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  1. #1
    usopen2003 started this thread.
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    What would you take first ?? Please help me with advice

    I work in the food industry with full metal of electronic boards (CPU) , copper, brass and metal that I still can not discern ...
    The gears wheel are golden and I do not know if they are brass or bronze and those smaller dimensions are quite heavy while the larger are very heavy but still fit in the backpack


    I do not have a car and every day I can take as much as I fit into a backpack ...
    I do not steal this already my company throws in the trash why not take advantage and take that dollar


    Of course I think I pick up all the metal but my firm regularly throws parts into the trash and I can not save it but to which parts to put the priority


    Brass, copper or electronic board or there are some more valuable electrical components that are around me and I do not even know they are worth

    I also have an industrial heat fan so I can remove individual components from electronic boards so I do not have to wear the whole board if only a couple of components are profitable






    What would you take to get started?


  2. #2
    hobo finds's Avatar
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    a magnet!

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  4. #3
    usopen2003 started this thread.
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    Magnet LOL


    The magnet still does not recognize brass from brass.


    I'm just wondering if it's more profitable to take the iron parts or the CPU board or some connectors, pins or similar parts


    please understand that I am new in all this and I know that sometimes I ask a stupid question or open a topic but each of you was once a beginner in all this



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  6. #4
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    cant u get a friend or family member with a truck/van to help you?
    speak to your boss & find out which stuff you can take
    then make a pile of all the stuff and when u have arranged the transport, load everything and take it home

    of course, u will need space to store the stuff while u go through it with a magnet and then u will have to separate the different metals and the boards.
    from what you say, it seems you are losing out on the items that they throw away so you better act quickly.

    if u can, take pics and show us- we will try to help u identify the different metals & advise u about the boards.

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  8. #5
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    The drive gears in some industrial mixers and dishwashers are brass, and weigh up to 10 lbs a piece.
    If they are in good shape resale will bring you much better money and shipping can be done from home.
    There ain't nothing wrong with an honest days work. Anyone who says otherwise is a fool.- Old Man

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  10. #6
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    Just scrap?? Well then I would take the brass and bronze and let the folks at the yard figure it out. My uneducated guess is they are most likely brass. I my experience bronze is used on boats, but that is my experience.

    I would hold onto the boards until you have place to sell them. Perhaps bring a couple of the boards and see if the scrap yard will buy them and for how much. 73, Mike
    "Profit begins when you buy NOT when you sell." {quote passed down to me from a wise man}

    Now go beat the copper out of something, Miked

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  12. #7
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    Take all the copper brass and bronze definitely. Brass tends to be yellow. Copper can range from orange (new) to brown or even green with age. Bronze will be in between yellow (brass) and copper (orange) in color. I doubt you will have bronze there. It is used alot in old door knobs, and statues or plaques that would be installed outside.
    Copper, brass, and Leather. 3 of my favorite things.

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  14. #8
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    if you are doing the backpack method, concentrate on non magnetic first.

    get us some pics of the electric boards they commonly toss
    Currently looking for a job in or related to scrap/recycling. Relocation is possible for the right offer.

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  16. #9
    usopen2003 started this thread.
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    Quote Originally Posted by NHscrapman View Post
    The drive gears in some industrial mixers and dishwashers are brass, and weigh up to 10 lbs a piece.
    If they are in good shape resale will bring you much better money and shipping can be done from home.
    That's right




    Very heavy gears, and I think there are bronze ones in that pile, but most brass are ...

  17. #10
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    You can ship the boards to buyers on the buyer forum and they will pay you better than the scrap yards I encounter, if they even buy them. If you have that heat gun to take off board parts, you could even accumulate IC Chips, tantalum capacitors and gold pins seperately and get top dollar! With boards you can make serious dough if you have the capability to remove the components with ease.

    Obviously any copper and copper alloys, wires for sure, aluminum.

    Your backpack must contain at least the following tools to assist you if you need to break something down on the fly between breaks or to make space.
    #1 and #2 phillips screwdrivers. Flathead screwdriver, diagonal pliers, File for finding the true metal underneath various painted or electroplated metals, a multi-set fold out hex AND star keys, and the obvious magnet. You can save space by bringing an cordless electric drill and a small black box of 100 various size and type of bits. The drawback is though with all that moving aroudn your bits wil constantly get messy and shuffled around.

    You should also network with somebody either who lives close to you, or close by your job. If you find another scrapper, you can work a deal where he can help you haul larger loads after you have processed for your colored metals and escrap. So if its a stove, or a pc or whatever you can take out the control boards and wires and even small motors if anything as well as various alloys of copper and they he can get the tower or the rest of the stove etc.. etc..

    Just brainstorming here. Do not hesitate to seek out assistance, we scrappers are just as know for our cooperation as our competitiveness.

    I forgot to add a good pair of vice grips certainly comes in handy when dealing with appliances involved with plumbing or piping. I like to have two to get the best grips on the most stubborn corroded fittings.
    Last edited by dyepes; 12-06-2017 at 11:53 AM.

  18. #11
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    The advise would be a little different because you are from Croatia.

    Yes, do the brass and bronze.

    The electronics boards might not work for you because it wouldn't be profitable to pay to ship them to a buyer here in the United States.

    I wouldn't recommend breaking down the boards with a heat gun for different reasons.

    1: There are poisons that are released into the air when you heat a board. These can make you very sick.

    2: There's the problem of how to dispose of the depopulated boards responsibly. ( Just throwing them in the trash isn't the right thing. )

    3: You have to patiently pick through all of the different bits & pieces after they have been popped off the board and sort them out. ( It takes hours. )

    4: That's waaaay too much like work !

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