"pull it yourself" yard bad experiences?

[wayfast1500]

My brother broke the oil pan on his BMW, so I headed to the local yard to pull a new pan.  I'm working under the donor car, and a guy asks to borrow a few sockets "I'll be right over here with the jettas, I only need them for 10 minutes".  I say ok, he takes them.  I finish up under the donor car about a hour later and start packing my tools up.  I saw the guy never brought back my tools so I go ask him for them.  He tells me he lost one of them but handed me the other.  I got pretty upset he never had the sack to come up to me and set it right, but instead he waited until I go found him and never offered to replace it or offer a beer, or anything.

[Silver R/T]

That sucks man, can't trust anyone anymore. I won't let someone borrow my tools as people have "misplaced" some of them.

[69bronzeT5]

I've never had any bad experiences at those yards. I quite enjoy those yards actually because you get to explore them. I lost a few things the last junkyard trip I made however it was my fault. I overstuffed my socket set toolbox with other tools and when I went to close it, all of my sockets fell out. I managed to find 98% of them though. I also lost a few screwdriver bits......what pissed me off the most was I lost the one I needed

[ChgrSteve67]

Where I live you are a sucker if you loan someone a tool in a pick and pull yard.

People will also walk up and take your tools if you are not watching them.

Oh look what I found.


Its really depressing that these people cause good people not to be generious people anymore.

[wayfast1500]

I will not be helping strangers like that anymore.  I usually try to help people out, the few times I've broken down on my Harley other riders have stopped for me and I've done the same for others.  I did see a saveable 50's ford at the yard. 

[elacruze]

Bad Experiences...


YELLOW JACKETS!!

[ChgrSteve67]

I think a more appropriate responce in todays world is to tell them when you are done getting your parts you will come over and help them with the bolt, screw or whatever off thier part and supervise the use of your tools.

I usually tell them to talk to someone that works there and ask them to borrow a tool.

Some of the pick and pulls I have gone to rent tools.

[rustafarian]

I popped the hood on an old LeSabre looking for a 4bbl carb. It was a bright day and now I'm under a big shady hood. Lean in and I'm unscrewing the wingnut on the pie pan and sense some movement.  A possum nest with a litter where the battery was long ago, and mom baring her teeth and hissing at me,  if she'd been wide awake she'd have gotten me good.

[69DodgeCharger]

Bad Experiences...


YELLOW JACKETS!!

The yard owners.

[moparstuart]

Bad Experiences...


YELLOW JACKETS!!

The yard owners.

[greenpigs]

Couple yards I been to will not let you out in the yard alone. Thats in ohio and I was told its because of insurance.

[moparstuart]

Couple yards I been to will not let you out in the yard alone. Thats in ohio and I was told its because of insurance.

[Chatt69chgr]

My worst experience was going to a yard that is only open on saturdays for 3 hours and is located 89 miles one way from my house.  I'm in the yard for an hour and a half when the yard owner calls me on my cell phone and says, Oh, by the way, I have to go somewhere---you will have to leave now.  Needless to say, I was not real happy.
Also, I don't do any business with places that won't let me get my own parts off.  I'm careful when I get things off and usually end up buying a lot more items than I planned on buying because you will always end up spying something that you didn't come for but just have to have.  I tried a couple of places that insisted on getting the part off and they both ended up messing up the part. 

[Neal_J]

I've been going to these since they sprung up in the late 1980's. 

Initially there were LOTS of old cars and I enjoyed many a morning stripping parts of a new Charger or Cutlass carcass.  Back then, the biggest trouble was someone else seeking to strip parts off the same car so you had to remove the parts you wanted in order from most desireable to least.  Man, I left a punch of stuff I now dearly wish I'd have grabbed.

Nowadays, it's pretty rare to find anything worthy @ the pick N pull.   When they do get an old car, its picked clean quickly but the folks who don't have to work Monday-Friday like me.

My worst experience has been leaving one of my tools in a car.  Lost a screwdriver & an open ended wrench on different trips.  And then forgetting it altogether or forgetting which car I left it in.

The wineos bumming spare change in the parking lot are a treat, on most every trip.

Getting kicked out was fun.  Evidently they frown on throwing brake drums through windshields.  Eh, who knew?

[chargergirl]

Found out that I get a better price when, because of my low voice, they automatically think I'm a guy. Then when I go to pick up the part that my "husband" sent me to get...the price goes up. This has happened more than once...I just pull my best dumb blonde expression...but this is all the money he gave me. He said you said...and they can't take it and recant the inflated price. As for tools...never lend them out in the yard...I don't think he Lost the tool...just is one.

[Cooter]

We have a yard here....When "The old man" (the three guys father), ran the place, you could get deals..Now, they seem to have one guy for Ford, One for Chevy, and then there's the BIGGEST AZZHOLE for Mopar...I've heard this guy likes nose candy from time to time and this is why he is a moddy SOB...One time when getting all the plastic under dash stuff from a '70 Charger, I just knew he was gonna bust my azz when I finally got back to the office with the part, but I offered to even buy him a 6-pack on such a hot day for being so cool about the prices...

Then, I went there on one Saturday looking for a 413 For a buddy. Talked to "David"(The Mopar one) and he told me he didn't have any way of getting the car down to the shop to pull the engine that day, or let US pull the engine that day and to come back the following Sat. We agreed on a $200.00 price for the enigne IF WE PULL it..We said sure, we'll be back next Sat. We go back the following Sat. to find dude was in one of his "Moods" and refuse to even talk to us...I finally asked "Hey guy, you gonna yank that 'ol Chrysler down here so we can get started so you guys can leave on time?"

This was his reply..."I ain't got nobody here to pull it for 'ya and I'm gonna have to have $500.00 for the engine "When I get time to pull it"....

I was HOT!
I can't stand a person who jerks me around...So, I let him know how badly he had "Intercoursed" me and my buddy, then slammed the door when I left...I could still hear the other lady in the office asking him "Damn, David! What's the matter with you??"

Some days, dude is great, others I could just bit*h slap him on principle alone...
Oh, and I try NOT to loan any tools out..I offer to "Help" them pull the part...OR, this one works pretty good.."I'm using that wrench right now, but could you give me a hand carrying this 8 3/4 all the way to the front? then, I'll even help you get your part off? They usually don't bother me anymore after they have to do some work for that wrench or socket...

[Brock Lee]

Hitting a bees nest in a mod top Coronet. I was stung all over.

[DodgeByDave]

Hitting a bees nest in a mod top Coronet. I was stung all over.

Bee's, insects, spiders etc are a given. I am shocked at how many yard kits lack insect chemicals (about all WD 40 is good for).

My pet yard peeve is the neanderthals that insist on clipping the wrong side of a connector instead of just disconnecting it.

To me junk yards are a love hate thing. The proverbial 4 year old digging through a stall of horse crap because "with this much of it there has to be a pony here somewhere".

I am really liking the Pic-a-Part here. They have all the stuff set up on wheel jackstand deals, everything has it's own concrete pad, much less laying in the mud, the blood, the beer

These Guys have it together

We found a buddy in a yard that a car had fallen on, guys, cars love to fall on fools. It always takes less time to be alive then it does to be dead, yet dying is the fastest thing you'll ever do. end rant.

ahahhahahhahahahah ask to borrow tools? If I have time to stand right there, sometimes I'll even help. I have a pair of wire cutters, and you don't. How about if I just go ahead and clip it for you? No troubles, No charge even, have a nice day!

Old boy in Brooklyn, Indiana had the Yard. Rows and Rows of mopar and ford muscle, when the cops showed up I guess he was hording a massive amount of prescription amphetamines all in the "sealed for your protection" containers. I don't remember the exact amount, and couldn't prove if I did remember, but it was a massive enough amount the claim would have to be backed up and this was mid 80's, so we'll leave it at a couple of jars. That's enough to get your stuff taken. His name was Richard, don't be a Dick. Court ordered it all crushed.

Tip and trick of the week. Get one of these:



I have one I bought years ago, just a cheap plastic 5.99 thing. It sure beats the hell out of swimming in the stew. Nice high sides to prevent slopping. We all understand (except the rookies) that if you are in a junk yard, and you can't see the bottom of the puddle, all bets are off on depth.

Happy Hunting! Don't get yourself lost, and you can bet that back seat has a snake under it!

[bull]

and then there's the BIGGEST AZZHOLE for Mopar...I've heard this guy likes nose candy from time to time and this is why he is a moddy SOB...One time when getting all the plastic under dash stuff from a '70 Charger, I just knew he was gonna bust my azz when I finally got back to the office with the part, but I offered to even buy him a 6-pack on such a hot day for being so cool about the prices...

Sounds like you need to bring Coke instead of beer next time.

I haven't had any real bad experiences, just slight annoyances or pet peeves. Mainly it's things like the way people wreck things to get what they want. I've seen perfectly good dash plastic busted to pieces because some lazy a$$ was too impatient to unscrew it to get to the radio or body parts bent all to hell so they could get at something underneath. Like it's some kind of speed contest. Then they rip these cars all to pieces and and leave the junk laying around for you to trip over. Another thing that annoys me is how close they pack all the cars together. You're trying to work on one car and you lean back and get jabbed in the ribs by a part that's been half torn off the car behind you. Also the subjective pricing is often irritating. It works both ways though. I've had the guys try charging me way too much for a real common part and next to nothing for a rare part. These days it's not really worth it to go to the wrecking yard anymore because it's difficult to find classic cars. Even a couple years ago I was finding decent 13 inch arm rests, seat belts, marker lights, etc., but now I'm lucky to find anything older than 1975 in the entire Mopar section. And now for some reason they've been mixing a bunch of odd stuff in with the Mopars due to lack of space such as Hondas and Toyota minivans and such. The last few times I've been there I haven't found anything worth buying.