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OT: Scrap value of electric motors

Richard Rogers

Titanium
Joined
Nov 27, 2001
Location
Bentley, Louisiana
Is there a run-of-the-mill price for "as-is" whole electric motors as far as scrap goes? I mean $XX per lb, just as they are, loaded into a bin. Whatever anyone can give me to go on, I'd appreciate. I've been offered 10 cents per lb, and I think that sounds low.

Richard
 
Locally it was 20 cents a pound, before the copper prices went up a bit.
I know a scrapper, and he figured out pretty quick, that it was not worth taking apart motors or transformers for the copper and steel, vs. selling them whole.

Another computer scrapper was selling "power supplies" for about that price (!! )
including the switching supplies.
He removed the big capacitors, and using them for some sort of aluminum scrap process.
 
Hi Richard, the going rate out of the port of Los Angeles for scrap motors packaged in gaylords ready to ship (minimum 10,000 lb lots) is $0.34/lb. That price is about a week old, so maybe give or take a couple pennies. You are almost better off calling a couple of motor manufacturers to see if they will pay you a premium.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to add these important words that are supposed to be in every discussion regarding scrap dealers: Crook, thief, POS, stealing, con artist, dirtbag... um, let's see, did I say crook too?
 
metalbiz,

Yes, before we hear all that "necessary and valuable service to the economy" crap, I'll agree with your list of what to expect with scrappers! I always hear that from the ones that have nowhere NEAR the exposure to such worms that I have had. To that list I'll add:

Preachers
Auctioneers
Politicians
Preacher's son


Do NOT turn your back on them.

Richard
 
LOL Richard! Watch out for the preacher, but you REALLY gotta watch out for his son.

I just bought a 1000 lb barrel of red brass shavings from a shop here in L.A. The guy told me he was ripped off by the last scrapper who left a $100.00 deposit and said he would return with the rest of the money.

The kicker, that scrap guy said he was a preacher too, trying to raise money for his church!

Oh Mah Gaawwddd !! Is there no Shame!!???
 
who needs .25 cents a pound for aluminum chips , .05 /# for aluminum foil ........

"let's see , that's 50 # of aluminum foil @ .05 /pound......heeere ya go ...that's $2.50 big
ones! "


and if those chips have ANY debris , dried coolant , steel chips , plastics.....they won't
take it .

did i mention the scammers are 8 miles drive one way. a gallon of gas is $2.85 , my
truck gets about 18mpg. they hand you religious propaganda on "the rapture "
"the fall of civilization by the homosexuals" "the murderous abortionists" "sinners
and heavy metal music" and the like to choke on while you wait for your money.

who prints this $hit? those goofy comic books don't get printed for free.
....is my truckload of cans paying to fuel their religious motivation?

they should write one called " the fatassed walrus chainsmoker secretaries ,who gossip on
the phone nonstop while choking down chili dogs from the Golden Pantry and are
perturbed that they must actually stand up to put my $27.30 through the bulletproof
glass window and might muss up their putrifeid perm ."
 
they should write one called " the fatassed walrus chainsmoker secretaries ,who gossip on
the phone nonstop while choking down chili dogs from the Golden Pantry and are
perturbed that they must actually stand up to put my $27.30 through the bulletproof
glass window and might muss up their putrifeid perm ."

Come one....tell us what you really think, and stop holding back!
 
Motors

Last my scrap contact told me was a bit more than 400 dollars a ton for electric motors. I couldn't hardly believe it. And me with not a scrap motor in sight.
They just sell them whole, too. I haven't seen them dismantle any in a long time
 
I don't have any idea about nowadays, but when I handled the scrap for the shop, the local scrap yard got to where they wouldn't take electric motors at all. I asked why, and the buyer told me the guy that they gave them to, for him to break down and return the clean steel and clean copper was getting too old for the number of motors they already had in stock. Later I heard that the dismantler had passed away, so the comment about sending them to China in one piece and having them dismantled for pennies a day is probably not far off.
David from jax
 
slow boat to china

Thay pay .15 here in montana, ship them to wash state and load them on a boat for china, as soon as thay are out 3 miles thay start to scrap the motors, burn the winding out, toss the crap overboard and when thay get to china thay unload the copper steel and cast iron. When 5 to 10% of the motor is copper thay win big time....Phil in mt
 








 
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