Older guys....ever scrap any old tin you now look back on with regret?

I junked a 40 Ford sedan delivery for $35 bucks to pay for wheels work on my 55 T-Bird in 1961.

 

I sent a 57 Belair 2dr ht to the crusher 22 years ago. Basically was a shell rusted beyond belief. I had a guy ask me as I stopped for lunch on the way to the crusher, are you going to restore it? I told him it was too far gone. If I had it today again, I would do the same. Some stuff is just too far gone to fix.

 

many years ago..........sold

23 t body..........nice frame......early hemi complete........buncha odds and ends


total.........................50 bucks.........

took the 50 went to vegas had a ball

i was 20.......................................now 65

 

When I was 15 in 1960 in Artesia, Ca. I had the chance to buy a 1915 Model T sedan with a '49 or '50 Olds V8 in it just needed finishing for the large sum of $15 bucks. Had to pass it up because my parents didn't want that piece of crap around the house. Later I had to dump a '56 Study Hawk bad motor "get it out of here". Gave to the junk man a '49 Chevy Fleetline (fastback), '53 Chrysler w/HEMI, '49 Ford coupe, '50 Chevy sedan, '54 Ford coupe when I was drafted into the Army 1966 and a my uncle sold my Grandmother's '48 Ford fordor for $12 bucks to the junk man, that I was to get when I returned from the Army in 1968.
Plus alot more cars and or trucks I screwed myself out of.

 

you should have seen the old stuff that the old timers down at the tow lot that we rent from had thrown out, it would have made you sick,cars cut for scrap, new parts thrown out, alot of shit from the old days

 

Oh boy... You guys are gonna hate me, but here goes.

I was born in '60, so my teen years were spent in the mid 70's, when all the great supercars were getting ratty, and gas was too expensive for "regular folks" to afford.

I lived about 3 blocks from the largest Ford dealership in the state, and there was an AMC, Chevy, Pontiac, and Plymouth dealership within a mile of each other on the same road.

By a strange twist of fate, I had about 10 friends from the neighborhood who's fathers were salesmen at said sealerships.

At the time, big block 4 speed dual 4 barrel musclecars were considered "junk", and all the dealerships were taking them in on trade daily as people traded in their 400 hp gas guzzlers for new Pinto's, Gremlin's, and Vega's.

The salesmanager always tried to send them to the local dealers auction, but if they were the least bit rusty or had any body damage, nobody would bid on them, so they were returned to the dealership.

After 60 days of sitting, unsold, they [dealerships] would allow the salesmen to buy these cars for $22 [scrap value of $15 plus $7 transfer fee]

Needless to say, all us neighborhood kids got "hooked up" with these derelict un-wanted gas guzzlers, and so it was...
On any given friday, I would cash my check [for about $110] and go get a new car. I'd go down the line of available muscle cars, and look for the one with the most gas in it. It didn't really matter what brand it was, how many miles, what color, etc... Just so long as it had the performance V8. I'd pay my $22, drive to the corner station and fill it up with gas, and drive the bloody bejesus out of it for a whole week.

At the end of the week, I'd call a buddy of mine who owned a junk yard, and he would come get it, and give me $14 [minus $1 to junk the title] and haul it away.

I shit you not, over a 3 year period, I bought, abused, and scrapped well over 100 prime muscle cars.

If you can think of it, I'v owned it... Comaro's, T/A's, Road-Runners, Mustangs, AMX's,,, the list is endless. Every last one of them sent to the crusher for the price of scrap steel.

Including:
An ORIGINAL Dodge Daytona [missing nose cone, 440 auto]
A HEMI GTX [hemi had been replaced with a 383]
69 428 mustang fastback 4 speed [dented 1/4 pannel, cracked windshield]
And many others you would hate me for.

 

Well not scrapped, but 2 that haunt me to this day....one is not buying my buddy's MINT 69 Mach 1 for $3500 back in '88 cuz that was just crazy money..I still want one, I'll have to wait for *THIS* musclecar bubble to burst for me to afford one..

and the other was a '67 mustang fastback (6 cyl, but still) with new paint and slightly bad drum brakes...I struck a deal that involved him fixing the brakes, called him the next day and he'd sold it out from under me to his son's friend...for $1250

 

Shit Yes! 31 2dr. and extra set of fenders, spare motor,radiator, and
windshield. I loved watching Jalopies go roundy round for years. that
ate up a bunch of em.

 

Yeah!
49 Merc
49 Ford
50 Ford
56 Ford
49 Indian Chief

Wish I still had em all

 

When I was 13-14 years old, my little brothers used to play in an 'old' car dumped in a paddock behind our house. Someone took out the battery and just left it there, it even still had the keys in the ignition. Someone bought the paddock and drove a bulldozer over the car, then buried it under a house they were building.

12 months later I 'discovered' hot rodding (1963) and realised the 'old' car was a mint condition Model A Ford rumble seat sports coupe!

Cheers, Glen.

 

Cut up my first car, a '57 Fairlane, for scrap. It had one crunched front fender. I did pull the fairly fresh Y-block out of it for my Dad's '59 F-100, but the late '30's LaSalle crashbox got scrapped with it. As well as the chrome dash/window frames, tube grille, etc. The car was nosed, decked, shaved, with chrome reverses, with a new fender it would have looked at home in any car show I go to these days. Youth isn't wasted on the young, just the dumb.

 

When you are my age the list gets long. [61] When i was 17 brougt a bunch of parts, thru away a nice 31 roadster pickup body and 27 roadster body that came with them. I moved once , left behind a complete 41 willys Americar 4 door. too many more to remember, but back then [60s] nobody had any money, that stuff wasn't worth anything. everyone wanted a coupe or roadster or a new car.can't count the number of old drag cars cut up after taking the good parts off or just junked

 

In 1963 I had a '31 roadster on '32 rails. I also had a solid '31 coupe. I needed cowl patch panels for the roadster so I cut them out of the coupe. Also cut the rear crossmember out of the coupe and scrapped the rest. This was a time when there were plenty of A's in junkyards where I could have cut out those parts for very little money.

Then later there were lots of '55 Chevy two doors that got sacrificed to dirt tracks.

 

A friend of mine (local here) bought a chopped 51 Merc (NICE car) back in the early 60s to take the motor/trans and interior out of. Dumped the body at Riverside Salvage with the title on the floor and walked away. I believe the car is somewhere in the Jersey shore area now, alive and well.

 

when building my 'A' bone 2dr, the 'old' [experienced]guys said to get a 32 crossmember and related parts for putting in a V8. So I got a lead on one, it was a complete duece frame. We told the lady we wanted just the crossmember, she showed us where it was, and we began beating an chisling away, with hammers an chisels and finally got it out. Left the rest of the frame setting there. Got it $5 cheaper!! Wotta deal!

 

My Dad, who was born in 1919, worked for a utilities company and changed gas meters. He went into a lot of homes and basements to do this, and one day he found and old car in a basement in about 1951 -he did'nt know what it was - a 1906 something, and the owner said it's going to the dump so anyone can have it. My Dad only wanted the aluminum parts because the scrap prices were really high, so he beat the custom aluminum body off with a sledge hammer. I think it was a touring.

 

Sure. Who hasn't. What I really miss is some old wood.

 

STOP! I can't read anymore....I will start having nightmares, but I too did some smart things...I had a 31 Ford sedan back in mid 70s...It was my daily drive for years I was a police officer and used to race the squad cars, and won..One night one dumb sob took the sparkplug wires off one side of my engine, I ran a car and beat him, A little later that side broke down threw a rod...this car had a 1955 cad engine with a hydro matic trans..no fenders channeled,nice....sold it for $2500. Graham still gives me a hard time 25 years later....also sold a 1955 crown vic for $400. after i had it painted...

 

i sold some CHERRY 31 sedan fenders, spash aprons, running boards, brackets for like 300 a few months ago when i was unemployeed!!!! i also sold some 31 coupe doors that i found hanging in a garrage since the 40s that i found at a garage sale. i got 3 bills for both of them. dam i wish i still had those arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!! this thread made me MAD lol

 

Never heard of such a thing. Where could a fellar see any pics of this madness???

 

When I was 12 or 13 I watched my dad cut up a 41 Dodge that had been our family car and a PERFECT 32 Plymouth roadster. I was pissed at him for a long time because the roadster was my uncles and he had given it to me. Times were tough and scrap was a way to feed the family.

 

I am NOT an old fart, but I bought a 61 Pontiac convertible and was given a 53 Studey for nothing and didn't go get them. The rag got sold on the estate sale despite my bill of sale and the Stude still languishes in a barn until I get room for it.

There was one dumbass from a junkyard east of here that cut a 68 or 9 Super Bee or roadrunner ragtop in two because it was in the way. That was only ten years ago, and it was a complete car. His name went from 'Scrappy Joe' to 'YOU DUMB PRICK'........

 

My brother had a 55 Crown Victoria - black/white, 292, auto power windows & seat that we junked in the late 60's. I still have the title. Also a 51 Ford Business Coupe, first car I leaned to drive, was junked in the late 60's. 49 Lincoln 4 door got crushed accidently. 46 Plymouth Wood Station Wagon - too far gone to save was junked back in the early 70's.

 

When I was a kid I used to see all sorts of old 20's and 30's stuff. Didn't know what I was seeing. But the one that still haunts me was an old 26/27 roadster or A roadster on its side by the creek. No rust at all. Old timer that owned the land pushed that and all the sagebrush into a pile to clear the land for his new home. If only I knew then what I know now.

 

An old timer i know crushed 2 1936 lincoln zephyrs one because he could never get to stop leaking and the second one because his wife backed into a light pole in front of their yard. I thought it was b.s but he should me pictures of them when they were in good shape. I wanted to punch him in the mouth!

 

I junked a 56 Chevy 2 dr post car after I stripped it for stuff for my 55, and it was in better shape than the 55!! I junked a 65 T-Bird after I pulled out the 390 and C6. I also junked a 39 Chevy 4 door, but the steering wheel was worth more than the car. It was the one with the built in "ring" you could grab while turning the wheel. But what really chaps my ass is that I sold two 32 Fords and my old magnesium Halibrands for a fraction of waht they were worth. But I guess that's for the "Ones that got away" thread!

 

Well, nothing particularly rare or fancy, but not all that long ago I owned two '69 Dodge Chargers. Neither was anything rare (one was an ex-six with a 2bbl 318, the other a factory 383, but not an R/T or anything.)

Both were straight, minor rust, good glass, daily drivers- minus the usual little things that plagued old cars driven by guys with low-paying jobs.

Sold the 318 for $1,200, sold the 383 for $3,200. Thought I did good on both of 'em, til finding out after the new Hazzard movie came out, that even a rusty '69 beater with no engine was worth $5,000, and a big-block driver was worth $10K.

Years before that, I yanked the motor and one fender off an otherwise-complete '67 Toronado, and junked the rest. Nowadays, I can't find first-gen Toro parts anywhere except for a few that crop up on eBay.

Doc.

 

1967 GT 500 Shelby. Parted it out at Carlisle in 1999. Got good money for the parts though.....

John C

 

An old guy down the street watchin my build tells me when they used to race he had a great chassis set up and when the model A body was beat they cut it off and buy another for 25.00 at the dump. He said he has no idea of how many they destoyed.

 

Oh, the nightmares.
If we hadn't scrap the old tin then, it would be cheaper to get today....