I have to agree with Zorro and Pogue...

Mark, it sounds like you're talking about "top shelf" bikes. If you read this forum very often, you'll realize that what you might call "junk" actually describes what most of us ride. I think we all receive great joy in rescuing a bike (even a less-than-stellar one) from oblivion and putting it back on the road. It's even more fun when you can fix up a $10 bike, then give it to a friend or someone who really needs a decent bike.

Pogue's cheat sheet is very similar to the one that I gave my father. My dad is a farmer who frequently searches the local recycling centers for metal to use in his welding shop on the farm. While he's at it, he keeps an eye out for bikes. Since he knows absolutely nothing about bikes, I've trained him to look for anything that sounds Italian or Japanese, leather seats, "curly" handlebars, etc. When he gets a hit, then I can go and have a look and evaluate the bike. If it's a clunker, then we haul it back to the recycling center.

Just because a bike doesn't have top quality components and the best possible tubing, doesn't mean that it's not worth having. I still love to ride my 1981 Schwinn World... and it wouldn't go for three bucks at the Salvation Army store.