FYI what yards were paying in early two thousands and now..

Around 2004: 0.10-0.12 a lb

Now: 0.04-0.08

I use to do it full-time so those are real numbers, and just did cars at my two local yards.

Those were the glory days.

1: Demand up due to a war in the middle east.
2: Rapid currency inflation overheating the global economy.
3: China buying like crazy in order to have feedstock for it's rapidly expanding manufacturing economy. China's economic growth rate was phenomenal.
4: Energy prices up ... thus driving demand for recycled steel.

The picture these days:
1: No widespread active war.
2: Production (and demand ) significantly off due to the global pandemic.
3: China throwing up significant trade barriers like National Sword, and most recently tariffs.
4: Energy prices down due to lack of demand caused by the pandemic. A glut of crude oil and refined products on the market. Oil (briefly) trading at -44.00$ /bbl. last spring.

We are experiencing currency inflation, but that will take awhile to manifest as a weaker dollar and higher consumer prices.

Scrap steel probably won't skyrocket anytime soon. If anything, it may well tank after the election. It's expected that some kind of economic upheaval like a recession -or- depression will hit next winter. All of the deficit spending to artificially stimulate the economy during the pandemic doesn't represent true growth. It won't hold. There's gotta be a significant slowdown as free market forces eventually start to re-assert themselves.

Likely a similar pattern to when the great recession hit over the winter of 07-08.

Hope for the best and rig for the worst.

Harry Browne had some really good advise on how to make serious money during the bad times. The opportunities are there ... you just have to be in the right place at the right time.

Catalytic converters are considered precious metals. The others are base metals.

Originally Posted by OFWIFJ

I could be wrong but it looks like copper and catalytic converters are the only way you can see decent profit now.. Maybe car and deep cycle batteries too..

My hauler is a v8 diesel so there is no way I'm running after half-ton loads(which is usually what a lot of residential throw-aways amounts to; if even).

i avoid the scrap yard ....

Originally Posted by scrapGAME

i avoid the scrap yard ....

You need a lot of storage or only deal in precious metal breakdown to do that.. I did gold ingots off polypropylene PCB tubs a while in a small room by ordering pallets of boards from whole sellers.. This was before soccer dads seen it on YouTube and drove the pallet price up, though..

cats you can do it too if you have a yard that takes them.. $50.00+ a piece and you can fit about $400.00+ in a compact car trunk..

Actually its not. Most converters have more Palladium than Platinum and currently Palladium is $2100 per ounce. Rhodium is almost $10,000 per ounce. Platinum is around $900 per ounce. Platinum has been decreasing in % use and price since 2008.

Originally Posted by OFWIFJ

Platinum is at almost $1,000.00 an ounce is why. Copper isn't really precious and most yards give at least $2.00/lb for winding and pipe.

I currently do runs 2+ tons shred or 200+ lb copper. I don't bother with circuit boards, and if I did I would be making ingots with barrels of acid..

Originally Posted by OFWIFJ

cats you can do it too if you have a yard that takes them.. $50.00+ a piece and you can fit about $400.00+ in a compact car trunk..

The only catalytic converters we buy that are below $50 each are aftermarkets which we are paying $35 a piece for. Our average buy price of an average 1,000 buy of ceramic factory catalytic converters is $200 each.

Originally Posted by APA

Actually its not. Most converters have more Palladium than Platinum and currently Palladium is $2100 per ounce. Rhodium is almost $10,000 per ounce. Platinum is around $900 per ounce. Platinum has been decreasing in % use and price since 2008.

I've never tore them down and tested I just go by what yards actually pay per unit, and I've heard of platinum being extracted before.

I may look in to the process of Palladium extraction. I still have everything from my PCB gold extraction..

Originally Posted by APA

The only catalytic converters we buy that are below $50 each are aftermarkets which we are paying $35 a piece for. Our average buy price of an average 1,000 buy of ceramic factory catalytic converters is $200 each.

I just go by what actual yard are paying here. I basically monitor five yards. They all just give a unit price and don't care about type. I can get OE cats off old cars all day long I would love to get paid $200.00 each...

You can’t extract Platinum, Palladium, and Rhodium efficiently from catalytic converters. You are spending a lot of time and money on dangerous chemicals and equipment. If you do get a glob of misc metals, no one will purchase a glob of mixed metals.

Selling catalytic converters to a “yard” is the same thing as asking a foot doctor to perform heart surgery.