Topic: Bob's Salvage in Phoenix starting to wind down

[carnivorous chicken]

On my visit to PHX I went by Bob's a couple times (of course). I needed a couple things, which I found. And I had a chat with Rod, the owner.

They are starting to wind down. There are a couple things going on. Rod is kind of sick of the whole thing, but more importantly the property that the yard is one has shot up in value. He said he fields calls from random people trying to buy it. A huge lot acros the street that was used as a dump was bought up and is going to be housing a huge business, with part of it being a park. The dried up river bed just to the north is a park now. And people want the land.

They already closed the third yard, the bikes they got from Rye. Now they are working on scrapping big sections of the second yard, so far mostly Suzuki and Yamaha. They may go into more online stuff. But with the money people are offering for the land it doesn't make sense to keep it going.

It'll take a while, I suspect it'll be around for a couple more years. There are still amazing things to be found in the warehouses -- NOS period slip ons, for example. Get there if you can.

[carnivorous chicken]

Back in Phoenix, thought I'd post an update. The back yard at Bob's is, sadly, almost completely gone, with most bikes removed and scrapped. I had my eyes on a 350F with a complete and intact set of carbs, but they are gone. There are still quite a few bikes back there in the Honda seciton, but maybe 1/20th of what was there before. A few 750s with roundtop carbs, a 750 Hondamatic, a later 550 with decent exhaust. Saw a CL160 or maybe CL175 tank in really great shape just sitting there on the ground, but most of the twin stuff was in the middle of the yard and that whole section is gone.

They closed the third yard, and brought some of the stuff into the parking lot (where there is no longer anwhere to park, but parking is out front) and the first yard. The first yard is harder to navigate because there's more stuff there, and the SOHC stuff is now behind some of the other stuff from the second yard.

I was bummed when I saw that second yard and especially when I saw that those 350F carbs were gone (although I am pretty sure there are a few more sets in the carb bins...). Because a tech company is moving in, the land is worth millions now apparently. Dunno what the longterm plan is in terms of staying open and what will remain. But at least the dude who sells hot dogs with Rat Fink painted on his cart was still there.

*Forgot to add: they are still acquiring bikes, including through insurance companies totalling bikes. And they had just received 6 KZ900s/1000s, including at least one Z1...

[ekpent]

The way the tech companies are starting to downsize it may have been a good time for the owner to make the deal. Do you know if its a tech company that might be leaving California or other West Coast states for maybe a better business environment ? As far as them still buying we can all feel their pain, its a disease I tell ya, a disease !! 

[carnivorous chicken]

The way the tech companies are starting to downsize it may have been a good time for the owner to make the deal. Do you know if its a tech company that might be leaving California or other West Coast states for maybe a better business environment ? As far as them still buying we can all feel their pain, its a disease I tell ya, a disease !! 

I dunno. It's in a pretty industrial part of south Phoenix, but it is close to where the Rio Salado runs (or used to, I guess) and there are plans for a park there as well as an industrial park. There certainly have been companies fleeing California and elsewhere for the cheaper rents, although a lot of that stuff goes out to deep east Mesa, where there isn't much of anything and where it's even cheaper still.

Rod, the owner of Bob's, definitely has the bug, and has a recently acquired Black Bomber sitting out front. He's got a thing for Brit bikes too -- couple nice Triumphs in the shop.

[BomberMann650]

Hopefully he's not taking calls from rhe robo-center land sharks seriously.

My old man gets letters in the mail all the time like that