NERVOUS SURGEONS

This section of the website is mainly looking back at scrap yards that some of us have visited in the past, sadly many of these yards have either disappeared under the weight of EU legislation, or been cleared to make way for the new generation cars, that will never have the same lure of old steel.

The images on this page are however bang upto date, a few weeks ago i was travelling some back roads near my hometown of Newport Pagnell, when a sillouhette in a field caught my eye, and on further investigation turned out to be this convertible Mustang. I do not have a great Muzzy knowledge base but I think its circa 1969 and despite looking fairly rough their are some good wings on it and in fact looks like somone had been working on restoring right up until the point it was hoisted up onto the container.  

 

 

 

 

Like all Rodders the Nervous Surgeons share the intrigue and excitement that hunting out "Old Tin" can generate. Over the years many leads have been followed and on some occassions these have provided a few salvagable cars , but sadly most searches have only turned up cars to far gone,that they would be beyond the skills of even the most skilled bodyman. On this page will share with you some of the cars we have found in the past 15 years or so, all of the following were located in one yard which covered over 2 acres and although many of the cars shown here, are still in the yard, they are now deteriorating quickly, with the added dilema that the yard is slowly being cleared for modern vehicles, leaving these cars which could have been Hot Rod fodder, fast disappearing.

Above is an Austin A40 van which appears to have been converted at some point in its working life, to Countryman style people carrier. Diving in from above is a Ford possibly of the Consul/Zodiac period. Laying in the background is a Pop/Prefect axle complete with at least one wheel. Not much left here but the screen would still be of use and possibly the bonnet.

 

I know its not really Street Rod material, but the Smoke City Wheelers thought so a few years ago. This however apart from conjuring up images of Terry Thomas sat inside is where the yard used to operate from. The office was on the top deck which at that time would have afforded the proprieter an excellent view of the yard. The wooden shack on the left is now the office but i thought the bus deserved a mention, I am not an anorak!

 

Buried in here is an Austin Pick up

 

Taking centre stage in this shot is a long forgotten relic from Luton, A Vauxhall Victor of the F Type variety. Clearly still visible is the two tone paint scheme, which was so dramatic and daring in the late 50's. This car has clearly given its doors to a better cause and when you consider just how badly these cars used to rust its a wonder any of it was left at all.

Interestingly, my father worked in the body shop at Luton during the 50's and 60's and when he recalled that when the factory closed on a Friday evening the assembled bare metal bodies were meant to be sprayed with an oil to protect them over the weekend, but invariably never were, as the workers were far more interested in ensuring they finished work on time. He further recounted that this meant when they came back to work on the Monday the early shift were always greeted by bodies they appeared to have been sprayed brown. This light rusting was not rubbed back, no the best way of covering it up was to get it into the paint shop, quick.

 

With only 15,939 Dorset bodies having been made, and most of these going for export, it is most surprising to find a car like this languishing in a yard. This image from a few years ago but even then this was a rare car. All the interior was still in the car and despite its heavy association with rust this was possibly a car worth saving.

The story behind the car was that it had been stripped of its engine following a front end collision and was finally stacked onto the top of quite a high pile of cars as it seemed unlikely anyone would want any more parts from it owing to its rare nature. Most Austin owners at that time having the Devon body. Sad to see especially as the Dorset is so sort after now.

 

 

No yard in the 70's or 80's was complete without one and this yard is no exception. On the left is a rather sad looking example and I could not help but wonder just how much more salvagable this car would have been if the passengers had just shut the doors when they got out. The doors still have there handles, mouldings and glass but even though this does not have another car on top of it, I cannot see a que forming to buy it. That should help make mine rarer, just another 75,000 to go.

Now the image below is enough to make any Rodder in this country weep, this 1932 Model B Ford was found just outside Bristol. It had sat for many years just waiting to be saved, and despite the valiant efforts of the Rodding fraternity in the Bristol area this Model B was never did make it to safety. The owner valued his possession to high and wanted a serious amount of folding, but the condition put off the potential purchasers. Even though the B was possibly beyond saving, it still had an additional bonus, it came complete with registration documents. In these days of Goverment legislation gone mad those documents are now a highly prized commodity. Hindsight really is a wonderful thing. (Thanks to Merv Barnett for the use of the image)

           Yes this is in the UK

 

You may have seen an image of these Model AA trucks in the “Bits n Pieces” section on the web site. It is however worth putting a couple more in as they are amongst the best finds we made during our many years of searching. The problem that most early iron hunters experience, is a distinct lack of suitable Rod material, once you have taken away the Fords Pop, Pilot, Model Y, Prefect, Fordson and Austin’s Devon/Dorset and Austin 7 and there is little left that fits the main stream ideas and expressions of Street Rodding.

The early Model AA trucks fit the requirements quite well and gave us just a hint of finding something more resembling our American Cousins. The latest calculation indicates, that these trucks have now been sat in the workshop for over 40 years and if you have read the other article on these, it seem they are destined to spend another 40 years tucked away. These trucks are in very good condition with only a light surface rust, imagine just how good these would look as “Ramp Rods”, especially if they carried a 5 window model A on the back.

 

 

Henry Hirise?

 

 

       

Possibly a  Morris 8 

 

    Convertible Pop Anyone?

 

   

      PA Cresta Sitting on top of the Pile 

 

               

           Your guess is as good as mine with these 2 images

 

                             

Difficult though it may be to spot, lurking to the left of the upside down number plate is the front screen of an Austin Dorset. This shot was taken in 2004 in Hertfordshire, the Dorset has several cars piled on top of it but if you were brave enough (and I am not) the inside has been protected considrably well. All the window mouldings are still intact and the seats and trim still in place.I am however certain that the creaking sounds you may here once inside may be the last things you ever here, due to the overwhelming precarious position and structural condition of the car.

 

 

                             

 

 

 

 

 Located in a different yard is this unusual offering from the Austin stable a Metropolitan. This the HD6 model which designated it as being a convertible with a 1500 engine, it first appeared in the UK in 1957 after selling so well for 3 years in the USA and Canada.In fact during this period it became the best selling British built car in the US market. Designed in conjunction with Nash it went onto to generate millions of pounds for Austin.

This one had clearly seen better days but was still proudly hanging onto it's continental kit and spare tyre. Perhaps someone was thinking of turning it into a Gasser with the axle laid across its boot?

 

 

 

Looking decidely like an early Rover this car was ceratinly Suited and Booted, with a rear that even JLo would be proud of it sat waiting for someone to save it. Whether anyone did, I am not sure, as when I last visited this yard, which was just outside Toddington, the site had been cleared of all the old cars and the new old cars had moved in in the form of Rep mobiles, Mondeo's, Cavaliers and the like. 

 

With the opportunities for making an exciting Rod related find in a scrap yard in this counrty so rare, it never put me off trying to achieve that one moment of disbeleif that you had finally found something that others would covet. The image on the left is that one true moment for me.

  

 

   

 

I had been told of a 57 Chevy in an old lean to which was near Heathrow Airport, now Heathrow isn't exactly a small site, and after sevral hours of cruising around various areas with no success, I decided to stop at a scrap yard and as they say on the Bill "make further enquiries". It was the reaction of the scrap yard employee who alerted me to the fact that I may be closer than I had originally thought. "Never seen a Chevy" was his reply quickly followed by "Now if you don't mind i'm busy".  I drove around the corner parked and sneaked back to the yard for a closer look, I only had the one chance to take the shot you see, before the fast approaching sound of a demented alsatian sent me back over the fence.

The Holy Grail had been sought and found, the information was almost correct, except for it being a 55 Chevy. Note it is running old British Number plates so it had clearly been around a while, what finally happened to it again do not know but this search was the most rewarding right up until I discovered the Model AA Trucks elsewhere in this section.

 

The scrap yard at Yaxham held an almost mystical allure for Tri Chevy lovers and owners during the late 70's and right up until the late 90's when it finally closed for business to make way for a new housing development.The yard was in East Anglia and ideally placed amongst the US Airforce bases, like Lakenheath and Mildernhall, this lead to it being the final resting place for many of Americas finest automobiles. The yard even had the contract to clear away abonded cars from the bases.

This apparently was a common task as many of the servicemen brought their cars over with them but by the time their tour of duty was done, many did not arrange to repatriate their motor vehicles. This was then left behind, and would finally make it's way to Yaxham.

This apparently was a common task as many of the servicemen brought their cars over with them but by the time their tour of duty was done, many did not arrange to repatriate their motor vehicles. This was then left behind, and would finally make it's way to Yaxham.

On a trip made just before the site was closed and bulldozed, the owners confirmed that many of the cars had been driven into the yard from the mid 60's onwards. None of the cars had been stacked and over the years had supplied many valuable parts for restorers, racers and customisers.When Slingshot and I made our one and only trip, I still had my 55 so was eager to see what I maight be able to salvage, unfortunately there was very little left that fell into the salvagable category.

The images show a few of the remains and some of the highs and lows of that day. The high was discovering a front screen with its leading edge just peering out from some undergrowth and the low as i slid it out from the entwined grass and shrubbery realising that the screen was in fact smashed further along its length.

We did discover some dial surrounds as they were plastic and had survived by being covered in dirt as the floor of the 55 210 that they come from had rotted away.The main item we brought away from the day was a few photographs and the overwhelming sense of wishing we had visited many years before.

 

Above: The sad remains of a two tone 1956 Nomad

Tri Chevy lovers will have no problem identifying this image, with the unmistakable lines of a 55 chevy front wing looming out of of the undergowth.

They will also recognise the area that is often prone to the rust bug, the peak over the headlight, CARS repair patch panels are however available!

 

ABOVE:- Those traffic light windscreen washers get agressive if you refuse to pay

It's the sad remains of a 1955 Chevy 4 door, this site actually turned up some plastic dash items, but very little else could be salvaged. The doors were by now paper thin with rust having devoured copious amounts of American steel before our arrival.