ansil Posted January 27, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2005 wow guys, lovin this thread. definately gonna try some of these things. while we're on the dumpster diving topic, go to the local Mickey D's right after a promotion, like the 5 Big Macs for $5, and get the big corregated plasic signs. great for sledding. lol ← the last time i went i got 3 camel cigerette signs. 3 doors [to cut up and make cabinets and heads out of] 100ft of 18 guage wire [silver not less. or perhaps platinum] two old tv's an ancient tube osiliscope.. not working no tues but the voltage tranny and filter caps are flawless. two used telephones and one new one. all working. a few speakers only about half of them worked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Vai Posted January 27, 2005 Report Share Posted January 27, 2005 Wow, you find so much stuff! Do you find all of this in dumpsters in commercial areas? I want to check out the dumpster behind Guitar Center sometime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ansil Posted January 27, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2005 Wow, you find so much stuff! Do you find all of this in dumpsters in commercial areas? I want to check out the dumpster behind Guitar Center sometime. ← i just spend a little time getting to know my neighbors and finding out the ones who break stuff alot. also find people like yourself who like to collect and trade crap with them.. lol as most of us have wives or girlfriends who are like "assumes nagging voice.; get that crap out of here its musty, old, dirty, obsolete... whats a tube for ????" i got alot of stuff from there check with the police station and find out who repairs and maintains their vehichles. get old batteries light bars radios ie etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RRVCustom Posted January 28, 2005 Report Share Posted January 28, 2005 (edited) my stepbrother has an orange strobe that he hacksawed from the top of an ODOT (Ohio Dept. of Transportation) salt truck. it's sitting on top of his dresser rite now. he rigged the thing to run on AC from the wall. God Bless America Edited January 28, 2005 by RRVCustom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psiico Posted March 8, 2006 Report Share Posted March 8, 2006 (edited) I'm new to this electronics thing, I rewired a few guitar switches in the past but lately decided to take a shot at pedal building. Stumbled across this thread and I'm glad I did, hopefully someone here can answer a couple of questions on scrounging for me. I tore apart an old (1976) stereo for parts. Got the usual haul, pots, jacks, tons of multicolored wire, resistors, etc.. There are things that I know what they are but don't know what value. There are quite a few diodes, not one has a label, just a red stripe to mark the anode. Is there a way to test them? Can I safely experiment with them, just dropping different ones into different circuits to see how they affect the sound? There are some what appear to be tantalum capacitors, how can I veryify this? They are unlabeled. Edited March 8, 2006 by psiico Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted March 8, 2006 Report Share Posted March 8, 2006 There's diddly in the way of decent dumpster diving around here, far as I can tell, but once a month folks put out large bits of furniture and the like. Sadly, hardwood furniture is a rare beast indeed around these parts (in part it's a cultural thing; seen as decadent, wood is expensive here, and people don't put antiques out by the side of the road), but I've gotten plenty of free, perfectly good MDF (get it while its fresh/before it rains) locally, perfect for molds and templates. Free, too. No bad there. I've been tempted to take in the old fridges I see from time to time, see if I can't rig the compressor pump for a vacuum clamping system, but I don't have the space for the junk, sadly... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapbarstrat Posted March 8, 2006 Report Share Posted March 8, 2006 It's often easier to know what the heck the parts are, if they are still left as installed at the factory. At least you might be able to look at a schematic to find out what they are. I wish I could do it that way all the time, but I don't have room to keep every amp, radio, tube tape recorder, etc , I find, in one piece. I know about the European sidewalk piles of junk (Well, in Germany, at least). What's funny is the stuff will be sitting there, with nobody around, and then I'll start poking around the junk pile, and within seconds, a bunch of other people also start poking around the junk pile. Damn, it's funny. I've found some really good stuff. One time I went to the dentist in Germany. Saw a huge pile of furniture, and boxes on the sidewalk on the way. Planned to go back to the pile after the dentist visit. That takes a good hour. Go back to the pile, nobody stopped there, but lots of people walking past it, just like when I first saw the stuff. I start looking through boxes, and right away, a mass of people also start looking through the boxes too. LOL ! Right in front there's a large white plastic bucket, and at the top of the bucket a half-filled bag of some kind of cement or tile grout powder. I lift that off, and the bucket is half full of drill bits and taps, tap handle, and other machinist odds and ends. Most of the taps still have the protective coating over the teeth. That was one of the best finds. there have been dozens of others at least half that good. Some decent wood does exist. keep an eye out for drawers with wooden sides. I've got some really NICE looking Oak pieces from that. I think they're big enough that 2 pieces would make the 1/4" top of a Tele body. The FRONT of the drawers were particle board !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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