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Own a machine shop? Beware of scrappers.

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by bobss396, May 3, 2013.

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  1. hemifalcon
    Joined: Mar 20, 2008
    Posts: 380

    hemifalcon
    Member

    ...anything that can be recycled... will be recycled.. The scrap yards will do the minimal which their state, city, or municipality requires of them with regard to record-keeping and documentation of their "customers". Someone mentioned earlier about the scrap company sending checks as a means to ensure "legitimate" business operation rather than fly-by-nite scrappers---well, most are like pawn shops and "cash" deals walk without paper.. As said earlier--90% of the scrap yards will not ask questions. Years ago when the only "scrapping" that was happening was people collecting aluminum cans, the scrap/recycling companies were a little different. Those of you storing any form of recyclable metals better watch out--the heroin addicts are the ones that will get you. And--don't think the raw weight of your scrap material will dissuade them.

    Thefts of old lead-acid batteries?? yup--seen it.
    Attempted thefts of commercial A/C units?? yup--seen it.
    Thefts of brand new spare tire/wheel assemblies from new car undercarriage?? yup..
    Theft of catalytic converters with a sawzall from new vehicles/busses/trucks?? yup..
    And of course the internal rape of residential structures of their piping/wiring..

    The scrap prices make all these thefts worthwhile even for their meager offerings.
    There are very few scrappers out there who are doing it "right" and only removing the roadside offerings and those things placed out by folks as refuse--others are out taking anything visible--items attached to vehicles, buildings, etc.

    If you play naïve or ignorant and think that your shit can't get stolen-unfortunately some time the addicts and thieves will remind you that they are more brazen than you allowed yourself to believe.

    Protect your shit-or lose your shit..
     
  2. Ester Eddie
    Joined: Feb 26, 2012
    Posts: 3,988

    Ester Eddie
    Member
    from Alaska

    I agree with the "protect your shit or lose your shit" but I just don't see it up here.I work 6 days a week at the scale up here .Dealing with grandma and her 2 pounds of cat food cans,drunkin bums on bikes with their beer cans.In the summer traffic to the yard doubles but I just don't see all these bad people that are talked about.I guess living in the middle of nowhere on the top of the world where it gets 45 below may drive them all south.
     
  3. young'n'poor
    Joined: Jan 26, 2006
    Posts: 1,281

    young'n'poor
    Member
    from Anoka. MN

    Two maintenance guys at my work a few years ago stripped a few spot welders we had in a separate storage building of all the cooper a few years ago. They cut all the non copper up and put it in different scrap containers around our 14 acre factory and nobody noticed. The mistake that caught them was going to the scrap yard our work deals with in a company truck and asking for two personal checks instead of credit to our account. But the employee there told us straight up if two decently dressed guys in a nice clean SUV or newer pickup showed up with that much scrap and had a story that sounded plausible they wouldn't have even thought twice. Moral of the story is, even though we are all watching for meth head and drug addicts, the nice former banker down the street who is on the verge of foreclosure may be just as much of a threat. Lock your stuff up and Out of site, even if its a pain in the ass. Thieves aren't gonna stake out your spot waiting for scrap, if it's not a quick buck they will move on
     
  4. rustyangels
    Joined: Sep 28, 2010
    Posts: 182

    rustyangels
    Member

    An Ironworker buddy of mine was changing beams on a bridge near a scrap yard in Chicago, and saw two tired guys dragging a long bike rack down the street with a bike still chained to it!
     
  5. banjeaux bob
    Joined: Aug 31, 2008
    Posts: 6,616

    banjeaux bob
    Member
    from alaska

    Zombies are real....and not just some make believe TV show.
     
  6. instead of flesh they crave it's copper!!....and meth
     
  7. burnout2614
    Joined: Sep 21, 2009
    Posts: 612

    burnout2614
    Member

    You are correct Bob! peace
     
  8. Junior Stock
    Joined: Aug 24, 2004
    Posts: 1,891

    Junior Stock

    Traditional scrapping?
     

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  9. There is a scrapper guy around here that makes up for all the jackass ones. If he gets old car parts, he comes by here and sells it to me for just slightly over scrap value. He gets a few bucks more than they would give him, I save parts from the scrapper and honestly, Ive made more than a couple bucks on it all.
     
  10. ems customer service
    Joined: Nov 15, 2006
    Posts: 2,634

    ems customer service
    Member

    i agree
     
  11. madmak95
    Joined: May 12, 2005
    Posts: 779

    madmak95
    Member

    My mother-inlaw is remodeling her old house from her first marriage. Shes had the electrical breaker box cut off it 3 time already. Hate thieves!
     
  12. s55mercury66
    Joined: Jul 6, 2009
    Posts: 4,335

    s55mercury66
    Member
    from SW Wyoming

    The company I work for has had a diesel/electric drilling stripped of all its copper. Twice. And not just the DC leads and heavy cords, oh no. Even the phone lines.
    I was back home several years ago, they were stealing transformers from power poles there.
     
  13. jfrolka
    Joined: Oct 4, 2007
    Posts: 898

    jfrolka
    Member

    We have a machine shop and firmly believe in a closed door policy at all times, too many snoopy people and nobody should be looking at whats running in the machines.

    Closed door policy, please wait in the lobby.
     
  14. RussK
    Joined: Sep 19, 2010
    Posts: 121

    RussK
    Member
    from Atlanta Ga

    my sister and her husband were in church when some one came broke into the basement and started steeling copper, they heard the noise and caught him.
    Its a small Baptist church in the western mountains of NC the middle of nowhere.
    cops arrested him and took him away he had stuff from two houses un his truck
     
  15. supervert
    Joined: Mar 8, 2009
    Posts: 433

    supervert
    Member


    so then, when they called me a few weeks ago with a yard full of "A" , "T" and deuce cowls and door skins, i should of closed my eyes and let it go to the scrap yard. since i looked at it i have been trying to get the OWNER to let me try to sell it for him. they where just trying to junk it all.


    too many asshats on this board, so quick to jump to conclusions and talk shit.
    im sorry that all of you are right and im wrong.

    just because you guys cant trust the people that you know doesn't mean that everybody has to be that way.

    all i know is that the more i come on this board the less i like it.
     
  16. Ive been selling a great amount of my hoard for scrap. Around here you have to show a drivers licence they take a thumbprint and copy your vehicle license number. I dont believe the scrap processors I deal with knowingly want to buy stolen merchandise. they wont accept rail road iron. or highway items like guard rail or signs. Old Wolf
     
  17. Junior Stock
    Joined: Aug 24, 2004
    Posts: 1,891

    Junior Stock



    So true
     
  18. mashed
    Joined: Oct 15, 2011
    Posts: 1,473

    mashed
    Member
    from 4077th

    Jumping to conclusions? You posted this, right?
     
  19. McGurk
    Joined: Jul 13, 2011
    Posts: 85

    McGurk
    Member
    from Mid West

    Where I live copper theft has become a serious problem. One of the companies that I supply material to had one of there plants completely stripped one weekend. The damage was estimated to be $180,000.00. The thiefs are not stoners because they know to much about the precautions to avoid being electrocuted.

    Just this last week they stripped a Westar Energy transformer yard. They operate in plain sight and have stripped city park lighting circuits and all of the refrigeration copper tubing off of the roof of a meat processing plant. Local authorities believe that they surround an area with lookouts and use radio communication to alert the strippers when there is traffic in the area. Definitely not the work of stoners.

    McGurk
     
  20. 1952henry
    Joined: Jan 8, 2006
    Posts: 1,365

    1952henry
    Member

    Only going to get worse. Many folks out of work and whats o'blamo's priority? One week it's gun control, then gay marriage, then immigration amesty, call a gay who's outed himself, and on and on. "Oh, folks is out o' work? F' em!"
     
    Last edited: May 4, 2013
  21. slammed
    Joined: Jun 10, 2004
    Posts: 8,150

    slammed
    Member

    WTF is that comment suppose to be, humor? Are you alluding he is knowingly receiving stolen property? And by what hard evidence are you producing?
     
  22. k9racer
    Joined: Jan 20, 2003
    Posts: 3,091

    k9racer
    Member

    After retirement I became a scrapper.. I average about 6000 lbs per week. I have deals with over 20 shops. I pick up their scrap.. They know me and don't worry about me stealing anything. ............................................I buy refrigators for the shops and several times a year I buy each shop crew lunch............................... But back to the bad scrappers.. I went by one of my stops and a shop employee told me a young guy came by and said that he was my son and I sent him to pick up scrap.. The man has known me for 40 plus years. I have no children and this guy was a different race than me................ These guys have balls they will steal anything not nailed down...... Now Alabama has laws No burnt wire can be sold. No air conditioner parts unless you have a A/C lic. No Catalic converts can be sold without the car title.. You must have a valid drivers lic and have your photo taken for all scrap sales.. Can sales are exempt because of the homeless.
     
  23. Sometimes you just have to step away for awhile. HAMB is so full of VERY kowledgeable people that share tons of great information. Unfortunately, it has become THE forum to be on, which invites a lot of guys that have "the toughest keyboards in the valley".

    Either step away from the forum for a few weeks and regroup (Ive had to a few times) or, left the comments slide off you, or block them and never see (or care) what certain people have to say.
     
  24. weps
    Joined: Aug 1, 2008
    Posts: 544

    weps
    Member
    from auburn,IN

    here in Indiana you have to produce a photo ID, they take a pic of the stuff you brought in (non ferrous) WITH you in the pic, AND your write down your license plate info.
    I am not much of a 'nanny state' kind of guy, but these things have reduced thefts a lot. The scrap yard also employs an off duty police officer to help 'check in' the loads received there. I often wonder just how many trucks turn around when they see that police cruiser sitting out front.
    Bad thing is that it is all but impossible to scrap old trucks we dig out of fence rows that no longer have titles.
     
  25. i like cars & stuff
    Joined: Sep 14, 2012
    Posts: 80

    i like cars & stuff
    Member
    from Aotearoa

    Ban the sales of anything except empty cans. Problem solved.
     
  26. lostforawhile
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,160

    lostforawhile
    Member

    they hit lakeside assembly of God church here, tore up three of the big air conditioners at the new sanctuary, cops spotted a truck coming out of the driveway and chased it, and it got stuck in the woods trying to run, they were caught, 0ver 15 grand in damage for a little copper, not only will they be prosecuted for the damage, they have had federal charges filed for the release of the refrigerant, and there is some new law that makes it a felony to damage a church, the air conditioner thefts have dropped a lot since they passed laws dealing with copper parts from them, it's gotten so bad otherwise, that they have even stripped graveyards of anything metal, whats next, they dig up coffins and steal the metal parts?
     
  27. lostforawhile
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,160

    lostforawhile
    Member

  28. i like cars & stuff
    Joined: Sep 14, 2012
    Posts: 80

    i like cars & stuff
    Member
    from Aotearoa

  29. lostforawhile
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,160

    lostforawhile
    Member

    get rid of what people? they are digging up peoples graves to steal metal, it's only a matter of time before it starts happening here, they are already stealing nameplates off of gravestones, people have had all the metal stolen out of their houses, there have even been a few reported cases where they have stolen urns with peoples ashes, and dumped them out, they dont care where it comes from. The crack and meth zombies are very much real
     
  30. wsdad
    Joined: Dec 31, 2005
    Posts: 1,259

    wsdad
    Member

    Well, this probably explains why that old lady yelled at me for turning around in a cul de sac with my truck load of used appliances. She probably thought I was a scrap thief. I actually repair appliances. I couldn't figure out what I had done to upset her - she was really mad. Most of the time, "a soft answer will turn away wrath." But she was not going to be denied her rage.

    I hope one of you idiots don't shoot me someday, just because I have a beard and drive an old truck full of junk. It'd be nice to get a trial first, if that doesn't inconvenience you too much. Just make sure you have a real thief in your cross hairs. Don't shoot the plumber, electrician, appliance repairman or the guy who was hired to remove rubbish or scrap. Some of us carry guns and will defend ourselves if fired upon.

    What we need are stronger consequences, not more restrictions. No one wants to build jails or hard labor camps. There doesn't seem to be harsh enough punishment for crimes. It seems worth the risk of getting caught, to a scrap thief. I guess people think punishment is mean, but it's really not. It's really nice to everyone who doesn't steal.

    Reefer said, "...The government introduced a law making it illegal to pay cash for scrap, and you can only get paid into a bank account now...we have certainly not had to replace any copper tubing for customers since this became law, so I guess it has helped with the problem." That seems really smart. I hope it spreads. It still doesn't punish the real thieves, though.
     
    Last edited: May 5, 2013
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