One thing that you can guarantee about the Central Valley, is that it definitely has way more salvage yards/pick n' pulls/junkyards than the Bay Area does. I mean it just makes sense... There is no way anyone is going designate precious SF real estate for an automotive graveyard. That what be a total waste. In Stockton alone, there are probably 3 or 4 local pick n' pulls that gearheads, shop mechanics, or cheap individuals like me go to on a regular basis. Funny enough, I went to one in Lodi instead, because they just happened to have some of the parts that I was looking for. So that's basically what I spent my Thursday morning doing. I drove 20 minutes north of Stockton to a well-known pick n' pull. When I got there, the gate to the yard was locked, so I assumed they were closed today. But it turns out the owner has a secondary auto shop right down the street. So all I had to do was pay him a visit and he was able to give me free reign within the yard.
If you've never been to a pick n' pull before, it's pretty fun. It's kind of like a mini adventure. There are cars in all sorts of conditions just stacked on top of each other. No safety regulations whatsoever, sharp pieces of metal sticking out, and lots of broken glass everywhere. I would highly recommend getting your Tetanus shot before entering any sort of junk yard. It's also worth mentioning that you have to do all the labor yourself. If you see a body panel or transmission that you want off of a certain vehicle, it is up to you to pull it. The owners of the yard are there to let you in, they are not there to do the work for you. This being said, you also have to bring your own tools.
The parts that I wanted happened to be on a truck (identical to mine) that was stacked on top of another car. I had to use a ladder to reach it. It felt like a pretty sketchy situation, considering the part that I needed was on the driver side, right next to the barbed wire fence (as pictured). I managed to pull off what I needed in a matter of 15 minutes or so and ended up paying a total of $10 for the parts.
All in all, I saved about $50. And I know many of you may be thinking, "all that for $50." And to that I say "yes, definitely." It wasn't really about the savings for me today. I actually had a lot of fun sourcing these parts, gallivanting around the pick n' pull, and getting dirty in order to grab what I needed off of the donor vehicle. It was a mini adventure for me, and I look forward to doing it again in the future.
Also, for future reference to those who would like to go to a junk yard one day... It is not considered a real junk yard, if it does not have an official junk yard guard dog. I ran into this sweet guy this morning. He was a friendly brown Pitbull, but I assume if you were to trespass the yard, he wouldn't be so friendly. Other junkyards normally have Dobermans, Bull mastiffs, or Rottweilers as guard dogs. But Pitbulls are also a great choice. This has been an inside scoop on junkyards, one of the ways the good, simple people of the Central Valley get by and/or make their living. God Bless.
-Producer Reese
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