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Maximum spent to buy computer?

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    deerhunter started this thread.
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    Maximum spent to buy computer?

    If you were buying a computer to scrap out what would be the maximum you would spend and still feel like you were going to make some money? What would be the average you would make out a of a whole computer? I know it varies depending on age but what is the ball park?



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    KzScrapper's Avatar
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    High tech for me is a can opener with auto-stop function but it seems most go $3-$5 and top out at about $7ish depending if they are trying to resell some of the components.
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    Mechanic688's Avatar
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    I pay 2. to 5. and if you break everything down scrap value averages $10. to 15.
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    thortek's Avatar
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    The most I will pay is $6. And again the average is $12+ I only pay $6 to Non-Profits....
    “Most people miss opportunity because it wears overalls and looks like work .” ― Thomas A. Edison

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    deerhunter started this thread.
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    so i guess the three computer bought from the scrap yard today for about 6 bucks was a good deal. real good deal once i bring the carcases back and get most of my money back. Cool

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    computer scrap is still relatively new and buyers/processors of e scrap are still unsure of the value and thus prices are fluctuating and now many are turning to different grades of mother boards, ( year made where made etc. so escrap is still a pretty volatol market. some are paying $20 for junk comps while some scrap buyers are grading m boards and are paying as little as $2 for newer boards, this is a trend I see as continuing.

    the internet rumor mill always lag behind fact by several months, and new people are convinced every day that computer scrap is analogous to finding a gold mine. having been in it a while, rest assured it is not. when comps were free for the asking that may have been so, but no longer. I see the trend as rapidly moving toward the big buyers and squeezing the little guy out as happens with every other new endever.

    that said I would not pay more than $5 and deduct for every board missing from the computer. many of my old trusted sellers are now removing some of the cards and cpus. this trend is new in the market it is rapidly moving toward a buyer be ware market. just my .02
    Last edited by EcoSafe; 03-27-2012 at 11:33 AM.

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    With buyers establishing a difference between the colors of the motherboards, it may be worth taking a peek inside the computer before making your offer. Given this, the quantity makes a big deal in the per/price for me. If I’m getting 5 or more, I don’t mind paying $5-$6 dollars each, especially if they have DVD RWs and other resalable parts. I truly don’t think the price difference between $3-$6 makes much of a difference for your typical customer. Get them to like you while on the phone and sell them your service of responsible recycling. Key questions,

    Are the Towers full
    Does it work
    How far do they live and must you go out of your way to pick it up.

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    Quantity in one post is a big factor for my paying price. i advertise I pay $5 a tower. If im at an auction the prices will change depending on whats in the computer and what is resellable. If the computer has a good hard drive and a dvdrw drive ill pay as high as $15 for the computer if I can ecoop those costs by reselling said parts. Rest of the tower is my profit. Alot of factors play on buying escrap and resellable parts will make the small guy like me be able to buy stuff the bigger fish dont want to deal with. Thats my 2 cents.

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    Quote Originally Posted by PartTimeScrapper View Post
    Quantity in one post is a big factor for my paying price. i advertise I pay $5 a tower. If im at an auction the prices will change depending on whats in the computer and what is resellable. If the computer has a good hard drive and a dvdrw drive ill pay as high as $15 for the computer if I can ecoop those costs by reselling said parts. Rest of the tower is my profit. Alot of factors play on buying escrap and resellable parts will make the small guy like me be able to buy stuff the bigger fish dont want to deal with. Thats my 2 cents.
    Yep. I have had to change my game up and sell parts as well. It is a big game changer. You will need multiple computers for testing RAM and other stuff. It has for sure increased my average return per computer.
    "64K should be enough for anybody." - Bill Gates 1981
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    Quote Originally Posted by parrothead View Post
    Yep. I have had to change my game up and sell parts as well. It is a big game changer. You will need multiple computers for testing RAM and other stuff. It has for sure increased my average return per computer.
    Best part is though you can eventualy get all stuff you need for testing from the scrap computers you buy.


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