The Things People Throw Away!

I'm married to a Japanese woman (for now). And I see that trait in her. I fix everything that I am able and even some things I'm not able (but manage to figure out anyway).

For instance, the switch on the ice dispenser stopped working. She wanted to get a new refrigerator. Throw out a working fridge/freezer because a $10 switch. The same thing happened to the washing machine. The lid switch failed.....time to get a new washing machine.

I've seen that too, especially when several of us would travel up to Kyoto to do repair work on a mission and teaching hospital. It was very informative when we introduced ourselves and told of our occupations (very important to Japanese culture), and watched the looks on the Student's faces as they saw us don hard hats, pick up shovels and saws, paint brushes and rollers, etc, and head out around the grounds to do work NOT within our occupations. I was personally very gratified when, as an electronics engineer and a US Navy Sailor (both highly respected occupations, then), I was using a shovel to excavate a ditch for a retaining wall, and a doctoral student tapped my shoulder and asked if he could take over. When I tried to get him to take another shovel and work alongside, I couldn't. They were all already taken by other students! Not at all a common event in the culture of the day, working outside your own occupational field. And I don't think it was beneath them. I believe it was the "I have been taught not to do another's work and take away another's bread". But the epiphany occurred when the students realized that if THEY didn't do it, someone else had to be paid, and they KNEW the school didn't have that kind of money, being a mission project, and offering them a very inexpensive education. The light dawned, and they dropped in to work hard. Bingo!!

I saw my first second hand store in Hiroshima in 2008. Japanese fads are an amazing thing and the recycle, repurpose, reuse fad was just beginning to spin up in 2008.

The company I worked for sold landscaping equipment. The same model string trimmer sold for $250 in the US sold for over $1000 equivalent in Japan, mostly due to middle man markups through the distribution channel. There were a select list of items which sold for reasonable, rational prices, typically food staples. Otherwise I don't know how most people would get by.

Japan has an interesting economy these days. They import 95% of their consumer products, over 60% from china. The economy is driven by consumer purchases and the results appear somewhat bizarre to those outside the culture. I remember in 2004 or 5 that the Japanese hit a milestone - There was one cell phone in service for every man, woman and child in the country. The solution to the problem was to start selling cell phones for pets. The pet would have a collar with cellphone attached so that you could call up and talk to your pet during the day. Personally I saw it as a recipe for a lot of confused pets.

1979. Tokyo used car dealership. Cars had to be essentially rebuilt at 3 years old to pass the extremely stringent car "safety" laws. I was shown a 1976 BMW 2002tii which was priced at the equivalent of $122,000US (yeah, you did read that right!) and watched as a young Japanese lady (at a guess, but I was never good at guessing Japanese ages, in her 20's) walked in, paid cash, and drove it out of the dealership. Amazing! Even THAT car wouldn't have gone, here for more than about $10K, with a new tag then, I believe, of around $16K. But the rebuild, and middle-men, added enormous price. OTOH, we bought our cars, under the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) from people like a guy called Sagami Bill, who took cars that wouldn't pass the Japanese Inspection, but passed the SOFA version with flying colors, for the equivalent of $200US. And for that, when I bought a Toyota Corolla Wagon from him, he threw in 4 good tires, new interior paneling, and all new seats, as well as a new steering wheel (the original had cracks in it). Clearly, SOME Japanese business people were ahead of the reuse/repurpose (Maker) curve!

Another cheap score today! Not free but for $60 its close enough.

I picked up a nearly complete Mccormick New 4 horse drawn sickle mower from a buddy of mine. His dad collects old machinery and junk for scrap and got it so I had to have it for the price he was asking.

I don't know its exact age yet but that model was made from 1896 - 1915!

I'm giving it to my dad for an early father's day present. (he can fix it up himself though.)

Does he have horses?

No. That's what made it worth $60!

If it came with horses I wouldn't have taken it even if he paid me $60

You could maybe pull it with a Mustang or a couple of Pintos.

I'd rather pull it with a worn out riding lawn mower.

Not a horse person is what I am saying.

The Pintos were safe as long as you weren't in a rear end collision.

My family owned several when I was a kid. I still lived anyway.

counless miles I've traveled sleeping in the pinto hatchback.. .. not recently..

But a great view to wake up

Why? Pintos kick? (Just askin, is all).

On a informational follow up to this item.

Turns out it may be pre 1902 in age!

It's a Mccormick 'New 4' two horse drawn sickle mower which was made from 1896 - 1915.

However as some of the online info implies being the name cast into the main frame is 'Mccormick' and not 'Mccormick-Deering' (they merged in 1902 and most equipment they made after that had both names) likely puts it date of manufacture before the 1902 merger.

Also the lack of any cast in serial numbers also gives plausible credit to the likelihood of it's approximate age as well being the early production units were not known to have them whereas the later ones apparently do.

It's a Mccormick 'New 4' two horse drawn sickle mower which was made from 1896 - 1915.

This reminds me of a story that happened. we always had horses. a few old buggies, some rebuilt, some not. We always hitched up the ponies, with what ever harnesses we could scrounge up at home. If not, we used baler twine. Now we we're about 10-12 years old at the time.

This routine carried on to my nieces and nephew. well, one time they didn't do a very good job of it... like most kids do. As they were riding in the hayfield, next to the rode. their ponies got a way and went into the ditch.

A passer by reported the 'accident' and by the time the police came, they repair it and was about to go on their way home. The squad car pulls up, and fills out a accident report, he spent 20 minutes trying to find the registration or serial number on this horse drawn buggy (well more like a buckboard) to no avail. Really was getting this policemen upset that he could fill out his accident report completely, and was taking it out on the kids.

My brother arrived, and police started to grill my brother, my brother asked what exactly was he doing. He said, he's looking for a serial number on the buckboard.

My brother told him, this was built in the 1800's, he's not going to find a serial number on it.

he then asked, Was he writing out a ticket?, was he harassing his kids?, was he picked on in junior high?

He couldn't answer. My brother told him, when he comes up with what he's doing, to come see him, in the mean time, he went home, and the kids drove their ponies home, without incident.

There's more to it, but the whole incident was ridicules.

I'm back and little late to the party... I get weak in the knees if I don't score some good junk now and then. One of my favorite hauls came from a dumpster. Several 4'x8' sheets of plexi in 1/4" &1/2" thickness. Lot's of 2'x4' as well. (Still in plastic film)

I used a bunch of it to make a clear floor 2nd level hangout in an old darkroom next to the elevated train in a gallery.. it was my private lounge for trainspotting. . and then the gallery closed within the year.

I also picked up a stainless steel sink bigger than a bathtub that was tossed because the drain attachment point was damaged. I fixed it and built a base and put it in the laundry room.

Since moving it's been sitting in my new 100+ year old basement.. I might use it this summer like I did the first year I had it.. as a backyard hillbilly hot tub.

I have the same issue with wood.. working .. wanting to burn as much as I collect to work with. My big shop table came from the alley too.. probably a $500+ castle grade dining table.

"Castle grade"
Del

I scored a fully loaded 1993 Ford F150 from a buddy of mine for $1000 this week.

He claimed it had major issues and was not worth fixing.

A $150 fan clutch to fix the engine overheating issue, an oil and antifreeze change followed by a good hard inside and out cleanup, the fuel pump for the front tank is out but the rear works fine, and some basic tune up work was all it needed.

About 5 - 6 hours of work and less than $250 in parts. All things he is more than capable of doing himself and could have done any time over the last 6 years it sat parked.