Melting Copper bright vs. burnt

I have a bunch of bright copper that is stripped and a bunch that is burnt.
I am planning on melting one or the other, or both, into figurines and other stuff and making the rest into bars for later use or scrapping.
I am wondering if the final product will be any different/better quality/shinier/etc. if I use bright vs. burnt. or will it all look the same in the end?
thanks
__Nate

Wouldn't much matter which one you use, copper is not used to cast art objects. Try bronze.

I know, just an example. let me rephrase my question.
If I made 2 copper bars. one from stripped, clean, bright copper. and the other from burnt brittle wire. What would be the difference between the two? Or would they be exactly the same?

I don't steal. I do highway and bridge construction. When digging or demoing we find lots of $crap. Normally it would get buried or thrown away. But I keep a good eye out for the goods.
anyway, over time I had a bunch of copper wire and pipe. My original plan was to melt it down into bars to save for a rainy day or for the end of the modern world or something. I melted off the coating to about 80 lbs or so, planning on melting it down. I've stopped burning now, cause it's bad for our grandchildren, and doesn't pay as much. I still will make a few bars for fun with some of the burnt. I will call my local yards, but if they wont take bars.... any suggestions on what to do with the rest of the burnt then?

Just take to your local yard and it should qualify for #2 copper. If it doesn't then consider selling the bars on ebay. I don't believe making bars is a money making proposition. You burnt the insulation off wire, thats bad, you stopped, thats good. Don't do it anymore. Best of luck, Mike.

If you melt your burnt copper, your yield will be lower, but just as bright, as if you melt shiny copper. The burnt, or oxidized, copper will float on top in the form of dross with other impurities. Your burnt copper will have more dross and less pure metal.

A yard I went to here in CT had a copper bar cut in half in their warehouse. Someone had found a way to pour copper around a big hunk of steel. It weighed about 10lbs but only maybe a pound of that was copper! They refuse Ingots of any kind other than steel for this reason.

Also you have to factor in the cost of the fuel you will be burning to melt the copper down.

Originally Posted by G_P

A yard I went to here in CT had a copper bar cut in half in their warehouse. Someone had found a way to pour copper around a big hunk of steel. It weighed about 10lbs but only maybe a pound of that was copper!

In all the things that a person could do, that rates very very low, about as low as someone could get.

I have a story about something similar and thats one reason why I would never steep as low as that.
And I regard anyone who even thinks of doing it as a complete cretin.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cretin

Originally Posted by G_P

They refuse Ingots of any kind other than steel for this reason.

I could cut it for them?

Originally Posted by G_P

Also you have to factor in the cost of the fuel you will be burning to melt the copper down.

I understand, but it's mainly for fun for me. never melted copper, something new.

haha reminds me of a fishing story. stuff it with lead to tip the scales!!!

Sounds like your making it more complicated than it needs to be. .02