List of open Free-range scrapyards

[CDP]

AdeTuono said:

[
That brought back some memories! I was half-expecting to see some of my old cars in the photos. Seems to be a disproportionate number of 70's/80's Jap metal in there.

I last went to Medlers around 1979. I remember a whole load of 30's/40's cars in a ditch along the drive to the main yard. No different to seeing cars from the 70's/80's now, I suppose. That's sobering! If only I knew then etc etc...

Looking at the flicker account the photographer was interested in Japanese cars; from memory they were far from the majority. I do seem to remember a vast Crown Estate which I initially thought was American, I seem to remember a wind down tailgate window and fake wood.

The 30's stuff was still there into the early 90s.

[AdeTuono]

CDP said:

I do seem to remember a vast Crown Estate which I initially thought was American, I seem to remember a wind down tailgate window and fake wood.

A friend had one of those, and very possibly the same one. A diahorrea yellowy coloured one. Three rows of seats. Bought from Norwich car auctions. It would have died around 1980-ish, probably only two or three weeks after he bought it, as was usual in those days

[ToothbrushMan]

Hall Green Car Spares in south Birmingham.....tends to list its cars on gumtree. free to wander round and take off what you need. open sundays too. no Hi Viz required. parking near can be an issue if its busy.

[ToothbrushMan]

m1dg3 said:

Harry Buckland in Cheltenham is good. 500 odd cars, often including 'Police aware' and DVLA seized vehicles.

Common parts often don't last long though - there seems to be a healthy ecosystem of eastern Europeans filling shopping trollies with bits to flip on eBay.

500? didnt think it was that massive........you sure?

[CDP]

AdeTuono said:

CDP said:

I do seem to remember a vast Crown Estate which I initially thought was American, I seem to remember a wind down tailgate window and fake wood.

A friend had one of those, and very possibly the same one. A diahorrea yellowy coloured one. Three rows of seats. Bought from Norwich car auctions. It would have died around 1980-ish, probably only two or three weeks after he bought it, as was usual in those days

This was pale blue metallic. It was probably quite a pleasant car when new though in the 70's and early 80's Japanese cars seemed to be in a race with the Italians to see which could rot first....

[ToothbrushMan]

ToothbrushMan said:

m1dg3 said:

Harry Buckland in Cheltenham is good. 500 odd cars, often including 'Police aware' and DVLA seized vehicles.

Common parts often don't last long though - there seems to be a healthy ecosystem of eastern Europeans filling shopping trollies with bits to flip on eBay.

500? didnt think it was that massive........you sure?

ref the eastern europeans i ve seen guys walking round filling those great big blue IKEA shopping bags of parts.....not sure of the nationality though.

[seabod91]

Big bump.

Is there any breakers around Hertfordshire (Welwyn garden city) that are still open. Looking for a o/s mirror unit for a focus.

[oldagepensioner]

Went to a breakers the other day to get a spare wheel for my Astra(it came with a space saver which i hate).It used to be free range but they used to give you a hard hat to wear but apparently the insurance company put a stop to that.This is Bobbing breakers on the old Sheppey way
.

[oldagepensioner]

Lollypops said:

Bobbing Car Breakers in Sittingbourne, Kent still allow you to do this, although you need to wear a hard hat which they can provide. Was weird at first walking through rows of cars piled up on top of each other, some looking a bit precarious!

I have literally just posted about this.I was in there a few days ago and they no longer let you wander around so for insurance reasons they have to bring it to you.I don't know how long they have been doing this because the last time i was in there i could indeed walk around and remove the parts myself although they did used to give you a hard hat which i think most people used to put any fixings in that they removed.
If you know about Bobbing you probably also know Monkey farm, Queenborough breakers on Sheppey and Kent auto salvage although i don't know if you can still walk around them.

[Rob 131 Sport]

Arch Motors in Bagillt North Wales was a place I would often go to for bits and pieces for the Mirafiori Sport. There were a number of breakers around this area.

Parts for the Mirafiori were becoming rare even in 1990 / 1991. It was always fun to see the old cars decaying.

[oldagepensioner]

CDP said:

jerrin91 said:

Meddlers looks like absolute paradise.. an auto Disneyland

It was. There are some cars I have only seen in there - a rear engine NSU sports and the 70's Audi Coupe for example. Loads from the 30's to the mid 80's when I went. If you were keen on older cars it was amazing.


I wonder what will happen to Hainford Hall? Can't use the land for agriculture and I suspect housing would be pushing it too.

Industrial or possibly forestry?

When I used to go in the late 80's early 90's the hall had a big crack down the front; I'm surprised it's still standing. Very unlikely to have any architectural merit and way too far gone to restore.

It may depend on the level of contamination.When Sheerness steel mill was demolished the ground was so badly contaminated that the ground cannot be built on for 25 years and can only be used for general open air storage IE steel, timber, newly imported cars and vans and older vehicles of all sizes possibly for export to developing countries.