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Just curious if anybody else gathers scrap carbide?

No. But tell me where you find it and what you're paid for it and I'll start!

I bet The Irrationalist does.

Dr Cadmium please, calling Dr Cadmium.

dad got a bunch of old tool bits from work ended up being 4 or 5 pounds got 7 per pound for them.

We're getting $11.00 a pound around here for it.

Wow I'm looking for scrap carbide now.

What am I looking for? Sawblades? Is carbide magnetic? How do you know if something is carbide?

Yes, I deal in it.

Tungsten carbide comes in a variety of forms, but it's most common pure forms are end mills and cutting inserts - usually used in machine shops and other manufacturing facilities. They're expensive, so it takes some time to accumulate enough damaged bits to have enough to scrap.

It's slightly magnetic, but the easiest way to recognize it is by density - it's far denser than lead.

Like most exotics, a lot of yards don't deal in it or they buy and sell it as normal steel (unknowingly or otherwise).

Also - carbide, like most exotics, is not worth the time for the average scrapper to learn about because:

1) You'll rarely find it.

2) Most yards don't deal in it.

Had to go to Wiki. You must mean "tungston carbide"?

Mossy wrote:Had to go to Wiki. You must mean "tungston carbide"?

No, he means "cemented carbide", which is made of Tungsten Carbide (WC) and cobalt. Carbide is tough to find because it is pretty much the most expensive tool metal you can buy. I deal in it, only when I know I can make out pretty good. I will buy small amounts for about $3-$5 per pound, currently. Whatever I accumulate over the course of the year (usually between 10-50 pounds) I sell to a bigger yard about 40 miles from my house, and they pay about $10 per pound currently (I think). I guess I could mail them there, but I just don't trust anybody that much to just send it away in a package with my fingers crossed. (like those cash4gold scams.)

I actually don't care to deal with it too much. Anybody who is selling carbide, usually won't sell it for less then scrap value... And anybody who has just a little bit of it, will just toss it in the trash, cause it's only a couple dollars to them. It does kill me to think of all of the teeny, tiny carbide inserts that must get thrown out every day (on things like saw blades). Just a hand full of them would weigh about 5 pounds or so, and be worth $50.

*Edit: Forgot that I have a post on scrapping carbide tools.

i have a soup can with about 5 lbs of carbide inserts sitting in my garage for years...used to work as a temp at a tool shop. Most people just threw them in the bin of metal shavings. Cant find anywhere in ontario that buys them but i'll keep saving them...they don't take up much room

schilcott wrote:i have a soup can with about 5 lbs of carbide inserts sitting in my garage for years...used to work as a temp at a tool shop. Most people just threw them in the bin of metal shavings. Cant find anywhere in ontario that buys them but i'll keep saving them...they don't take up much room

I'll buy then for $3 per pound.