# What you can get at an auction



## 4metals (Sep 17, 2010)

I have mentioned in the past that there are some good deals to be found at auctions. Yesterday I was at an auction for a gold chain manufacturer and there were a few good deals there for refiners. I just took a few pictures of two items in particular just to make a point that auctions are a good resource if you know what you're looking for.

The first picture is a rectifier, 150 amp, great for a silver cell. Went for $125.

The second picture is a Pyradia gas burn out oven 130,000 btu, This will get up to 2000 F and do a great job as an incinerator, refractory lined, with a temperature controller, went for the hefty price of $25. It's twin got bid up all the way to $75!

Just something to think about.


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## HAuCl4 (Sep 17, 2010)

Great stuff 4metals. How does one go about finding these auctions?.

I'm on a trip to the US after many years, and I went to Target and Home Depot with the wife, and saw many items that can be used in the craft at very reasonable prices, mainly in the cooking and bathroom sections. It's amazing the variety of things that one can obtain here, as compared to other parts of the world. Shocking in fact.


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## 4metals (Sep 17, 2010)

Be careful with glassware, Pyrex isn't what it used to be, it seems corning sold the manufacturing rights of Pyrex, and the name, to World Kitchen. Rumor has it they have replaced the more costly borosilicate glass with lime glass and now it shatters with thermal shock. I remember back in the day going to a supermarket and stocking up on pyrex bowls and pitchers for refining, these days that comes with a caution!

As far as finding auctions I look up auctions by Koster, Gold Machinery, and the Branford Group, they are 3 I have a lot of experience with. They auction off all types of factories, waste treatment equipment and scrubbers come from semi conductor manufacturers and electroplaters. Melters come from jewelry houses but these days induction melters get bid up pretty high. 

All auctions have a day for looking at the equipment and then most allow bidding either on line or with bid-spotter so you don't need to be present to bid. Every factory has machines and welders and equipment for handy guys to buy. And most auctioneers post detailed lists and pictures on line for you to view before the auction.

This oven is listed for auction on October 5th in NYC.


Often if it is convenient to travel to an auction site, you will find stuff that you didn't recognize on line. It's a great way to save money and set up a refinery you just have to be at the right place at the right time.


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## goldenchild (Sep 17, 2010)

HAuCl4,

This is also a great site to find auctions. You can narrow down auctions to within 30 miles of where you are.

http://www.auctionzip.com


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## HAuCl4 (Sep 18, 2010)

Cheers goldenchild.

I didn't buy any, but saw several $25-$50 large cast iron skillets that could be very good for hot sulfuric acid leach of silver-gold inquarts. Also a $50 stoneware 7-quart crockpot complete with steambath that would serve well as an all in one "refining machine" for most small jobs below 50 OZ. Lots of glassware for oven use too were available for good prices.

Note taken on the Pyrex 4metals, thanks.


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## Irons (Sep 18, 2010)

HAuCl4 said:


> Cheers goldenchild.
> 
> I didn't buy any, but saw several $25-$50 large cast iron skillets that could be very good for hot sulfuric acid leach of silver-gold inquarts. Also a $50 stoneware 7-quart crockpot complete with steambath that would serve well as an all in one "refining machine" for most small jobs below 50 OZ. Lots of glassware for oven use too were available for good prices.
> 
> Note taken on the Pyrex 4metals, thanks.



A lot of the newly manufactured 'Cast Iron' items are of poor quality, especially Chinese manufactured items. I go to yard sales and keep an eye out for Antique or vintage skillets and pots that were made when artisans really knew how to work with Cast Iron. Look for the crustiest ones with the baked on residue. Soak them in warm NaOH solution or oven cleaner. A good one will be well worth the effort.


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## HAuCl4 (Sep 18, 2010)

Irons said:


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I've been looking for a free or very cheap "Large Witches' Cauldron" for many years!. 

The one they use in old movies about Africa where the natives "cook" the white men explorers?. :lol:


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## dtectr (Sep 18, 2010)

HAuCl4 said:


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 Most were used for double/triple duty - weekly for laundry, then in fall for scalding/butchering/rendering of hogs, then for soapmaking. after each use, they were scrubbed thoroughly & turned upside down so the insides wouldn't corrode. unfortunately, they used quite a quantity of lye or lye-based products. And if they were over-heated on wood fires, the carbon tended to burn out of the bottomso they got thinner over time.


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## Irons (Sep 18, 2010)

HAuCl4 said:


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I prefer Missionaries. :mrgreen:


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## dtectr (Sep 18, 2010)

Irons said:


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a little bland, but ok with a little white wine :twisted:


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## Chumbawamba (Sep 19, 2010)

Did some quick research on old vs. new Pyrex since I'm always on the look-out for good Pyrex when I go to the thrift/charity stores.

Some useful links:

Pyrex FAQ
http://www.pyrexlove.com/faq/

Identifying old Pyrex from new:
http://www.failedfeminist.com/2010/08/how-to-tell-old-pyrex-from-really-old.html

Exploding Pyrex testimonials...most of the stories seem to involve newer Pyrex (i.e. purchased within the past 15 years)
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/homeowners/pyrex.html

From the Wikipedia:

"In 1998, Corning sold its consumer products division which subsequently adopted the name World Kitchen. Pyrex kitchen glassware manufactured and licensed for sale in the United States is now made of tempered soda-lime glass at the World Kitchen facility in Charleroi, Pennsylvania. Pyrex products for the European Union continue to be made of borosilicate glass in France."

*Overall, the trick seems to be to observe uncommon sense: don't temperature shock your vessels! When removing from heat, place them on an appropriate surface for cooling, such as a wood table or heat pad.*

If you do make this mistake, real Pyrex seems to tend to crack in large pieces rather than to shatter in a million little bits, which is what is reported of the newer "fake" stuff.


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## Irons (Sep 19, 2010)

I have some Pyrex glassware that dates to the WWI period. The patent was issued in 1918. These have the Patent Applied for mark on the neck with the capacity mark in the center. The glass is much thinner than modern production and, if you look carefully, one can see tiny bits of Quartz that didn't melt, suspended in the glass. I don't use them for fear of breaking a nice collectible.


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## texan (Sep 19, 2010)

I make it a practice to never remove a heated lab glass container from the heat source until all is cool. I use a hot plate and let both cool at the same rate. Never popped any glass under a heating process yet....But don't ask how all thumbs here dropped a flask out of his hand and broke it last month...it was fortunate it fell into my safety tub that I place under all processes and no solution was lost.

Texan


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## HAuCl4 (Sep 20, 2010)

texan said:


> I make it a practice to never remove a heated lab glass container from the heat source until all is cool. I use a hot plate and let both cool at the same rate. Never popped any glass under a heating process yet....But don't ask how all thumbs here dropped a flask out of his hand and broke it last month...it was fortunate it fell into my safety tub that I place under all processes and no solution was lost.
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> Texan



Or avoid glass if at all possible. IMHO unless doing a lot of platinum, etc. glass can be avoided entirely. I've heard and seen several horror stories of broken glass filled with valuable solutions. As many have mentioned, good glass is expensive and it still breaks. If you use glass make sure you have a "safety tub" or collecting vessels underneath as Texan suggests.


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## Irons (Sep 20, 2010)

HAuCl4 said:


> texan said:
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> > I make it a practice to never remove a heated lab glass container from the heat source until all is cool. I use a hot plate and let both cool at the same rate. Never popped any glass under a heating process yet....But don't ask how all thumbs here dropped a flask out of his hand and broke it last month...it was fortunate it fell into my safety tub that I place under all processes and no solution was lost.
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I've been going to Teflon, more and more. One pot solution. It can take over 200deg C. without a sweat, a little overpressure is no problem, it just stretches.Drop it and it bounces.
I'd like to find a large Microwavable pressure cooker that would take a 2 l Teflon bottle.


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## HAuCl4 (Sep 22, 2010)

Irons said:


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Heating inside a microwave seems very innovative!. The heat directly into the fluid!. How do you handle the fumes, etc.?


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