Scrap metal as a second income/hobby

[Somnophore]

Hi there, I buy and sell anything I think has value usually on eBay, I buy mainly as car boot sales here in the UK. However I don't have loads of room so never thought about scrap before, however I wonder if I'm missing out on stuff like cell phones, batteries, computer parts etc that I could get real cheap and scrap.

Any advice?

I know a UK conpany that pays £3/kilo for scrap pewter and free collection over 10kgs so I'm going to start buying that if I can get it cheap but need some more ideas.

[Robarons]

So thats $4.71/2.2 pounds when you convert your total.

So thats $2.14/pound of Pewter (Tin). Thats really not a good price, I would shop around more. Personally I would be looking for £5.60/kilo Minimum (around $4/pound US, Tin trades at $8-ish/pound)

But I think your taking the wrong track here. Yes you can make money scrapping, but stick to the old fashioned Copper,Brass, and aluminum.

Computer parts and cellphones are great for gold recovery and general scrap but once again you have to know a thing or two about the industry and what your doing

Try buying brass items from boot sales (Garage sales) for 25p and go from there

[Somnophore]

Yeah maybe I could get more, I'll shop around, I know that company makes pewter stuff so they just using it to make new products.

What is brass worth? I have a couple of big brass vase type things I bought at car boot but didn't sell because the wife liked them lol.

Just need an $/lb or £/kilo idea for brass so I know how much to pay.

I know I can get pewter for around £1/kilo in small bits from car boot sales
So will start getting some. My main buying will still be all the stuff I sell
On eBay but thought that if I get some scrap every time I go it's just a nice little extra.

[Somnophore]

Also how do I tell if it's brass or just brass effect

[everything]

Get with the program I just googled brass test and here is a link with the fact. Brass won't go to a magnet, still, you get a feel for brass eventually, and can tell almost instantly if it is real. I don't go hog wild collecting it, but I like it, and have a whole table covered with the stuff. I'm always checking out the brass at garage sales, always. It's always around. I'd probably buy more but nobody seems to want it, and I don't think it's worth much at the scrapyard. Now, what is a car boot sale?
I think for collecting cellphones, just collect them, and wait.

http://www.baltimorebrassworks.com/Brass_Facts.html

[Engineer]

Now, what is a car boot sale?

I believe it means they were selling items out of their trunk.

[everything]

Here is a thread with more info regarding the cellphones. I scrap computers down to the board, CPU, heat sinks. Power supplies, wire, and board left. I'm collecting allot of boards and don't know what to do with them for $. I know of a company not far away that will make me pay to take them away though. I'd save the iron, but don't want to pay to have my own permanent residence so don't have the room. It must be unbelievable number how much iron goes to the landfill. They won't recycle caps in the U.S. either, I finally started collecting them myself, but I keep all of them, some are still made out of tin. After seeing a guy in India doing it by color and making some money. My cousin collects beer caps, he's got 4 4*2 boxes full.
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=13156

[Somnophore]

Car boot sales are popular and widespread in the UK, they can be weekly or a few times a year at some locations, sellers pack their cars with items of theirs they wish to sell, you usually get from 50 to a few hundred stalls if it's a big one, people usually use an old folding decorating table and put things on and around it, items are generally not priced and you ask for a price and can haggle to get a good deal. I often find a lot of things there that I can resell on eBay at big profit, we don't have a culture of garage sales here, people just take the stuff to car boot (trunk) sales and it's better for the buyers as there are lots of different sellers. Sellers pay a fee for their pitch to the organiser usually £5-10 this obviously gives them access to a large number of buyers.

Some car boots are commercial ventures by farmers erc others are run to raise money for schools or charities

[cesariojpn]

Hi there, I buy and sell anything I think has value usually on eBay, I buy mainly as car boot sales here in the UK. However I don't have loads of room so never thought about scrap before, however I wonder if I'm missing out on stuff like cell phones, batteries, computer parts etc that I could get real cheap and scrap.

Any advice?

I know a UK conpany that pays £3/kilo for scrap pewter and free collection over 10kgs so I'm going to start buying that if I can get it cheap but need some more ideas.

IIRC, you have to be extremely careful when doing scrap in the UK. The Police might look upon you hauling scrap with suspicious eyes. I believe if your doing a massive amount, you need permits for that.

[mj74]

Here is a thread with more info regarding the cellphones. I scrap computers down to the board, CPU, heat sinks. Power supplies, wire, and board left. I'm collecting allot of boards and don't know what to do with them for $. I know of a company not far away that will make me pay to take them away though. I'd save the iron, but don't want to pay to have my own permanent residence so don't have the room. It must be unbelievable number how much iron goes to the landfill. They won't recycle caps in the U.S. either, I finally started collecting them myself, but I keep all of them, some are still made out of tin. After seeing a guy in India doing it by color and making some money. My cousin collects beer caps, he's got 4 4*2 boxes full.
http://realcent.org/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=13156

I don't have anyone near me that buys them,so I box them up,weigh them,and put them on Ebay.

[saltydecks]

I scrap a lot of computers. Don't know if there is anybody in the UK that you could ship them to, but might offload them on ebay.

Here is a good list of things to look for.
Motherboards
RAM
IC Cards (things stuck into the motherboard)
processors
Hard Drive logic boards

For a complete list of computer/ electronic scrap products check out this website:
http://boardsort.com/

Here is his price list, he updates it frequently:
http://boardsort.com/payout.php

[Lemon Thrower]

car boot sale is called a flea market or less commonly a swap meet in the u.s. some flea markets have a permanent location and held every weekend or the same weekend once a month, and some are held ad hoc or annually by an organization such as a church to raise funds.

[Lemon Thrower]

car boot sale is called a flea market or less commonly a swap meet in the u.s. some flea markets have a permanent location and held every weekend or the same weekend once a month, and some are held ad hoc or annually by an organization such as a church to raise funds.