Motors, Worth the effort?

[injunjoe]

I just stripped a condenser motor, (fan motor for outside ac unit).
Starting weight was 12 pounds. At my yard they give $0.20 a pound.
After about ten minutes I ended up with 2.25 pounds of #2 copper, thus leaving 9.75 pounds in steel scrap.

Motor as is would be worth $2.40
Cleaned the copper comes out to $7.31 at current yard prices.
Left over steel is worth $0.98
So in about ten minutes I now have $8.29 in total scrap worth.
That comes out to 5.89 profit for cleaning the motor.
So in an hour I will have made $35.34, not bad for standing in my work shop having coffee.

[parrothead]

Yep. Well worth the effort. I like to let them pile up a bit as doing several in a row is even more effecient. I just wish that I could get my hands on more of them. It is actually worth buying them at the same price the yard pays for them.

[vamped400]

thanks injunjoe. I always thought it wasnt worth it, but after reading this ill be tearing my motors apart.

[fiat128]

My "real job" is working in an electric motor factory in Juarez Mexico. Here at the plant, we press the stators (the part with the copper wire) out of the motor shell and then we have build a maching that cuts the end coils off one end of the winding. The rest is pulled out of the slots from the other end.

We recover about 3,000 lbs. of copper each month from the defective motors and received #2 copper price for the laquerred wire. If it's worth doing to a corparation, it should be for an individual scrapper as well.

[c4f5]

A guy about needs to do a few & figure up for himself which is more profitable. I am only getting $2.25 for the copper, $.075 for the steel, or $.34 for whole motors, so for me they are not worth breaking down.

For the same example motor, I am getting $5.06 for the copper, and $.73 for the steel, a total of $5.79, OR $4.08 to turn in the whole motor. That's $1.71 to tear apart the motor.

If I am tearing down 6 identical motors per hour, like you, that's 10.26 an hour to break them down. When I compare that to about $500 per hour profit to save them up and turn in a pickup load, breaking them down does not pay nearly enough to cover my tools and time, not to mention utilities, and the time & vehicle usage used in colletion and delivery, and any cash I had to kick out to buy it in the first place.

As it sit's right now, my "disassembly pile" is about 8 tons high. If that ever gets reduce to a managable point, I might quickly change my tune on the $10 per hour to tear down motors.

I wish my day to day financial situation allowed me to save up the copper to haul to further to get paid better for it, but sadly, it doesn't.

[parrothead]

A guy about needs to do a few & figure up for himself which is more profitable. I am only getting $2.25 for the copper, $.075 for the steel, or $.34 for whole motors, so for me they are not worth breaking down.

For the same example motor, I am getting $5.06 for the copper, and $.73 for the steel, a total of $5.79, OR $4.08 to turn in the whole motor. That's $1.71 to tear apart the motor.

If I am tearing down 6 identical motors per hour, like you, that's 10.26 an hour to break them down. When I compare that to about $500 per hour profit to save them up and turn in a pickup load, breaking them down does not pay nearly enough to cover my tools and time, not to mention utilities, and the time & vehicle usage used in colletion and delivery, and any cash I had to kick out to buy it in the first place.

As it sit's right now, my "disassembly pile" is about 8 tons high. If that ever gets reduce to a managable point, I might quickly change my tune on the $10 per hour to tear down motors.

I wish my day to day financial situation allowed me to save up the copper to haul to further to get paid better for it, but sadly, it doesn't.

Very interesting and thanks for your numbers on this. It makes a big difference. My numbers around here are very similar to the OP, so definately worth the effort for me.

[c4f5]

Like I said, I think a guy just needs to figure up the numbers that are available to him and go from there. I get low dollar for the steel & copper and high dollar for whole motors. So yeah, the numbers really do make a big difference.

On the down side, I do have to cut the cases off of refrigerant compressors to get motor price for the innards.

EDIT.....My #'s were based on the same 12# motor used in the original post.

[injunjoe]

A guy about needs to do a few & figure up for himself which is more profitable. I am only getting $2.25 for the copper, $.075 for the steel, or $.34 for whole motors, so for me they are not worth breaking down.

For the same example motor, I am getting $5.06 for the copper, and $.73 for the steel, a total of $5.79, OR $4.08 to turn in the whole motor. That's $1.71 to tear apart the motor.

If I am tearing down 6 identical motors per hour, like you, that's 10.26 an hour to break them down. When I compare that to about $500 per hour profit to save them up and turn in a pickup load, breaking them down does not pay nearly enough to cover my tools and time, not to mention utilities, and the time & vehicle usage used in colletion and delivery, and any cash I had to kick out to buy it in the first place.

As it sit's right now, my "disassembly pile" is about 8 tons high. If that ever gets reduce to a managable point, I might quickly change my tune on the $10 per hour to tear down motors.

I wish my day to day financial situation allowed me to save up the copper to haul to further to get paid better for it, but sadly, it doesn't.

Well my friend your numbers are not clear but seems like you are getting jacked on the the copper price to start with.

I am not posting this information to confuse folks, yet I post to show the true value of a little hard work and the end result! I take chicken feathers and make chicken soup!

To me it is a easy way to make money while in the comfort of my own lodgings! No people involved, just convert one product into even more profitable product.

Simple as that! No BS from people just profit while I relax with my tools at home!!!

[injunjoe]

Oh one more point c4, you are getting screwed on scrap prices, were are you from a third world country?

[injunjoe]

On the down side, I do have to cut the cases off of refrigerant compressors to get motor price for the innards

Wow, that is the hardest part! You are cutting open the compressor yet selling the thing as a motor? Are you sure? Did I read this right?

You have scrapping all F'ed up!

[c4f5]

Which part is unclear?

Yes I am....with no vaseline. Don't even get dinner or a kiss first.

2 miles from my nearest neighbor and 20 miles from town. Town is 500 miles from anywhere.

Yes, you read it right, and 30 seconds with the torch, 5 more seconds with a cutter....not too tough.

[TheMetalizer]

Which part is unclear?

Yes I am....with no vaseline. Don't even get dinner or a kiss first.

2 miles from my nearest neighbor and 20 miles from town. Town is 500 miles from anywhere.

Yes, you read it right, and 30 seconds with the torch, 5 more seconds with a cutter....not too tough.

I'm with c4 when it comes to motors, for the most part. My prices for copper and steel don't make up for the time it takes me to disassemble. Of course, whenever I come across something big enough I go ahead and rip into it.

It is very subjective.

[c4f5]

Of course, whenever I come across something big enough I go ahead and rip into it.

It is very subjective.

Right! If I have a big motor, and estimate that it will net me 10 pounds of copper, and I think I can tear it down in a reasonable time frame, I'll do it, but these are few and far between for me.

[DCMinor]

c4f5, I didnt think my situation allowed me to save up that copper either til I saw a guy at the yard bring in a tub full of stripped copper his payday was about 300 bucks for the one container full! Now I strip electrical cords and save every piece of copper i find! I want that big payday myself! just sayin!

[Dumpster-Dee]

I'm stripping more also.....don't like the insulated or motor price !

[Dumpster-Dee]

woops...should reword that...although I could make a lot more money if I did the "other" kind of stripping. I don't mind getting literally dirty but not that kind of dirty.

[parrothead]

Hah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[c4f5]

c4f5, I didnt think my situation allowed me to save up that copper either til I saw a guy at the yard bring in a tub full of stripped copper his payday was about 300 bucks for the one container full! Now I strip electrical cords and save every piece of copper i find! I want that big payday myself! just sayin!

Yes, I understand and want this. Once upon a time, I did this. Save up a few barrels full & run them to Cheyenne for a few grand. Over the past 3-4 years, alot of negatives have gone down. We had just financed a decent home in the middle of nowhere...right where I like it. We had a good savings, and a couple of decent CD's. We were even starting to talk about mutual funds. Then I got in a fight with a falling tree....I lost this fight. I was busted up pretty badly. I will never be 100% again, but I am going as strong as I can. But before I was up and going again, my wife also had an accident that laid her up for a few months. Before she got up and going again, the doctors found her with cancer. Now she is in full remission and is as healed up as she can get, but I'm sure you can imagine the financial disaster that has ensued as a result of these and a few other major malfunctions that I won't bother you with. We have managed to keep our home thus far. I'm at the point now, of deciding from month to month, which utitities to keep on and wondering from day to day what my kids are eating tomorrow. 2 years ago, we actually had to seek welfare help for food and medical for the kids. I fear I am near that point again. The only place to go from here is up....I hope. If all goes well, I should have an auto core load ready to go by the end of the summer. That should be about a $20k payday, and should hopefully allow me to put at least some logic back in my game, instead of scraping by from one day to the next.

Understand that I am not seeking sympathy. Just wanted you to have an idea of where I'm coming from & where I hope to be going soon.

Having found this forum and some of the tips offered herein, has helped take the edge off, but we are still in an unbelievably tight spot. Thanks to everyone who has laid out said tips.

Hey Dee, if I did the other kind of stripping, I'd go broke faster than I am now, lol.

[Mechanic688]

I'm stripping more also.

HEHE,, enough said.

[Scraplogic]

C4f5, keep your chin up. Bad times roll around and smack people when they least expect it, but the key is getting back up and keeping on going. Can't you imagine how much worse it would have been for you and the family if you DIDn't scrap? Knowlege is power, and the kids are learing from you. No shame in welfare if you need it, but scrappers totally have a huge edge over others who meet hard times.
Scrapping can really keep the hope alive, and you are in the game going the right direction if you're lining up for a 20K payday. Whoo-hoo all the way to the bank!