Recycled Cycles
RECYCLED CYCLES
Dee Winegardner
A Treasury of Junkyards
Contained by a corrugated metal fence, a mountain rises, sun spots and shadows, dull and
bright, rust red and chrome silver. To some, a pile of junk. But to others, that heap of motorcycle frames and crankcases and sidecovers and carburetors and gas tanks means a spare engine for racing; a bike back on the road without waiting three weeks for an out-of-stock part to be ordered by a dealer; a restoration completed; a lost sidecover inexpensively replaced. These are motorcycle salvage yards. The parts come from used, unsalable motorcycles, mostly bikes sold or abandoned by individuals. Others (wrecks) come from insurance companies and dealerships (surplus stock or terminated or bankrupt inventories.)
Some yards have replaced their mountains of parts with organized racks, boxes and shelves sheltered inside warehouses or barns. Many report their inventories have ballooned so that it’s become necessary to keep records by computer. But there are still yards that are truly a junkyard junkie’s paradise. These are the places where you’re allowed hunt through the scrap for the part you need. They’ll even loan you the tools to remove the part. “I feel my shop is here to cater to the customer, but it’s up to them to utilize our services,” one long-time salvage yard owner said. “We loan tools on the premises and try to give them room to work on their bikes. Often the customer can observe our tuning sessions and we’re always glad to help troubleshoot. If
we can repair a bike via telephone we’re happy to do so.” Another enterprising company whose name forms the acronym D.U.M.P. now offers a monthly newsletter and has plans to produce a catalog of parts and services for their customers.
Besides the 'more prolific supply of Japanese parts there are also places that have a good supply of parts for the Brits, BMWs, Moto Guzzis, or the orphan bikes. Some yards specialize in street bikes, others can easily help the off road rider, too. Many yards are also offering machine shop services, carb rebuilding, wheel work and frame straightening. Some now have a complete line of accessories and a good supply of rebuilt bikes for sale.
Whatever else they might offer, the enthusiasm for the customer is clearly visible.
Carl Christman of Christman Dismantlers in North Hollywood, California runs a good example of a successful junkyard. New and used parts line the floor and walls of a large building. Racks hold owner’s manuals, boxes are filled with taillights, speedometers, gas tanks, sidecovers and cables. Customers come in and poke through the parts, finding that lost cover to a saddlebag or a missing signal light. A few dollars are knocked off most new part list prices and there’s up to a 50 percent discount for used parts if you bring in the old part for exchange.
The busy season begins in March, said Christman, even in California. That’s when the parts hotline lights up, too. Christman happens to be the custodian of a hotline with nearly two dozen motorcycle junkyards. Shops on the hotline call in looking for parts from fellow junkyards and customers are referred between the junkyards. It’s a common service for automotive junkyards, and it works well for motorcycle junkyards too.
Speaking of local yards, the list below began as a private project. One of the guys was looking for some bits. He had some names and they had some names and before we knew it, we had the beginnings of a directory. So we checked the racing newspapers and club bulletins and so forth and collected names and addresses. Then we wrote to each, asking for more details, or for corrections of address and telephone number. Some were helpful, a few weren’t. The ones that wrote back are listed here.
The list therefore is verified, as of presstime anyway, but it isn’t complete; we surely didn’t find everybody. Use this as a guide, and don’t forget your yellow pages.
CALIFORNIA
Bert’s Motorcycles 900 W. Foothill Blvd.
Azusa, Calif. 91702 (213)334-1288
Lakewood Cycle Salvage 17649 Lakewood Blvd. Bellflower, Calif. 90706 (213) 634-8300
All Motorcycle Parts 20059 Roscoe Blvd.
Canoga Park, Calif. 91306 (213) 998-1168
Steve’s Motorcycle Salvage 14550 Arrow Fontana, Calif. 92335 (714) 822-0400
Joshua’s Cycle Center 13250 Century Blvd.
Garden Grove, Calif. 92643 (714)537-4735
Cycle Salvage 21995 Mission Blvd.
Hayward, Calif. 94541 (415)886-2328
Christman Cycle Dismantler 6846 Lankershim Blvd.
North Hollywood, Calif. 91605 (213)768-3673
Johnson «fe Wood Salvage 5740 Lankershim Blvd.
North Hollywood, Calif. 91601 (213) 765-0355
Cycle Barn 9121 Garvey Ave.
Rosemead, Calif. 91770 (213) 307-9424
Stocker’s Motorcycle Salvage 105 S. 31st St.
San Diego, Calif. 92113 (619) 239-2071
Parts Unlimited 10731 Chestnut Stanton, Calif. 90680 (714) 828-6260
D «fe M Motorcycle Salvage 2606 W. 17th St.
Santa Ana, Calif. 92706 (714) 554-9555
Cycle Salvage 956 Piner Road Santa Rosa, Calif. 95401 (707) 546-6621
Tri County Motorcycle Salvage 950 Mission Rock Road Santa Paula, Calif. 93060 (805) 525-1994
Bob’s Used Cycle Parts 356 E. Foothill Blvd.
Upland, Calif. 91786 (714) 985-9871
Bikes R Us
2031 E. Thompson Blvd. Ventura, Calif. 93003 (805) 652-2261
The Shop
6541 Ventura Blvd.
Ventura, Calif. 93003 (805) 656-6777
CONNECTICUT
Cycle Salvage 172 Frontage Road West Haven, Conn. 06516 (203) 624-4315
COLORADO
Denver Used Motorcycle Parts 1618 Lafayette St.
Denver, Colo. 80218 (303) 837-9817
Steve Scott Motorcycles (Bultaco only)
Box N
Woodland Park, Colo. 80863
FLORIDA
Gaylord’s Motorcycle Salvage 1708 W. Olive St.
Lakeland, Fla. 33801 (813) 686-7249
Barney’s Cycle Salvage 10411 Gandy Blvd.
St. Petersburg, Fla. 33702 (813)576-1148
GEORGIA
Cycle Barn Box 120
Beuford, Ga. 30518 (404) 945-6011
INDIANA
D «fe A Motorcycle Salvage Highway 33 Decatur, Ind. 46733 (219) 724-7055
MARYLAND
Clinton Cycle Salvage 6709 Old Branch Ave. Camp Springs, Md. 20748 (301) 449-3550
MASSACHUSETTS
Eastern Cycle Salvage 87 Park St.
Beverly, Mass. 01915 (617) 922-3707
People’s Cycle 421 Watertown #A Newton, Mass. 02158 (617) 969-3871
MINNESOTA
Cycle Salvage RR 2 South Highway 169 Jordan, Minn. 55352 (612) 492-2715
Sport Wheels 7102 W. Lake
St. Louis Park, Minn. 55426
continued on page 92
CYCLE WORLD TEST
SUMMARY
Missing an issue? They’re available from Old Del Mar Emporium, PO. Box 1621, Spring Valley, CA 92077 for $2.00 each plus 75c postage and handling per order.
NEVADA
Nevada Motorcycle Parts & Salvage 1000 Marietta Way Sparks, Nev. 89431 (702) 359-5088
NEBRASKA
Smashed Cycle Salvage 1918 Clinton St. Lincoln, Neb. 68503 (402) 435-0915
NEW JERSEY
Motorcycle Salvage 1 22 Walnut St. Montclair, N.J. 07042 (201) 746-3622
OKLAHOMA
Lakeside Cycles Box 8
N.E. 53rd & Spencer Road Spencer, Okla. 73084
Ron’s Cycle Land 6710 E. Pine Tulsa, Okla. 74115 (918)835-8215
OREGON
Oregon Motorcycle Parts 8537 S.E. 17th Ave. Portland, Oreg. 97202 (503)233-1224
Western Cycle Salvage 9915 N.E. Sandy Blvd. Portland, Oreg. 97220 (503) 255-9288
TEXAS
Union Motorcycle Salvage 6345 Long Dr.
Houston, Texas 77087 (713) 643-1659
Union Motorcycle Salvage North 3543 Pinemont Houston, Texas 77018 (713) 686-1739
WASHINGTON
Northwest Repair & Salvage 1440 NW 53rd Seattle, Wash. 98107 (206)783-2250
Bent Bike Motorcycle Salvage
18327 Highway 99
Lynnwood, Wash. 98036
(206) 771-8299
