What do toll refiners usually charge to refine someone's gold?

[Nickperl]

Hi all, though it's been ages since I've posted, I read you all regularly. I've been collecting and refining for years and I have an interesting opportunity. My dentist has been collecting fillings for years and I'll be discussing his options soon. I could propose refining his fillings and selling to my refiner/buyer (at 90% spot), or I could just refer him to my refiner/buyer especially if I can get a deep discount for a bridge and a couple crowns. By the way, my refiner/buyer pays either cash or trades government-issued gold ounce coins. Toll refining his stash though would be a great winter opportunity (I'm currently focusing on low yield IC's (square, BGA and Northbridge, mil contacts and fingers and gold trimmed dishes/glass). What would be a fair toll refining percentage split? What do you guys do? Thanks and glad this forum is alive and healthy.

 

[Martijn]

Tough one... Is there amalgam (mercury) in the fillings? If so, I would charge extra for that, if I had a retort to process them.
Do you now the composition of the fillings? I once saw a composition of copper5%, zinc5%, silver 50%, Tin 25%, Tungsten12% on an XRF reading. but some will have mercury in them, i think.
The waste has to be dealt with as well, keep in mind that you have to get rid of the mercury at some point. I don't know if there is a market for it.
Other members surely will chime in.

Any other route than a retort in case of mercury would be very dangerous imo.

I would say the percentage you ask depends on the work you put in, what are the (dangerous) components and the costs for waste disposal, and most imoprtant: what the yields are. If there is only silver as a pm, I would not refine it.

 

[Lou]

I think you'd be overpaying to a dentist.

A lot of traveling people go to the dentists in my area and offer them the equivalent of 10% of spot price for the gold. I'd expect for you to get a deep, deep discount but face competition from roving bands of low-ballers.

I once did a jar for my dentist whom I've known since I was a boy. The traveling "collectors" who provided the jar with their company name and logo told him it, "is worth $500 when it's full" and after my recovery was over $10,000 in just gold, not counting the Pd and Pt. Suffice it to say the jars that were doled out in the area did not go to the low ballers that had come through town once word got out. He was happy just to split the gold 50-50 and nothing else.

Not saying all dentists are getting ripped off, but let's just say dentists are making their money on their services installing the hardware.

 

[Yggdrasil]

Hi all, though it's been ages since I've posted, I read you all regularly. I've been collecting and refining for years and I have an interesting opportunity. My dentist has been collecting fillings for years and I'll be discussing his options soon. I could propose refining his fillings and selling to my refiner/buyer (at 90% spot), or I could just refer him to my refiner/buyer especially if I can get a deep discount for a bridge and a couple crowns. By the way, my refiner/buyer pays either cash or trades government-issued gold ounce coins. Toll refining his stash though would be a great winter opportunity (I'm currently focusing on low yield IC's (square, BGA and Northbridge, mil contacts and fingers and gold trimmed dishes/glass). What would be a fair toll refining percentage split? What do you guys do? Thanks and glad this forum is alive and healthy.

As Marijn says, you will need to take into account both Mercury and Pd/Pt which are toxic of their own rights.
It is manageable but need the right focus.
Mercury may be the real stumble block.

 

[4metals]

Also consider that as a small refiner you may not be able to sell at a fair price any palladium you recover. So before you offer to pay the dentist, you should know the amount of Palladium you can recover and find out what you can sell it for. Small quantities of PGM's (under an ounce) often take a beating when selling.

 

[Nickperl]

Thank you all for your help. I did call my refiner who buys my gold and they are currently paying about $35/g for dental gold. Thanks for the caution about mercury, I now need to research this forum as I've not run into this before. I also have not refined PGM and it's about time I do, so more to learn (I save my spent chloroauric acid after the butyl diglyme captures it since I got red reactions to Stannous). I now recall once a few years ago a friend gave me his watch-maker dad's stash containing much gold filled cases, bands, etc. and I split 50-50 the gold I dropped from it (roughly equal 4 gram buttons). So 50-50 sounds good. Still, much to do and thanks again so much for the direction, you guys! The forum is my greatest resource for this retirement hobby of mine (and years ago even Harold kinda yelled at me, lol). Merry Christmas!

 

[Lou]

If you're getting a red reaction with the DBC/diglyme you need to wash better with strong acid.

 

[Nickperl]

I wash the diglyme with HCL and hot water (5%) 2-3 times. I assume that's what you suggest and thanks, Lou. Also, I have on occasion saved the discarded auric chloride and the rinses and use SMB and have gotten precipitate (I assumed it was gold not precipitated with the Oxylic Acid). Then I save up and re-refine.

 

[Lou]

It seems to me that the oxalic acid reduction is not occurring completely. I'm not saying it'll be completely barren but there shouldn't be too much left in the solvent.