"We Dont Sell to the public"

[KohlerK91]

I took a battery and some FE and ZN wheelweights to the scap yard and inquired about buying some printers lead. Who knows maybe they had some????

I told them I would buy it.

...........well we pay .45 /lb and only make about .40 /lb blah blah blah.......

Bottom line is they would not sell to me.

Maybe if I had a bunch of cash it would change their tune. It probably is worth there time to piece a little bit out but If I wanted a TON or more the success rate might be better.

I went to my usual source and they came through as usual. Came across the biggest truck weights I have ever seen. Probably 12 OZ or more each. Ill get a picture as soon as I go threw the bucket.

[Jim]

From what I've been told by a few scrap yard operators, they sit on the various metals, speculating until the price goes up. Usually, the policy to sell or not to the public comes down from the top dog.

[beagle]

We have a scrap yard near here and the top dog runs it and he's that way. With that attitude, maybe he'll go broke and a caster friendly guy will take it up. To me, in business, money talks./beagle


From what I've been told by a few scrap yard operators, they sit on the various metals, speculating until the price goes up. Usually, the policy to sell or not to the public comes down from the top dog.

[Matt3357]

There is a scrap yard in my hometown that would sell you anything he had on the lot. They have a bunch of lead, but it is soft stuff for $1/lb. I don't need soft stuff and can't make a profit on here at that price. I'll just have to keep scrounging for wheel weights i guess.

Matt

[KohlerK91]

Along with not selling to the public like we are on some other level, Most if not all scrap yards I have been to have an attitude like "We need them" or we should kiss there behind so they buy or junk from us. They dont have any patience when it comes to putting stuff on the small scale. Like I was holding them up or something. Not very friendly, strickly business.

[mallardsx2]

Scrap yards people are crazy....Glorified hoarders who are real weird dudes 90% of the time.

Thats what I have seen. Its better to know someone who has the in there than to even try and approach them. Pretty soon well be shooting gold out of our guns instead of lead...

[9.3X62AL]

I dislike scrappers intensely, and two posts above sum my feelings up succinctly. Our local yard REALLY torqued my jaws about a year ago, and I told him off in no uncertain terms. I hope the barstad takes in stolen copper and gets caught doing so.

[fryboy]

fair play is umm fair play after all so i like to state "then this public will no longer sell to you.." , i actually had one whom got my number from a friend of his and wanted me to do some work for him , i could of used the money ( even tho it didnt pay well ) my reply ? sorry you wont sell to me and i have no choice but to return the favor :P , yes you can support these scum if you wish or have no choice ( but i'm not out of choices yet and i hope you're not ) besides i actually found another yard who pays me a lil more for my scrap [woot] !

[Jailer]

The local scrapper around here is real friendly every time I go in but they won't sell any lead.

At least they are nice about it.

[jonas302]

Do other wholesale only business sell to you? Contract for a barge or two and they might take time away from trying to make money to sell to you

[9.3X62AL]

Au contraire, Jonas.

The site I mentioned is open to the public--advertises metals for sale to same--and until I encountered the owner, all went very well. The office manager directed me with an employee to the location where the scrap lead was located, and it was priced fairly. I was examining the pile when the owner showed up and rudely asked me "What are you doing back here?"

"I planned on buying 500# of lead, and was figuring how to package it for transport."

"YOU GET OUTTA HERE, YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE BACK HERE!"

No such signage was posted anywhere. The guy started berating his employee right in front of me, a nice Hispanic kid. That did it--my bully reflex kicked in.

CHILL OUT, ----HEAD, THE OFFICE MANAGER SENT US BOTH BACK HERE! I don't see a sign, either. What's wrong, afraid I'll find your stash of stolen copper and tell the cops about it?

"YOU NEED TO LEAVE, RIGHT NOW!"

Already enroute, ---hat! You scrappers surround yourself in people's trash, and think you're in a ----ing gold mine. I hope the cops bust your ---!

And out I went. I can't abide bullies, never could. I said something nice to the kid in Spanish, and he smiled. "WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HIM?" came from the idjit. I ignored him and went back to my truck.

[jonas302]

No doubt a bad experience there Al

[beagle]

Yeah, these "managers" are something. I suppose they're eaten up by insurance in their place but it's not like you're in there hunting something to steal.

Then, there's "bait and switchers". I ran into a guy at the bank one time and he said he had 600 pounds of WWs and I asked the price and he said, "Oh, I guess $.19 a pound." When I went over and asked for it he called and said, ".76 per pound". As far as I know he still has it.

These guys are not dealerc dealing in huge shipments of stuff other than scrap cars. They're just nickel and dimeing along and are a real PITA for us casters.

When you get a good one, treat him right./beagle

[evan price]

Was clearing out a bunch of large diameter aluminum tubes from old machines. They were coated in a photoreceptive layer. Knew that most yards would either refuse them or lowbal me since they were not 'clean' aluminum.

So I took them to the local scrapper in town who is Sims Metal.

Went to ask the yard boss about lead price, he says they don't sell it.

I ask, So, you keep it forever? Seems not so profitable.

No, we don't sell it to people.

You sell it to robots or something?

No, we only sell to companies.

Oh, okay. Rage Robotics, and my tax ID number is 25-XXXXXX.

Um, no. Sorry. We only sell to companies we do business with.

Been selling you scrap for ten years. That business count?

Um, well. No. <exasperated> Look, we can't sell you anything. Goodbye.

[finishman2000]

i walk in my local yard. ask how much per pound to buy ww's. guy says .46 and i say i'll take 400 to 500 lbs. he says ok.
they buy the clips back at .10 a lb.
i went there to buy an out of date propane tank for my new smelter. they have them lined up along thye scale house. guy says he can't sell them in case i blow myself up......but i can help myself to one as soon as he turns around lol.

[dbarnhart]

>>Most if not all scrap yards I have been to have an attitude like "We need them" or we should kiss there behind so they buy or junk from us.<<

When in fact THEY need US. We are their supplier. THEY are just middlemen.

Now having said that, I have some familiarity with their business model (The region's largest scrap dealer is one of my clients). When the Scrap Dealer sells scrap to a mill, quantity is worth a premium not a discount. Therefore he want to buy and hold until his stockpile is sufficiently large that he can get the quantity premium.

SO when he buys your lead at .40 and wants to sell it to you for $1 that's because he knows that he can get $1 when he sells it to the mill in large quantities.

[Philngruvy]

>>Most if not all scrap yards I have been to have an attitude like "We need them" or we should kiss there behind so they buy or junk from us.<<

When in fact THEY need US. We are their supplier. THEY are just middlemen.

Now having said that, I have some familiarity with their business model (The region's largest scrap dealer is one of my clients). When the Scrap Dealer sells scrap to a mill, quantity is worth a premium not a discount. Therefore he want to buy and hold until his stockpile is sufficiently large that he can get the quantity premium.

SO when he buys your lead at .40 and wants to sell it to you for $1 that's because he knows that he can get $1 when he sells it to the mill in large quantities.

That principle also applies at the street level end of the business. I had over 400 lbs of range brass to sell. At that time, the quoted price to me was $1.60/lb. When I asked for a higher price due to the quantity I had, they immediately, with no hesitation, offered me $1.70/lb.

[mfraser264]

No surprise to me.

Have a friend who's family owned and operated a scrap yard in town. I was given lead but no selling otherwise.

Here is reason - The scrap yard used certified balance scales and "Joe" went home and checked the buckets he purchased on his bathroom scale (spring type) and would call and yell at them for shortening them lead.

Some spoil it for the rest of us.

[9.3X62AL]

No surprise to me.

Have a friend who's family owned and operated a scrap yard in town. I was given lead but no selling otherwise.

Here is reason - The scrap yard used certified balance scales and "Joe" went home and checked the buckets he purchased on his bathroom scale (spring type) and would call and yell at them for shortening them lead.

Some spoil it for the rest of us.

C'mon, man! These people are in the scrapyard business, and are that thin-skinned? That dog just won't hunt.

[klutz347]

Around my neck of the woods, there are 4 scrap yards that buy metal. Only 1 of them will sell to the public.

I try to hit them up a couple times a month but I usually get to them a day or so to late.

Scrap yard guy: "Should have been here yesterday, we had a couple hundred pounds of lead". :(

[Geraldo]

Reading this thread made me think more about working the other end. I know guys scrounge tire shops and such, but how about looking for the scrappers who haul stuff in for sale? A guy down the street scraps all kinds of stuff, and although he probably doesn't get tons of lead, I'm sure I could buy what he gets for what they yard pays him. Maybe post an add now and then in local free trader papers that you buy lead. Give them a few cents more a pound but get it hauled to you.

[para45lda]

One of the benefits of owning your own business: buying from and selling to whoever you want.

I don't like not being able to buy lead from him, but it is his business.

Wes