Every wreck — car, truck, farm machine, boat, plane — contains the same families of materials. Know those families, and you know what to look for on any carcass, without needing to know the model.
UNDERSTAND
Materials common to every wreck
Every vehicle or machine combines the same basic components, in different proportions and qualities. The specific sheets (Récupérer sur une épave militaire to Démonter, déplacer, rapporter) cover wrecks by type. This one covers what you'll find everywhere.
ACT
Metals
Steel. The main material of every wreck. Chassis, body, bolts, springs, driveshafts. Not all steel is equal: body steel is soft and easy to work; spring steel is hard, elastic and tough — it's one of the best salvageable steels for making tools and blades. See Le tranchant.
Copper. In all the electrical wiring, motors, alternators, old radiators. Copper melts at about 1,085 °C and can be recycled forever without losing its properties. A car alternator holds several hundred grams of copper in its windings. See Electrical energy in everyday objects.
Aluminum. Wheels, engine casings, modern radiators, recent bodywork, aircraft parts. It melts at about 660 °C — castable in a forge fire. Light, corrosion-resistant, easy to work. See La corrosion des métaux.
Lead. Lead-acid batteries (every car battery holds five to ten kilos), counterweights, old solder. Toxic — never melt it in an enclosed space, and wash your hands after handling it. It melts at 327 °C and is easy to cast into sling shot, fishing weights or ballast.
Ball bearings
Found in every rotating part: wheels, motors, alternators, pumps, driveshafts. Hardened steel balls in a steel or brass cage. Bearings are precision objects, hard to make and easy to salvage. Uses: replacing a worn bearing, balls as slingshot ammunition, balls as high-grade steel for tools.
Springs
Suspension springs (big, high-strength steel), valve springs (small, very hard), return springs (everywhere in mechanisms). Spring metal is a high-carbon steel, hardened and tempered — it's the best material for making blades, punches and needles. It can be worked in a forge. See Le tranchant.
Glass
Windshields. Laminated glass (two layers of glass with a plastic film between them). It doesn't shatter into sharp pieces — it cracks and stays in place. Laminated glass can be cut and reused as greenhouse glazing, a protective panel or a flat surface.
Side windows. Tempered glass. It breaks into thousands of small, blunt cubes. Useless as a pane, but the cubes make a good abrasive.
Mirrors. A reflective surface: signaling (see Signaling and getting found), concentrating sunlight, or a rear-view mirror reused as is.
Rubber
Tires, seals, hoses, rubber mounts, belts. Rubber isn't easy to recycle by hand. Tires can be cut with a knife or a saw and used as soles, washers, gaskets, protection, or fuel of last resort (toxic black smoke — outdoors only). Hoses are flexible pipes you can use to transfer liquids.
Fluids
Engine oil. Lubrication, waterproofing wood and leather, an oil lamp (a cloth wick, a container, a flame — see Fabriquer une lampe).
Coolant. Water plus antifreeze (ethylene glycol, toxic). Antifreeze is a solvent, a de-icer and a violent poison — never drink it, and never mistake it for water.
Leftover fuel. Gasoline, diesel, kerosene. An "empty" tank often still holds several liters. Diesel keeps better than gasoline and works as fuel, solvent and degreaser.
Brake fluid. It absorbs water, it's flammable, and it eats paint. Usable as a fire accelerant in controlled amounts.
Electronics and electrics
Alternator or generator. It produces current when you turn it. It's a generator you can salvage as is, with a belt and an engine. See Electrical energy in everyday objects.
Starter motor. A powerful electric motor, powered by the battery. Reusable as a motor (winch, lathe, pump) with a suitable power supply.
Wiring harness. Dozens of meters of insulated copper wire, sized by cross-section. Salvageable for any wiring job.
ADAPT
The wreck is at sea or in water. Salt corrodes steel quickly, but aluminum and copper hold up better. Rinse salvaged parts in fresh water. Oil and fuel float and can be collected from the surface.
The wreck burned. Metals survive (warped but salvageable), glass melts or shatters, rubber and plastic are gone. Ball bearings and springs lose their temper (heat destroys the heat treatment) — they become ordinary steel.
You don't know what a fluid is. The label, where it sits in the vehicle and its color tell you. Engine oil: black or amber, in the oil pan at the bottom. Coolant: green, pink or orange, in the radiator's closed circuit. Brake fluid: clear, in a small reservoir on the master cylinder. When in doubt, don't taste it and don't breathe it in.
What to remember
Springs and bearings are the hidden treasures of any wreck: top-quality steel and mechanical precision you can't find anywhere else.
Copper is everywhere — wiring, motors, alternators — and recycles without loss. Look for it systematically.
Fluids are both resources and dangers. Oil lubricates and gives light, antifreeze kills, fuel burns. Identify them before you handle them.