP

 

I save some of the smaller items like gauges,clusters, etc and have a few NOS 40 grills in the attic. After a car is done, I wait a bit them every so often go thru the stuff and sell , give away or toss it. Have made the mistake of getting rid of items then needing them again-Oh well-part of the process I guess.

 

Do some folks keep everything because it reminds them of their youth
when having a car or hot rod was so cool?

 

I keep all the parts I pull, problem is, I also take the parts others pull off their cars, too.....I just hate to see stuff scrapped that cant be replaced. Compounded by the fact that I have seen some very, very rough pieces restored. Pieces that should have been tossed. Those are the pieces I end up with....HA! The throwaways....

 

I hate to throw away non replaceable parts too. That's why I have held on to those Olds parts all of these years

 

I have an addiction to parts lol. It makes me very happy. I buy what I think is cool to me.I have stuff in boxes , that I will come across in years later and surprise , it's Christmas in July.

 

Hello,

In remembering the story of saving the original parts, the 1940 Willys coupe had parts we had taken off and for lack of a better reason, we stored it behind the converted garage in a covered space. The garage was too small to store stuff we were not going to use. There was no truck, so we could not take it to the scrap yard, etc. During the build of the 40 Willys, we just stored the stuff and did not think anything of it.

Number 1: While we were building the Willys, parts started accumulating in the backyard garage. Space was at a premium in that small garage, so they were taken to the scrap yards in nearby Wilmington. What little money it gave us in return, went immediately for newish parts for the current build. That helped keep our mom from going berserk for her two sons involved in something so dangerous and dirty.

Number 2: After the explosion and tear down of the remains of the 40 Willys build, there were decisions to be made. My brother was instrumental in the ideas for what was going to happen to the remaining parts and what was left of the Willys. First, even as soon as the day after, he told us to get rid of the body/chassis and keep the rest. He knew our mom, after seeing a wrecked Willys coupe in the backyard, that scene would have compounded the “my son got burned…etc, scenario.” So, we kept the crushed Willys at our friend’s backyard until we could take it apart for the scrap yard.

Number 3: The purists and hoarders here would have had a fit if they saw what we left on the Willys body and chassis after the total removal of the driveline and necessary parts. A pristine set of rear fenders, split window, body, bumpers, doors and actually the hood was still ok. When it hit the fence, the hood popped up and was saved from much damage. The left front fender and the lower grille absorbed the most damage from the fence. Luckily, the fence gave a little and the crushing effect was minimized. But, we left the crumpled hulk in the driveway of the nearby Wilmington scrap yard near Lions Dragstrip for the minimal fee we received.

Number 4: At the time, my brother said to scrap it all, despite the fact that our friend, Atts Ono was building his 40 Willys Coupe. We all (Atts Ono, my brother and me) agreed that what was left, even though it was still in excellent shape, would bring sadness and probably “bad juju” to the next owner, using the pristine body parts. So the decision was made to scrap it all. It slid right off of the flat bed trailer into the scrap yard location.

After the destruction of the Willys, we were cleaning out the workplace and found the original Willys parts, (behind the side of the building) that we took off in late December of 1959. It was still pristine and if the Drag News AD lady did not misspell the AD parts, we probably would have sold it sooner. But, we did finally sell the stock Willys parts that we took off of the original stock coupe.

Jnaki

If the first build of the Willys coupe could be considered the original B/Gas coupe, then the left over parts from that first build were still sitting on the back workbench/shelf areas. So, those had to be sold or taken to the scrap yard, too.
JUNE 1960 LIONS DRAGSTRIP