when was the last time you visited a salvage yard,
to look for parts, like engines, or project cars?
or to get a selection of spare bolts, fuses, electrical connectors, brackets, or spare parts.
at times its your only option, as the parts no longer factory available.
at times the lack of the simplest component ,like an unique bracket or fastener or busting a old part,can bring you to a temporary stand still on a project.
I generally find that I go looking for a certain part, like a replacement bracket,or sub assembly like a distributor, seat mount bracket, alternator,drive shaft yoke , starter, or head light assembly, but almost every time I fine a great deal more parts that I really wish I could afford to buy and store in the shop, knowing that they are unlikely to be easy to find later or be available at near the current price.
I found a 500 Caddy ENGINE,keep in mind the stock 500 caddy engine has over 500 ft lbs of torque and with a cam and head swap 600 ft lbs of torqure is extremely easy to obtain.
and a 400 Pontiac engine on one trip, BOTH still installed in cars, the salvage yard owners said either ENGINE was available for $300 EACH IF I PULLED THEM, OUT MY SELF, A WEEK LATER BOTH WERE LONG GONE!
theres also the problem of transporting those deals to your shop, many guys might have the cash, but no way to pick up and transport a valuable find at a salvage yard, and some yards won,t work with you at a reasonable price on that either.
Ive found semi complete cars, that would make great basic cores for projects, in salvage yards that I wanted at times, that the yard owner would only be willing to transport as far as a trailer in the parking lot! even if offered $200 extra in cash to deliver to my shop, so a trailer and a pick-up to tow it became a mandatory tool, I had to own or at least have access too.
Obviously you can rent a semi decent care trailer from some rental place like U-HAUL, but at $78 a DAY like my local place charges, it doesn,t take long to see the financial advantages in finding and purchasing your own used car transport trailer.
I spent decades of time building engines using salvage yards as the source for the majority of the components ( I used, and recommended)
I also spent and still spend a great deal of time building engines for myself and others, with huge restrictions on component cost and time.
Brian may think I like to point out high dollar parts....
no I hate having to spend money, on parts especially if theres a perfectly good component you can get at a local salvage yard that will work perfectly well in the application,
that may cost less than 10%-40% of what the aftermarket part may cost.... but I think excellent long term durability is far more important than throwing something together fast and cheaply, that may not last very long If you do the research, and check everything the first time...if you , do things correctly and you don,t need too do it over.
I also built more than a few (several dozen 389,400,421, 428 Pontiac back in the 1960s-1990s, and several more in the last few decades
, or as the old saying goes.. if you can't afford to do it correctly, how are you going to afford to do it over when it self destructs after the original parts selected fail.
yeah it frustrating at times..
here is one area of reality, where the difference lies between the best vs the better ,
and the all too frequent .... guys charging an exorbitant amount of money for inferior work,
you know, exactly what I'm saying if youve ever dealt with skilled machine shops,
and the better mechanics, and all too often, scam machine shops, and fly by night operations, that pop up and go out of business every few years,
and why good machinist and knowledgeable engine builder's ,are so hard to locate, and most have long wait times , too get quality work done..
and why it almost always costs considerably more, and frequently takes longer to have some shops and race teams, work on your car or engine,
its also why many guys get rather pissed off, when they see what it costs for a top quality builder to build any engine.
and without doubt guys in some shops see what the best shops charge and think.. hell, if the best shop in my area, charges that much I should be charging a good deal more,
and I can knock that out for a bit less and in less time and make a killing...... and why finding a good machinist and machine shop is a real challenge in most areas.
I can easily suggest a cam , but its a rather meaningless gesture, and all too frequently a waste of time and effort for both of us.
simply because, without verifying the facts, and this is where Id say the vast majority of internet web sites,
and the recommendations, you see being posted in them, all too often, go wrong far too frequently.
yeah its easy to assume the timings correct the true functional compression, in every cylinder is nearly identical,
(most guys measure, two or three cylinders and without a second thought ignore the rest,
and thus they, blissfully assume all the other cylinders must be the same or so close its a waste of effort,
, most guys fail to put in the effort, too measure the less easily accessed cylinders, thinking
(why bother its a P.I.T.A. and if the first two or three are fine so will the rest of them, )
and that is the attitude that will be used for other factors, yeah, most guys, and every other guy reading similar threads on a vast ocean of similar web sites,
all over the internet, skip over anything that is redundant or takes a bit of extra effort, they simply assume they know things that may or may not be true.
the vast majority of guys , are absolutely convinced, that verifying every measurement and clearance issue in their engine,
in each cylinder is so close that they are effectively duplicate in all areas,
yeah without any doubt... its a waste of time and effort, too do what most guys, will just be convinced is busy work,
yes most tuners and car owners are just like the vast majority and are convinced everything between all the cylinders have not changed are exactly as you and they remember them too be..
especially if they have taken the time and effort too do things correctly several times in the past and found that to be true in the past.
thats the difference between the 5%-10% of guys consistently posting the best and most
consistent time slips and lap times vs the guys that frequently win a few races,
but over a season or two, don,t consistently, year after year build a good reputation, for durability and consistently winning.
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/finding-a-machine-shop.321/
RELATED THREADS
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=845&p=1281#p1281
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-state-muscle-or-project-car.4318/#post-32725
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=4706&p=12793&hilit=salvage+yard#p12793
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=3183&p=9403&hilit=salvage+yard#p9403
viewtopic.php?f=89&t=7214&p=24247&hilit=salvage+yard#p24247
viewtopic.php?f=51&t=6473&p=20492&hilit=salvage+yard#p20492
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=4318&p=29221&hilit=salvage+yard#p29221
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=10126&p=39694&hilit=state+trailer#p39694
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=5976&p=18464&hilit=state+trailer#p18464
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=8312&p=28893&hilit=state+trailer#p28893
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=4318&p=18620&hilit=state+trailer#p18620
to look for parts, like engines, or project cars?
or to get a selection of spare bolts, fuses, electrical connectors, brackets, or spare parts.
at times its your only option, as the parts no longer factory available.
at times the lack of the simplest component ,like an unique bracket or fastener or busting a old part,can bring you to a temporary stand still on a project.
I generally find that I go looking for a certain part, like a replacement bracket,or sub assembly like a distributor, seat mount bracket, alternator,drive shaft yoke , starter, or head light assembly, but almost every time I fine a great deal more parts that I really wish I could afford to buy and store in the shop, knowing that they are unlikely to be easy to find later or be available at near the current price.
I found a 500 Caddy ENGINE,keep in mind the stock 500 caddy engine has over 500 ft lbs of torque and with a cam and head swap 600 ft lbs of torqure is extremely easy to obtain.
and a 400 Pontiac engine on one trip, BOTH still installed in cars, the salvage yard owners said either ENGINE was available for $300 EACH IF I PULLED THEM, OUT MY SELF, A WEEK LATER BOTH WERE LONG GONE!
theres also the problem of transporting those deals to your shop, many guys might have the cash, but no way to pick up and transport a valuable find at a salvage yard, and some yards won,t work with you at a reasonable price on that either.
Ive found semi complete cars, that would make great basic cores for projects, in salvage yards that I wanted at times, that the yard owner would only be willing to transport as far as a trailer in the parking lot! even if offered $200 extra in cash to deliver to my shop, so a trailer and a pick-up to tow it became a mandatory tool, I had to own or at least have access too.
Obviously you can rent a semi decent care trailer from some rental place like U-HAUL, but at $78 a DAY like my local place charges, it doesn,t take long to see the financial advantages in finding and purchasing your own used car transport trailer.
I spent decades of time building engines using salvage yards as the source for the majority of the components ( I used, and recommended)
I also spent and still spend a great deal of time building engines for myself and others, with huge restrictions on component cost and time.
Brian may think I like to point out high dollar parts....
no I hate having to spend money, on parts especially if theres a perfectly good component you can get at a local salvage yard that will work perfectly well in the application,
that may cost less than 10%-40% of what the aftermarket part may cost.... but I think excellent long term durability is far more important than throwing something together fast and cheaply, that may not last very long If you do the research, and check everything the first time...if you , do things correctly and you don,t need too do it over.
I also built more than a few (several dozen 389,400,421, 428 Pontiac back in the 1960s-1990s, and several more in the last few decades
, or as the old saying goes.. if you can't afford to do it correctly, how are you going to afford to do it over when it self destructs after the original parts selected fail.
yeah it frustrating at times..
here is one area of reality, where the difference lies between the best vs the better ,
and the all too frequent .... guys charging an exorbitant amount of money for inferior work,
you know, exactly what I'm saying if youve ever dealt with skilled machine shops,
and the better mechanics, and all too often, scam machine shops, and fly by night operations, that pop up and go out of business every few years,
and why good machinist and knowledgeable engine builder's ,are so hard to locate, and most have long wait times , too get quality work done..
and why it almost always costs considerably more, and frequently takes longer to have some shops and race teams, work on your car or engine,
its also why many guys get rather pissed off, when they see what it costs for a top quality builder to build any engine.
and without doubt guys in some shops see what the best shops charge and think.. hell, if the best shop in my area, charges that much I should be charging a good deal more,
and I can knock that out for a bit less and in less time and make a killing...... and why finding a good machinist and machine shop is a real challenge in most areas.
I can easily suggest a cam , but its a rather meaningless gesture, and all too frequently a waste of time and effort for both of us.
simply because, without verifying the facts, and this is where Id say the vast majority of internet web sites,
and the recommendations, you see being posted in them, all too often, go wrong far too frequently.
yeah its easy to assume the timings correct the true functional compression, in every cylinder is nearly identical,
(most guys measure, two or three cylinders and without a second thought ignore the rest,
and thus they, blissfully assume all the other cylinders must be the same or so close its a waste of effort,
, most guys fail to put in the effort, too measure the less easily accessed cylinders, thinking
(why bother its a P.I.T.A. and if the first two or three are fine so will the rest of them, )
and that is the attitude that will be used for other factors, yeah, most guys, and every other guy reading similar threads on a vast ocean of similar web sites,
all over the internet, skip over anything that is redundant or takes a bit of extra effort, they simply assume they know things that may or may not be true.
the vast majority of guys , are absolutely convinced, that verifying every measurement and clearance issue in their engine,
in each cylinder is so close that they are effectively duplicate in all areas,
yeah without any doubt... its a waste of time and effort, too do what most guys, will just be convinced is busy work,
yes most tuners and car owners are just like the vast majority and are convinced everything between all the cylinders have not changed are exactly as you and they remember them too be..
especially if they have taken the time and effort too do things correctly several times in the past and found that to be true in the past.
thats the difference between the 5%-10% of guys consistently posting the best and most
consistent time slips and lap times vs the guys that frequently win a few races,
but over a season or two, don,t consistently, year after year build a good reputation, for durability and consistently winning.
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/finding-a-machine-shop.321/
RELATED THREADS
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=845&p=1281#p1281
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-state-muscle-or-project-car.4318/#post-32725
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=4706&p=12793&hilit=salvage+yard#p12793
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=3183&p=9403&hilit=salvage+yard#p9403
viewtopic.php?f=89&t=7214&p=24247&hilit=salvage+yard#p24247
viewtopic.php?f=51&t=6473&p=20492&hilit=salvage+yard#p20492
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=4318&p=29221&hilit=salvage+yard#p29221
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=10126&p=39694&hilit=state+trailer#p39694
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=5976&p=18464&hilit=state+trailer#p18464
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=8312&p=28893&hilit=state+trailer#p28893
viewtopic.php?f=87&t=4318&p=18620&hilit=state+trailer#p18620
Last edited by a moderator:
