If you’re looking for a cassette deck for a 1985 El Camino, you can’t just go to Walmart.

That’s what Cal Younker’s son, Danny, was hoping to find when they went to the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Company’s fall auto parts swap meet Sunday. It was the first time they had been to the market, which the fire company has been hosting since the early 1990s.

Younker of Belle Vernon has a 1988 Firebird Formula 350 himself. He didn’t need anything for it, but said, “It’s always cool to look and see what’s available.”

Brian C. Rittmeyer | TribLive Parts, tools and even toys were among the offerings at the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Co.’s fall auto parts swap meet on Sunday, Nov. 2.  

While the meet was scheduled to start at 7 a.m., people started rolling in as early as 6 a.m., said Clayton Murphy, chair of the fire company committee that puts the meet together. While the meet was scheduled to run until 3 p.m., some vendors were leaving around mid-day as the crowd thinned out.

“People start coming before the sun’s up to start shopping,” Murphy said.

The event is held twice a year, usually on the last Sunday in April and the first Sunday in November. The November date never changes, falling on the same day that daylight saving time ends, but next spring will be different — it will be held on the last Sunday in March because Easter falls on that first April Sunday, Murphy said.

A fundraiser for the fire department, each meet brings in between $5,000 and $7,000, Murphy said. Turnout often depends on the weather — Sunday was a good day, cool but not wet.

Murphy couldn’t say how many vendors it had Sunday.

“We had to make additional spots. It was really good,” he said. “We were basically at capacity.”

About 90% of what was offered for sale was used, Murphy said. It included auto parts, tires, tools and other accessories. Food was available inside the fire hall.

“You can find just about anything imaginable here,” he said.

Brian C. Rittmeyer | TribLive Brothers Bob (right) and Sam Giancola check out the offerings at the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Co.’s fall auto parts swap meet on Sunday, Nov. 2.  

Brothers Bob Giancola of Penn Hills and Sam Giancola of Plum always come to the meet in the spring and fall. Bob said they each have multiple vehicles — he has a 1968 Camaro and a 1932 Ford.

“We’re car guys. This is what we do,” Bob said.

Sam said he was looking for 14-inch tires as well as a radiator for his Chevy S-10 — he got close to finding what he needed, but not quite.

“There’s always some stuff you’ll see you might need. It’s hit and miss,” Sam said.

Bob said they go to some other auto parts markets that are so much bigger it’s impossible to see everything available.

“If you’re looking for something, that’s where you’re going to find it,” he said.

Austin Rearick, who lives nearby in Washington Township, said he was selling parts at the meet to clean out his garage and fund his 6-year-old son Axel’s dirt-bike racing. He sold about a third of what he had brought, which he thought was decent.

“We drove by it a whole lot, but this is our first time here,” he said.

Brian C. Rittmeyer | TribLive Gary Nestor, left, of Saxonburg chats with another man during the auto parts swap meet at the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Co. grounds on Sunday, Nov. 2. Nestor, a collector of license plates, said he sells some of his plates so he can buy more.  

A collector of license plates, Gary Nestor from Saxonburg said he was selling some from his collection so he could buy more. He’s been traveling to swap meets like the fire department’s since 1985, including one in Canfield, Ohio, and the Big Butler Parts A Rama in Butler County.

“It’s like any kind of collector thing. I just collect license plates,” he said. “These are my extras.”

Asked what he thinks of Pennsylvania’s new license plate, with the slogan “Let Freedom Ring,” Nestor said it’s not really bright enough.

“The Liberty Bell is the wrong color — it’s gray, it should be bronze,” he said. “It’s nice that we have a new plate. It’s not detailed or bright enough. It’s not distinctive looking enough.”

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