Scrap Monkey

Scrap Monkey by Steve Johnson

"It's definitely a big gun that can do a lot of damage, but I wouldn't get too attached to it if I were you. Those are .454 Casull rounds it's using. They're meant for hunting elephants and rhinos, so you're not going to find too many of them lying around in Kansas. You're welcome to take it if you want, but I'm not lugging that heavy bastard all the way back to the truck for the three shots it's got left in it." --Reggie Diaz, scrap monkey

Scrap monkeys are the tech wizards of the Boomlands, equal part mechanic, dumpster diver, and mad scientist. When a convoy finds a potentially useful piece of unclaimed machinery, it's the scrap monkey's job to figure out if it's worth trying to get it up and running again. Given the sheer number of mechanical components that are hard to get and impossible to build with the available technology and equipment, a major component of the scrap monkey's job is finding alternatives for or figuring out how to bypass those irreplaceable parts. If a machine isn't worth fixing, the scrap monkey decides what parts are worth scavenging and leads the process of stripping it for parts.
Scrap monkey spend most of their time working on vehicles, weapons, and whatever machinery their camp has managed to put to use, but specialization isn't something they can enjoy. They have to be well-versed in general mechanical and engineering principals and able to make good guesses about how things work because they're expected to solve any problem that's even remotely technological, from fixing a bike chain to diffusing a bomb.

Career

Qualifications

In addition to being able to fix things, scrap monkeys working with a convoy are expected to be expert scavengers. It's their job to figure out what's useful or valuable and separate it from the junk. In the case of machines they're not familiar with, this is often a matter of looking for parts that can't be made easily with post-Boom technology. Scrap monkeys also test or examine machinery and parts that the convoy is bartering for and provide advice to make sure the convoy gets a good deal on tech that it offers up for trade.

Perception

Demographics

Older scrap monkeys tend to be people who worked in technical fields before the boom: mechanics, maintenance technicians, repairmen, and the like. The newer generation of scrap monkeys are mostly post-Boom kids with enough interest and aptitude to convince the camp's scrap monkeys to let them hang around and learn the ropes.

Operations

Tools

Scrap monkeys are supposed to be able to fix just about anything with a scewdriver, pair of pliers, and some duct tape or baling wire, but they prefer to have a more extensive tool set. They usually carry a backpack or knapsack filled with the basics, keep a large portable toolbox packed with more specialized tools for scavenging parts or breaking down machinery, and fill as much space as the convoy will let them with spares, variants, and tools that have limited use but are absolutely essential for certain jobs. In camps with the means to support electrical or gas-powered tools, the camp's scrap monkeys are responsible for keeping them running and deciding when it's worth consuming the resources it takes to run them.

Materials

Batteries, industrial chemicals, engine oil, and other pre-Boom goods that are difficult or impossible to manufacture with current technology are extremely valuable to scrap monkeys. Give them the choice between a can of WD-40 and a gold watch and they'll take the WD-40 every time.
While scrap monkeys tend to rely on instinct and general knowledge, some make a habit of collecting operation manuals, science textbooks, and other potentially useful documentation.

Workplace

Most camps have a garage or shop that serves as the central hub and default workspace for the camps scrap monkeys.

Provided Services

In the convoy, scrap monkeys are responsible for keeping all the equipment in good running order, deciding what's worth scavenging, and making sure that the group gets a good deal when trading or bartering for technological supplies and equipment. In camp, they're in charage of maintaining vehicles and other equipment as well as the mechanical components of the camp's defenses and infrastructure.

Dangers & Hazards

Aside form the standard Boomlands hazards that everyone has to cope with, the most dangerous aspects of being a scrap monkey are the same as before the boom: cuts and scrapes, involuntary ampuatations, and being crushed by heavy things.

Alternative Names

Junk Monkey, Scrapper, Junker

Type

Technology