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Frank Delk, who was still a kid when his parents ditched their welding business in 1972 to start Delk’s Army-Navy Surplus store.
He says he does not know why they decided to shift into selling old military stuff, but it turned out to be a good tactical move.
As the store on U.S. 64 five miles west of Asheboro edges toward its 50th year in business, word of mouth brings customers from every corner of North Carolina. It’s not unusual for travelers from West Virginia, Ohio or another state to stop by on their way to the beach. Delk’s ships to the West Coast routinely; customers from Florida to Alaska order military generators.
The family-owned enterprise is billed as one of the largest surplus stores on the East Coast. “I don’t know of anybody any bigger,” Delk says. “I’ve never been to a dealer that’s any bigger than ours.”
Frank and his older brother, William, were teens when they joined the Delk’s working crew. He was mechanically inclined, so William gravitated to the back shop to help his father work on generators and vehicles. Frank, who didn’t like getting his hands dirty, worked out front.
Dempsey died in 2012. After William died last January, Frank eased the throttle on buying the bigger mechanical stuff, the things his father and brother could fix.
With his connections, Frank is confident that if Delk’s does not stock it, he can track down almost any modern-day military surplus item a customer requests (although he notes that it is getting harder to find things from World War II and even from the Vietnam era).
But don’t ask Frank to get a tank. Delk’s does not carry guns either.
If you happen to be in the market for an OH-58C Bell military helicopter or a 5-ton camouflage military wrecker though, give him a call.
They’re in stock now.
Photographed, Wednesday, October 31, 2018, in Greensboro, N.C. JERRY WOLFORD and SCOTT MUTHERSBAUGH / Perfecta Visuals
He says he does not know why they decided to shift into selling old military stuff, but it turned out to be a good tactical move.
As the store on U.S. 64 five miles west of Asheboro edges toward its 50th year in business, word of mouth brings customers from every corner of North Carolina. It’s not unusual for travelers from West Virginia, Ohio or another state to stop by on their way to the beach. Delk’s ships to the West Coast routinely; customers from Florida to Alaska order military generators.
The family-owned enterprise is billed as one of the largest surplus stores on the East Coast. “I don’t know of anybody any bigger,” Delk says. “I’ve never been to a dealer that’s any bigger than ours.”
Frank and his older brother, William, were teens when they joined the Delk’s working crew. He was mechanically inclined, so William gravitated to the back shop to help his father work on generators and vehicles. Frank, who didn’t like getting his hands dirty, worked out front.
Dempsey died in 2012. After William died last January, Frank eased the throttle on buying the bigger mechanical stuff, the things his father and brother could fix.
With his connections, Frank is confident that if Delk’s does not stock it, he can track down almost any modern-day military surplus item a customer requests (although he notes that it is getting harder to find things from World War II and even from the Vietnam era).
But don’t ask Frank to get a tank. Delk’s does not carry guns either.
If you happen to be in the market for an OH-58C Bell military helicopter or a 5-ton camouflage military wrecker though, give him a call.
They’re in stock now.
Photographed, Wednesday, October 31, 2018, in Greensboro, N.C. JERRY WOLFORD and SCOTT MUTHERSBAUGH / Perfecta Visuals
