How would you process 100lbs of low yield cpu's?

[Rmwatson78]

I just wanted to get some of the pro's around here to tell me how you would go about processing a little over a hundred pounds of low yield dual core/pentium 4 type processors. BTW, I got Hoke's book via Amazon and I really like it.

 

[Anonymous]

The straight advice would be to sell them rather than process them. You should get more money for them than refining them yourself even as scrap processors.

Do some homework on what people offer you and drop me a pm if you like and I'll let you know whether the offer is fair. You have a good quantity there, and you should honestly use the money to buy better grade product.

Jon

 

[alexxx]

I'm with Jon on this one. Sell them and buy higher grade scrap.
At 5$ a lb, flip them fast and check for a new ptoject.

Speculators / new born refinners will overpay for those, and exporters / reusable guys will pay a fair price.

You can sort them yourself, keep the c2d chips (the 2.93 , 3.0 & 3.2 will sell easily 5$ - 7$ or 10$ each) , you may find some quads at 30$ a pop in there. Keep the dirty cloth with the silver thermal paste for further easy refinning.

Not sure how much they go for on ebay tho.

 

[UncleBenBen]

I'm with Jon on this one.

Ditto. Jon just opened my stubborn eyes to the possibilities that selling on can bring.
That was with just one picture I posted that might have meant 50 cents of recovered gold, but may turn in to MUCH more.

As I've learned, you just may be well served the sort through that 100 pounds, you might find hidden values too!

 

[Rmwatson78]

I'm with Jon on this one.

Ditto. Jon just opened my stubborn eyes to the possibilities that selling on can bring.
That was with just one picture I posted that might have meant 50 cents of recovered gold, but may turn in to MUCH more.

As I've learned, you just may be well served the sort through that 100 pounds, you might find hidden values too!

Well, I'm the idiot who paid 700 dollars for these and it doesn't sound like I will get that much for them at a scrap yard.

 

[bmgold2]

Keep the dirty cloth with the silver thermal paste for further easy refinning.

Not sure how much they go for on ebay tho.

I never thought about the thermal paste. Waste not, want not.

http://www.goldrefiningforum.com/~goldrefi/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=1871#p185633

 

[alexxx]

I'm with Jon on this one.

Ditto. Jon just opened my stubborn eyes to the possibilities that selling on can bring.
That was with just one picture I posted that might have meant 50 cents of recovered gold, but may turn in to MUCH more.

As I've learned, you just may be well served the sort through that 100 pounds, you might find hidden values too!

Well, I'm the idiot who paid 700 dollars for these and it doesn't sound like I will get that much for them at a scrap yard.

Processing those will never come close to 700$ in values, even if you are able to get every last bit of gold silver and copper out of them.

You could cut your losses, sell and move to the next project after reading for 2 years.
Or maybe use them as an investment into your learning.
700$ is not a lot to have a feed stock to play with and learn.
I have myself lost a few bucks in my first year of "learning"... (A few more 0s to your $700)

2 days ago my phone rang (true story), someone was interested into buying gold ram.
He asked me how much I would sell it for... The first number that came out of my mouth was $19 (a bit overpriced).
The guy than asked if he could buy 1 pound test it. I than asked him if he had any experience into refinning...
I knew already the answer (another me from 6 years back thinking he could make a fortune from scrapping electronics and the precious metals they contain)...
Don't need to continue the story, you know where it goes...

Precious metal recovery & refinning, as a business is fascinating, but very hard at the same time.
People tend to believe that it's easy money. And they also believe that they can find the miracle shortcut.
It doesn't exist.
This business is about hard work, small margins and grinding 24/7.

The only advice I could give to anyone after 6 years in this business is to relax, take a breath, read, learn... And maybe after a year or two try it...

Well, who am I kidding, I would never have followed that advice.
Shinny things are truly fascinating... And because now they are part of the everyday life objects that we use, and no longer burried deep down into earths crust, it seems easier to get.

I don't have a perfect answer for you on what you should do, I'm still green compared to many members from this forum, I am learning everyday (that's what I love most from this business I think).

You will find the answers to your questions by reading and searching, this forum and the book you bought are just the right tools.

 

[UncleBenBen]

I would copy all of alexxx's post but it would make this too long! :mrgreen:
Heap big kidding there sir!

Rmwatson, don't feel bad at all about your purchase. Sort it thru with checking step codes like Jon taught me. If you get some good hits great. If not, I guarantee you are NOT the first to get too excited and blow a bit of money.

I've got nice 10 gallon or so tote 3/4 full of 'mostly' older cell phone boards. I doubt I will ever say how much I have paid in filling it from back when I was just lurking on the forum.

Hey, I was excited and didn't know better, and will never get my money back on it. But that's just how it goes. We all live and learn!

Edit: cause my fat thumb hit submit before I was done!

 

[richard2013]

Does't anybody found palladium on these cpu's any yield/lb?

 

[patnor1011]

Any Pd on them would be from small capacitors and resistors. There is not many of them on any given CPU so there is your answer. There is Pd in some IC in form of Pd/Ag brazing. And there may be quite a lot of Pd in soviet and eastern clones of IC and CPU's.