craigslist freebies...

Hi, I'm new to the forum and scrap as a hobby. I'm a bit intimidated with some of the big projects you all have going on. I've scrapped mostly things I can fit into my 4-door Buick but once in a while I can sweet talk the wifey into letting me borrow her van (brought back about 5 larger tvs next to dumpsters this past winter using the van and the boys).

I've been trying to use craigslist "free stuff" to find material to get so I thought I'd start an on-going thread of my various adventures. I thought I'd be picking up a couple of dishwashers this weekend (never done one of those) but have just played phone tag with the guy. One of my issues is that I live on one side of my medium-small metro areas and to grab most stuff its a 15-20+ miles round trip so I try to either get something pretty good or chain link several stops together to justify the gas.

Here's a post I did on my trapping forum where I have a little scrapping thread going a couple of weeks ago:

Well, I needed to get my electronic scrapping itch scratched so I answered a couple of craiglist few stuff. I thought the 2 monitors the guy was talking about were little flat screens so I went to the west side of town (usually don't go that far for a give away tv or monitor). My current monitor acts up now, getting real fuzzy and then back to normal so its just a matter of time before its craps out so a different monitor would be useful. They ended up being smaller CRTs. They're only 17 inches deep but its still an adjustment going back to a CRT from a flat screen because the screen is now a lot closer to me. If I come across a working small flat screen, will probably have to trade this "new" one out for that.

I finished by picking up a 27 inch Sanyo tube tv on the east side of town on my way home. I ended up nearly circumnavigating the city so the tv scrap will have to go to cover my gas and the 2 smaller CRT monitors I will scrap out, although one is now in use with my system. My life, living on the margin. So it goes...



Still haven't taken them apart. Maybe tomorrow.

I had a meeting in the bigger town next door Thurs. evening and had talked to a guy about a dishwasher he wanted gone. He said he had someone coming by at 7:00 but if it was still there at 7:30 go ahead and take it. Came by at 7:50 and it was still there so it became mine. Disappointed by all the plastic but it already was an "interesting" job getting into the back seat of my Buick so if it would have been clad in stainless, it would have been probably even tougher. I'm sure anyone looking out the window had a good laugh of me in my Scout shirt wrestling this thing into my car.

It was a Frigidaire Ultra Quiet II and after doing it, I wouldn't drive very far out of my way to grab another one. I basically got about 30 lbs. of steel, 3/4 lb. of insulated wire, and assorted copper, brass, and alum. Maybe a total of $4 of scrap in my town. But it keeps me out of the bars

P.S. I checked ebay after I scrapped it and the lower spray arm may have been money but I wrecked it (note to shelf check the product on ebay before tearing it apart). I may try listing the plastic silverware rack...

I encourage you to read the old threads, as much as possible. Save yourself some headaches start thinking about storage. Think vertical.

Thanks junkfreak for your suggestions! My garage usually isn't as scattered as the pixs may show, I'm in the middle of reorganizing. Because I do this only as a hobby and the wife will only tolerate a certain amount of scarp (especially the steel stuff) lying around, my storage time is fairly limited. But I will take a couple of pixs when I do get things more organized

Nice advice Hypoman, thanks but my limited picking & scrapping cash flow are mine. She and the "house" already get the vast majority of my paycheck...

Well, it wasn't a craigslist freebie but a neighbor freebie instead. I scrapped out a Phillips "Digital Cinema Center (dvd/cd player) the other night. I haven't done too many dvd type electronics.

Kind of liked it, not a lot of plastic to waste. I thought they had cheaped out and used a steel heat sink but the thing was Alum, just had never seen an typical extruded (but large) piece that had been machined with lots of thin fins on one side. It weighed about 2 lbs. The machine had a big motor for the size of device, weighing 6-7 lbs., as well as about 6 lbs. of sheet steel and half a pound on insulated wire. A few more odds and ends as well. Probably about $3+ of scrap value in my town.

I just wished I could have parted it a lot faster

Matty- If you like that heat sink, check this one out of a older rear-projection tv that we grabbed out of an appt. complex dumpster last winter. I don't have a pix of it by itself but you can see it snuggled down in the left corner under the projection lights. I think it was cast Al instead of extruded but it weighed over 2 lbs. maybe up to 4 (can't remember for sure). The "pans" that the 3 projection lights sit in can also be cast Al. Have to pour some oil out of them after a guy opens with up but wipe 'em out and they add up some weight.

OK, didn't know that transformers could be pure Alum, always thought there was Cu involved unless that was "off-site" somewhere and the Al piece just hooked into it somehow. Then again, I don't know much about how electronics work, I just tear them apart...

I just can't remember. It was on the bottom left of the tv when it faced you. Here's a bit more of a close up but don't think a person can see what's below it.

Last night I got an electric mower, weed eater, and 40 pounds of lead acid batteries from somebody who wanted to give them away to someone who can use them. I'm going to try and sell them in a garage sale first before scrapping them. Also, 3 weeks ago I got the removal job on a free pool...that was off craigslist and netted me 1300 pounds of aluminum, 14 pounds of SS, and about 200 pounds of iron...I agree that craigslist is mostly overcrowded but I have experienced success.

I was out at my bro's on Sunday. He has a 5 acre place west of the metro, I live on the east edge so about a 30 mile drive so don't get out there all the time. He's probably the only physician in the area that lives in a modified double-wide ex-mobile home and has 30 laying hens. He's into doing stuff himself so he produces various types of scrap as he updates/re-dos things on the place. He doesn't want to dink with scrap so I do

I brought back a bag of about 5 lbs. of Al cans, his old computer box that was laying in part of his driveway (don't know if he took the hd out or not, probably because it feels lighter), and various bits of Cu tubing and brass breakage (such as outdoor water faucet that has some brass in it but is mostly steel). Off to the side of his "Morton" building, there was a deep tub that must had been a whirlpool in its day. One of his buds had given it to him. I asked him what he was going to do with the motor and he said nothing so that got cut out with a power jig saw. I need to clean some of this stuff up yet but I seldom refuse small, easily carried scrap from anyone!

P.S. I also brought back 12 dozen eggs to sell to various people at work but he gets a cut out of that action