Just like wine, older is better

Besides owning and operating an e-scrap company I am also a writer. Back when I first started writing I was sending out query letters to various agents around the country trying to generate some interest. Most of the responses were negative but one took it a bit further. You see, I am a humorist by nature and love to write things that will make people laugh. Well one agent replied that while he would be willing to read my book he noted that selling humor was like trying to sell old computers.

He made the entire statement sound insulting but in it was a bit of knowledge that he was not trying to give.

What I have learned over the years is that older computers are much better for anyone that is trying to make a buck, especially in e-scrap.

Lets take a look at why older is better....

First and foremost, many older computers contain higher quantities of gold and other precious metals. When gold became a widely used material in electronics the companies had yet to discover that it could be pounded into a micro thin layer. As such they were using higher amounts to ensure that the connections were secure.

This is exactly why many e-scrap companies actively seek out the older models. The older the model the better chance of getting high gold content.

Furthermore, the older computers from the 1970's and 1980's were made better than their contemporary counterparts of this day and age. I heard one computer tech say that new computers are simply throw away models. They have dropped so far in price that they are much easier for many people to afford. As such many choose to simply buy a new computer rather than paying to have their current model fixed.

But during the older days this was not the case. Some personal computers were selling for $10,000 or more. They were a major investment and not something that the average person was able to afford. Not only that, they were made to last. When you find an old computer it is not uncommon for it to still run despite the fact that it is 30 years old. They were made to run and run they did.

Now, old computers are valuable in two different ways.

First off they are valued for their high precious metal content. BUT, I do not scrap an older computer until I have tested it and checked on its overall value.

Older computers have become collectors items and many of the collectors are willing to pay high prices to add a new piece to their collection. This is especially true if the item is in working order or at the very least complete.

The above picture is the Osborne 1, a highly coveted machine in the collectible computers world. This unit was considered the first real portable computer for the market. Prices for this unit can reach the tens of thousands of dollars for the right collector, especially if it still functions.

Of course who can forget the old Apple computers. Apple designed and marketed the first computer that was affordable enough for the casual user. When they decided to donate to schools all over the US Apple was on the map and they are still a hot company. Some of their machines sell for high dollars in the collectible market.

So it is important to remember that older computers get better with age. Always cover your bets because the last thing you want to do is scrap out a machine that could have netted you $10,000 to a collector.

Basic E-scrap Prices and Values

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I am going to do something with this article that many people want to charge for. I am going to give a rundown of what the different parts of e-scrap are worth and the prices that you can expect when you are selling them.

It was a tremendous pain in the neck for me when I would start searching the net trying to find the price breakdowns of e-scrap. Every link I would click on would take me to another page that wanted me to pay a monthly fee to see this coveted information. I think it is high time that we just end the secrecy and get on with life.

Alright so let’s get right to it.

E-scrap prices are broken down to the basic parts of most electronics. When scraping electronics it is important to separate everything but they all have different values.

For standard motherboards and slot boards (video cards, sound cards, etc) the standard price is $3.80 per pound. It does not take long to build up a rather hefty sum of cash considering how much one motherboard weighs.

Mid-Grade Boards, such as those that are found in CD/DVD drives, printers and so on sell for around $1.00 per pound. They do have some precious metal on them but it is far less than the motherboard or slot boards.

Low Grade Boards or brown boards (because only one side is green and the other is brown) are the lowest in the circuit board scrap area. They sell for .50 per pound maximum and have very low quantities of precious metals.

Hard drive boards are a bit different. They are referred to as logic boards and they sell for $9.00 per pound or more.

Ram goes even higher in the price range. Ram from older computers does not contain gold but has silver contacts. Refiners buy Ram as mixed memory and the standard price is $13.00 per pound.

Now for the processors or CPUs. The prices vary depending on the processor. Some processors are insanely valuable such as the old 386 and 486 units that will sell for $110.00 per pound. The higher the grade the higher the value.

However, there are the old Pentium II slot processors that are sold for $11.00 per pound as they are more similar to Ram than to processors themselves.

Hard drive platters vary in price depending on how they are sold. They can go as high as $9.00 per pound when sold on eBay but usually they go a bit lower depending on who is bidding.

So, that should give you an idea of the money that can be made through e-scrap. I have seen some forum posts on the internet from people that claim there is no money to be made in e-scrap. Well with the above prices and a little hard work it is easy to see that there is some serious cash to be made.

The Dangers of DIY Gold Refining and Recovery

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Electronic scrap is a highly lucrative market for those that have the drive and desire to succeed. However, there are some dangers involved for those that attempt to take things to the next level and recover and refine the gold and other precious metals themselves.

If you start researching this topic you will find that there are plenty of people out there saying how easy it can be to recover and refine the gold at home. I, for one, think that this is irresponsible and dangerous to say the least.

All over the internet on sites like eBay and so on there are people selling DIY kits and plans for gold recovery and refining. If you read through the listings these people talk about how they are able to refine X amount of gold and make a fortune, yada, yada.

Well one question springs to mind: If they are making so much money then why are they selling DIY kits rather than refining the gold?

The fact of the matter is that refining and recovering gold from electronic scrap is dangerous and should be left to the professionals that have the proper equipment and knowledge to complete the process.

Many of the “at home” methods that you will find on the net make use of dangerous acids and other chemicals that are deadly if inhaled or spilled and the idea that you can use them in your garage in a safe manner is ludicrous.

There are more than enough places out there that are willing to buy gold bearing material for a nice price which will keep you safe.

Furthermore, there are many laws that govern the use of these chemicals and simply using them in your garage or basement can get you into a lot of trouble with the law.

I should point out that there are some places on the net selling actual gold recovery and refining equipment that is safe to use. However, the cost is prohibitive as the systems, without the necessary chemicals, run into the thousands of dollars.

So for safety sake I recommend that you stick with selling the gold bearing materials to a refiner and be happy with the price that you are getting for the materials.