......microwave for parts this morning. Pulled out the magnets for fun kid projects, the wiring to use for short runs or for my son when he asks for wire for experiments, and the case for when I need nice thin sheet metal for something. My wife does not understand.
What else, besides cars, do you strip usable bits and pieces from?
Just about everything that doesn't have a flyback transformer or explosives in it.
Careful. If I remember right, microwaves have big, high voltage, capacitors that pack enough power to really hurt you. But that one should have been pretty well discharged by the time you got into it.
Don't worry, I always let things sit for a week or so until I get around to them. 
I tend to strip electronics of switches and fasteners before being trashed. I'll also strip hardware (hinges, latches, funky fasteners) from furniture too.
I made a nice skid plate/belly pan from an aluminum e46 sunroof assembly
Everything has a potential re-use.
I just stripped the motor and wire out of a washing machine that I was about to junk.
In reply to mazdeuce:
All kinds of machinery. My stainless dishwasher donated panels that became all kinds of shiny things.
In particular I like industrial machines for harvesting DIN rails, wire, fuse, relay, contactor terminals and so on. The panel switch gear is awesome but usually too big for automotive uses. My lathe has a DC motor from a treadmill controlled by a motor controller from an Arpeco roll machine and a speed control knob pulled from a printing press. (someday I'll even hook it all up - the bracket to hold the motor isn't quite in existence yet but... it might use a power steering pulley I took off an old BMW :) )
I always swipe old computers because I love ribbon cable and standoffs for electronic projects. Hooking up an LCD on a breadboard is way less messy.
Old computers and electronics. Yup, watch out for capacitors. Anything with vacuum tubes has a place in my basement workshop.
plastic screw that the previous owner used to put the license plates on. berkeley I thought I'd never get it out.
Re-discovered an old Cisco router that had quit working years ago. It was still holding up my cable modem. My 10-year old held the soldering iron while I pulled some green LED's and caps and a full-wave bridge off the circuit board.
Old furnaces have bigass squirrel cage fans in them that are GREAT for working in the summer. Just add some screens, a belt guard, old extension cord, and maybe some wheels and a handle, preferably the height adjustable kind from an old push mower.
You end up with a cheap-free version of this on steroids.
mazdeuce wrote: ......microwave for parts this morning.
Last time I did that I kept the capacitor. I'm sure I can find something fun to do with it. 
mazdeuce wrote: What else, besides cars, do you strip usable bits and pieces from?
the body of the datsun replica is made of two water heaters, two A/C air handlers, an oven, two clothes washing machines, a refrigerator, an upright freezer, a file cabinet, a metal folding card table, a washer stand, and a a box stand, and the hood of a station wagon (nice flat expanse for making a floor.)
Kenny_McCormic wrote: Old furnaces have bigass squirrel cage fans ...
Free the squirrels!
I've about gotten to the point I don't strip things anymore, unless I'm looking for something specific. The last time I moved, I ended up throwing out boxes of junk I hadn't used. Now I put the junk on the side of the road and let someone else get the parts off of it.
I have boxes and boxes of old spare parts that I've pulled and stacks of stuff I haven't gotten around to harvesting yet. Every bit of it gets harvested for something.
In reply to Toyman01:
Ditto. If I had a reasonable amount of room where I could organize stripped parts so that I can find something within a reasonable time... maybe... But hell... just keeping nuts and bolts organized is a PITA.
If I'm E36 M3canning an engine or transmission, I'll strip it of dowels, spacers, bolts, stuff like that. I keep some of those plastic storage containers full of my haul, I cannot count the number of times that's saved my butt.
Oh... this is a great way to store every nut, bolt and washer I save when turning regular cars into race cars. They are a bit flimsy but for $40... it keeps the bench clear of old sour cream containers and when I need a 10mm hex bolt or firewall grommet I know EXACTLY where to go to get it.
http://www.harborfreight.com/parts-rack-with-removable-bins-95496.html
In reply to Giant Purple Snorklewacker:
How does that turn into a hammer?
Twenty years ago, I was given a free Honda CB750F Super Sport that was beyond repair. I removed every nut and bolt and threw them in a bucket. To this day, I rarely need to buy metric hardware.
Grizz wrote: In reply to Giant Purple Snorklewacker: How does that turn into a hammer?
Moving parts= hammer
Non-moving parts= kindling (this also applies to expired coupons)
I HATE those bins.
They're not as bad if you're the only one using them, but the hardware does tend to get dirty if there's not a regular turnover. If you have those in a shop with a bunch of people, the hardware gets all mixed up, and it's only a matter of time before the bins start to come off the rack and get filled with junk. Sometimes I'll put one on the bench at work and see how long it takes to fill up, and with what. I hate those stupid things.
In reply to Giant Purple Snorklewacker:
We went with the smaller plastic drawer-bin style. Three of them, in fact - metric and std bolts and misc screws. We then spent a week sorting through coffee cans of stuff and putting them into p-tex labeled bins. It was a long boring job in front of the wood stove and tv, but paid off in huge time savings knowing quickly if we had a bolt or nut. Plus, it provides an accurate place to put extras.
Now I get to do that in my own house... 
And I agree with ZW. Bins only work if the people using them are anal about organization. While many things about my g/f annoy the crap out of me, her neat-freak tendencies are good for offsetting my inherent cluttering side.
Cone_Junky wrote: I tend to strip electronics of switches and fasteners before being trashed. I'll also strip hardware (hinges, latches, funky fasteners) from furniture too. I made a nice skid plate/belly pan from an aluminum e46 sunroof assembly
I know, right? I just used some brackets from a sofa to make a transfer case drop kit for my wrangler! Ikea offroad parts ftmfw!
Joey
The ones I use are very similar to this:
Each one has scribbled on it in Sharpie 'metric bolts', 'USS/SAE bolts', 'brackets', 'washers', etc. I also have two small wall mounted bins for small weird stuff, wiring connectors etc. The new crib's garage has a big beam running across the garage, I used some of that wire shelving from Home Depot all the way across and the bins fit perfectly, along with my drills etc.
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