Frugal or just being smug...have you scored a real deal recently?

John F Dean wrote:I have been on a search for a couple of years to replace a couple of broken plates …”Franciscan Desert Rose”.   Online they were running around $25 each.  I walked into a junk shop near me and picked up a handful for $5.00.  I have no idea why the price was so low. Yes, they were the same vintage.

Online prices are sometimes more speculative than realistic. There are lots of "we buy junk and sell antiques" operators trying to make money from what they scrounge from thrift shops.

Hi Douglas,

Which is why I did not bite at the higher price.  I was certain I had seen the plates for $10.00 each.  I have to admit, I was shocked at the $5.00 grab bag approach I ran into.  

In my area, this is the time of year where the tax man sends out the property tax bills, and my latest "score" is my bill. Thanks to using my acreage as an orchard -- and a year long appeal process -- my payments to the  government will be about $5,400 less per year. Not too shabby.

John Wolfram wrote: Thanks to using my acreage as an orchard -- and a year long appeal process -- my payments to the  government will be about $5,400 less per year. Not too shabby.

Nicely done!

Well, I'm not even sure just yet if this qualifies as a "deal" - or frugality, for that matter.  But, when I took a wheelbarrow load of stuff* (maple leaves, full of maple seeds) down the block to the brush dump, I noticed someone had dropped 7 boulders on the side of the 2-track trail.  So, back I came with my trailer, backed up the little lane into the brush dump, and collected them.  One is cracked, but all of them have at least one decent flat side, even if they are generally convex elsewhere.  My thought is that I could use one of these as a plinth or base for each post of a pole structure (less the cracked one) to protect our camper from winter snows.  I don't really know if they are quite big enough.  I was able to carry all of them into and out of the trailer, and lift them bodily onto the flat bed of my one-ton.  So, I don't know if they have enough heft to do the Asian style foundation, as propounded by Josh on his Mr. Chickadee YT channel.  But, if not, they were free rocks, and I rectified someone else's misdeed, since the only things which are supposed to be dropped off there are leaves and small brush.



Woohoo!  Got some rocks!

*Yes, I know, properly composting these leaves might take care of the majority of the seeds.  These leaves also have black tar spot, a fungal infection which afflicts soft maples, which causes early leaf drop.  I'm trying to figure out the best way of breaking the fungal infection cycle, though that may be a losing battle, since none of the neighbors are likely to do anything to mitigate the black tar spot, at least on the short term - and maybe never.  I do have a very small (Kemp brand) PTO chipper/shredder waiting for me to collect it outside Baraboo, WI.  But that's a long enough trip that I need to be intentional about it, and I'm not so sure my little truck will make the trip - though it has rarely let me down.  In any case, running the leaves through the chipper/shredder with a fine screen would probably chew up the seeds, and maybe composting would cure the black tar spot problem (?).  As of this moment, I have a literal truckload of maple chips, since we had our big maple professionally trimmed, and the tree guy quite happily gave us the chips from not only our maple, but another in the neighborhood.  So, I have no shortage of mulch, and have bought some time to figure out what to do about the maple leaves.

Kevin Olson wrote:Well, I'm not even sure just yet if this qualifies as a "deal" - or frugality, for that matter.  But, when I took a wheelbarrow load of stuff* (maple leaves, full of maple seeds) down the block to the brush dump, I noticed someone had dropped 7 boulders on the side of the 2-track trail.  So, back I came with my trailer, backed up the little lane into the brush dump, and collected them.  

Kevin, in my opinion when a switched-on mind collects materials that others have abandoned, and has a plan to use them, that absolutely qualifies as a "score." Well done!

From a yard sale, 25 to 30 Water Hyacinth plants for $7. This is half, in a 10 gallon bucket.Greene Dean's article is here.

Wow!! That's a fantastic deal, Joylynn!! That $7 would only get me 1 or 2 of them!

Just got back from an auction.  Got a good chop saw for $10, two hydraulic floor jacks for $1, two strong plastic shelving units, two coolers, a stadium chair and two huge greenhouse fans for another $1.

Someone else got a 1923 sedan with great paint/body, a V6 and it ran, for $2000

Mike Haasl wrote:Just got back from an auction.  Got a good chop saw for $10, two hydraulic floor jacks for $1, two strong plastic shelving units, two coolers, a stadium chair and two huge greenhouse fans for another $1.

Someone else got a 1923 sedan with great paint/body, a V6 and it ran, for $2000

Nice. Yeah, the world is awash in good stuff these days. We're kinda lucky. A lot of good stuff is completely free -- the kids are cleaning out Mom's house and don't want it to go to the landfill.

Free from the local take-it-or-leave it: a classic Coleman 2-burner camp stove in perfect working order with a coffee pot, grill, and a gallon of Coleman fuel. And a 3-legged end table that it fits on perfectly.

Now that's a score for sure !!!

I have been looking well over 2 years for an electric bike....        well about a week ago   I found what I was looking for,     a walmart bike, combined with a hill topper  bike kit all just about brand new for $100.00

They paid 700$ for the kit, and $100.00 for the bike...    

These deals are rare, but when you find them you jump :-)

Bill Anderson wrote:Now that's a score for sure !!!

Re the Coleman stove -- actually it's my second free one. These are 40+ years old. People don't know how to use these any more (or light their table on fire if they try). But they are both rebuildable and pretty much indestructible.

The other bonus is they are tolerant of outdated car gasoline, within reason. I have 6 gallons on site that I don't know what to do with but I'm not putting them in a vehicle or mower. Why waste that energy? Put it to work!

Mart Hale wrote:I have been looking well over 2 years for an electric bike....        well about a week ago   I found what I was looking for,     a walmart bike, combined with a hill topper  bike kit all just about brand new for $100.00

They paid 700$ for the kit, and $100.00 for the bike...    

These deals are rare, but when you find them you jump :-)

Absolutely. And often you find children who are clearing out their parents' garage and are happy with a few dollars and a good home for the "stuff."

I scored three Rigid lithium ion battery packs (2x 3.0 Ah and 1 x 2.0 Ah) plus charger from the freecycle zone at my recycling centre. All batteries hold a charge and the charger accepts them as good!

Except: I don't actually own any Rigid tools.

However, the power pins will likely take a large spade connector, and 2-3' of old 14 ga. extension cord will move power to LED automotive floodlights (rated 12-24v).

I also have a Makita 12V drill, almost new, that I can't even give away because nobody wants them. A little creative wiring may give it new life, since I have nothing to lose.

Edit: I just realized I have an old "blue" Ryobi recip. saw that I don't use because the connectors are weak and tend to arc on the battery contacts. But I could hard wire it to the Rigid batteries and use them both up!

Any other ideas?

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:I scored three Rigid lithium ion battery packs (2x 3.0 Ah and 1 x 2.0 Ah) plus charger from the freecycle zone at my recycling centre. All batteries hold a charge and the charger accepts them as good!

Except: I don't actually own any Rigid tools.

However, the power pins will likely take a large spade connector, and 2-3' of old 14 ga. extension cord will move power to LED automotive floodlights (rated 12-24v).

I also have a Makita 12V drill, almost new, that I can't even give away because nobody wants them. A little creative wiring may give it new life, since I have nothing to lose.

Edit: I just realized I have an old "blue" Ryobi recip. saw that I don't use because the connectors are weak and tend to arc on the battery contacts. But I could hard wire it to the Rigid batteries and use them both up!

Any other ideas?

They also make adapters for batteries...

I just bought a battery kit that I installed my Tesla 18650 batteries into the kit to make 20v Dewalt batteries, and these I plugged into an adapter to my 18V Dewalt drill.    I can use these batteries now with both the 18V, 20V Dewalt tools.

I just noticed it also has a USB plug, I just plugged a usb fan into the plugin socket and it works....   Bonus

https://www.ebay.com/itm/387187626650

I have seen the adapters. Thing is, I already have a full suite of batteries for both my Ryobi and Makita tools. Plus, up here they are not cheap.

Interesting about the USB adapter. I have a few cigarette lighter units that can handle 18V -- emergency chargers for lights and phones. Cool.

Anyway, these are freebie batteries -- some sensible person passed them along. It's a unique opportunity to make use of tools that are already in my inventory but languishing for the lack of -- wait for it -- a battery.

While scrounging in a local junk shop on Saturday, I came a cross a small keyless 3-jaw chuck with a pyramidal brace or blacksmith's drive.  It was in a cardboard box with a bunch of other random drill or brace related hardware, with "$3 apiece" written on the end of the box.

The little chuck came home with me.  I do already have the auger drive to 3/8" square drive (for sockets and whatnot - great for driving in hex head lag screws) and auger drive to 1/4" hex (interchangeable driver tips, including newfangled Torx and so forth) adapters - those came at full retail from Lee Valley.  But, a small chuck (3/16" capacity? maybe it's 1/4"?) may come in handy at some time, and for $3 was hard to pass up.  The downside of a lot of these little keyless chucks is that reverse (i.e. counter clockwise) drive tends to loosen the chuck.  Perhaps the good Albrecht chucks don't do this, but most of the inexpensive keyless adapter chucks seem to have this weakness.  I haven't used this one yet, but I anticipate the same behavior - the actuating threads are often too coarse, thus back off too easily.  But, even if imperfect, having adapters for braces makes them much handier as cordless drill/drivers, usable with bits and augers both ancient and modern.

Maybe I should start a thread called "the boring truth" or "here's the drill" or some such, with all of the old fashioned "cordless" hole making tools I have kicking around.  I do have a lot of "armstrong" drills and augers.

I did not find what I went into that store to look for - vintage door hardware, and (with any luck) a Scandinavian pattern axe.  They had plenty of both door hardware and axe heads, but nothing quite right on either count.  A very rusty bill hook head almost followed me home, though I decided it was a little too far gone to salvage as a "user" tool.  But, I got the little drill chuck, so that was still a successful trip, in my book.

I was in the same store a few weeks ago, and picked up a 3/4" diameter auger bit with a 1/2" round shank, also for $3.  If I grind a flat spot on the shank, I should be able to use it in my Millers Falls boring machine.  That's a little small for most framing purposes (whether for wasting out mortises or boring peg holes), but for some smaller projects might still be OK.  I need to make a raspberry trellis and a kayak rack, and 3/4" may be small enough to not take too much wood out of the lighter framing members appropriate to that scale of construction.  As I recall, that's the size I used for the mortise and tenon joints when I made a pair of clothes line poles a few years ago.

Anyway - found a little drill chuck for $3.  A successful day!

A Friend gifted me a van. It's in great shape mechanically, actual mold growth on the outside. Needs a battery but it'll run.
Another person says that if I take the handicapped ramp out of her van, I can have it to put in this one. What a score !!!

WOW, Bill!! Now, THAT is a major score, in my book!!

Bill Anderson wrote:A Friend gifted me a van.

Bill, I love to see the happy serendipity of things coming together. It seems Providence and good people are looking out for you. In my experience this doesn't happen by accident -- over time you get what you give. Nicely done!

Well I'm not going to be able to compete with the van, but my son just got home from work after starting on a new renovation job site and messaged me to ask what shoe size I was.

He's arrived home laden with treasures that the client is attempting to clear out, and has a selection of goodies.

I get first pick on this lot...



They seem to be men's shoes in about the right size for me, and I always get men's shoes as I prefer simple, practical shoes and my feet are too wide for most women's shoes so if he turns up with them I'll have a good rummage and see if there's anything I can use.

Then there's this enamel bowl, which is perfect timing as we're eating a load of rice-salad at the moment as it's so hot and it's easy to prepare and I was feeling the need for a nice rice bowl. And it has pink flowers on, which the entire universe seems to be keen should become my theme.



Then this little colander, which might or might not be stainless. I have enough colanders though so this might end up at my son's place.



And finally, a great big battery! Which he hasn't been able to test yet because, ironically, the battery in his multimeter has died. Which I find amusing for some reason.

Quick update...

My son was very disappointed that none of the shoes fitted him. The one pair he had his eyes on were in theory the right size and though he managed to squeeze his feet into them he reluctantly agreed that they were too narrow, so he sent the whole bag over to me. Still not tested the battery, but he's keeping the colander.

So, this morning I triumphantly claimed the enamel rice bowl and the bag of shoes.

Rosa ran off with the rice bowl and cleaned it up for me, only slightly disappointed to see that the pink flowers were more of a browny sort of pink than she'd hoped. I must admit I'm secretly rather pleased about that though...



Then I decanted the shoes to have a rummage though...



My eyes were immediately drawn to the two pairs of water shoes, one of which had never been worn and the other pair just worn once by the look of it. And they fit me perfectly so I claimed those. I've never had a pair before but they look fun things to wear and might inspire me to go out exploring local river beaches.

And then there was a nice pair of lightweight walking shoes, which have seen better days and need a bit of glue but also fit me perfectly. So I claimed them too!



And then these lightweight hiking boots, complete with Vibram soles also fit me perfectly.

At this rate I won't ever have to buy shoes again!



That left these, one of which is missing a shoe-lace. We have a friend who is likely to be able to put them to good use so I popped them in the back of the car for when are next over in his direction so we can drop them off. He's a great guy and if he can't use them for any reason he'll find someone who can. But I suspect they'll fit him perfectly.



And then my phone pinged and this photo arrived...



Yup, my son is back at work helping the client clear out stuff from the place he'd just bought and is delightedly taking first pick on anything he thinks either of us can use. And he wanted to know if I wanted a corner wash basin complete with slightly cracked marble surround.

He's been given instructions to rescue it for me as there are vague plans to built an outside loo at some point and that will be absolutely perfect in there.

And now I'm eyeing up all the other stuff. There's a kitchen sink underneath, and old bee equipment, and crappy chipboard shelving and offcuts of blue insulation sheets.  I dread to think what will be in the back of the van this evening... ;)

Today, I brought in and hooked up the brand new portable A/C unit!
Free from my local landfill last fall!
One of the wealthy snowbirds brought it to the dump lady and told her they had only used it twice, and it was just collecting dust...
I happened to show up, and she suggested that Molly Muttley might need an air conditioner...
I assured her that Molly preferred swimming in the reservoir, but Liz & I might find a use for it.
We already have a nice swamp cooler, but only use it a few times a year.
Now we have a Hose A/C unit to use a few times a year!

I looked this unit up today...
https://www.sylvane.com/delonghi-pinguino-12500-btu-smart-wi-fi-portable-air-conditioner-heater.html?gad_campaignid=22620551485
Holy Cow, Batman  $690 on sale but it has free shipping...
I would say this definitely qualifies as a real deal!

I had a message from my son who had popped into a supermarket with his workmate on the way home from work...

"Mum, I'm in the supermarket that gives free meat scraps to customers and I want to buy a pork shoulder. Shall I pick a bag of scraps up for you?"

"Oooh yes please!"

"Any preference as to what's in it?"

"Not tripe or sawn-in-half goat heads ideally, though the dog will eat them no doubt..."

So he was offered 'skin and bones' and accepted. Great. Bones for bone broth and skin to render for lard and for collagen for His knees. And mine too, to be honest.

Only the 'bones' were, you guessed it, three half goat heads.

But not to worry, his workmate was drooling over the goat heads telling him how they were a family treat and how his mum used to roast them up with salt on special occasions.

So now everyone is happy - I have some skin to render down for free lard and free knee-fixing stuff, and Alan's workmate has gone home to his mum and dad with a half-goat head each to roast up for Assumption day tomorrow. Plus I don't get sawn-in-half goat heads to deal with....

The only problem is the visuals I'm getting of the three of them enjoying Assumption day lunch tomorrow....

I am in the process of arranging a time for me to pick up 100 bales of hay … at $4.00 a bale. The downside is that it is a 60 mile round trip. But I don’t care where you  live in the USA …$4.00 a bale is an incredible price.  

Good deal, John; that's really a great price!
I'm sitting here smiling at your 60-mile round trip...
Distances are a bit further in my neck of the woods.
It's a 125-mile round trip to the closest big town.

Hi Thomas,

My normal trip for hay is maybe 20 miles round trip. But, I pay $8.00 a bale.   The deal I mention is a one time shot.  This farmer has gotten a job in the big city and has quit livestock.   He is unloading his hay supply. The 100 bales is more than I need ( I already have hay on hand), but I will be able to unload it for $10.00 in the early spring if I have too much.  It is very dry here, and there probably won’t be another cutting this fall.   If so, hay will be in short supply.

Yes, when I lived in MN the nearest city of any size was a 129 mile round trip.

Nice find, John!! I'm paying $10@!