I am not really a scrapper, I am a carpenter but if I am not mistaken, hinges are brass as well and they have some weight to them. Check the dumpsters of door and window installers and you will find lots of these metals there. I also never use the tiny brass screws that come with hinges because they are always, always always about 1/3 the length they ought to be. Antique hardware in good condition could also be sold for much much more than scrap to antique dealers or restoration carpenters
@@comennish9994 Door hinges are usually steel nowadays, sometimes stainless, but furniture hinges are usually brass still. Same with many of the knobs.
A SERIOUS note on scrapping brass: You may want to consider the value of the item you want to scrap out as a collector or restoration piece FIRST. You may be able to get MUCH more money for an item due to what it is than what a scrapyard will give you for it. Antique cabinet hardware, especially locks, drawer handles and handle plates, hinges, etc. will be worth much more to a furniture restorer than a scrapyard. Antique brass padlocks are always worth more than scrap value, even without the key. Even later brass padlocks (up to the mid-1960s) are desirable with at least one working key, still much more than a scrapyard will give you. Also consider antique and vintage lighting fixtures, antique door hardware (especially if it has an ornate pattern), and other antique items. These things are in demand by restorers. If It looks like an antique item with some considerable value, and if it isn't damaged or horribly corroded, consider trying to sell it on eBay first before scrapping it out; chances are VERY good that you WILL get much more money for the item.
Starting out with scrapping and was happy to read your comment mentioning this. I’m learning how to do architectural salvage and a LOT of old house groups on social media are searching for these pieces and will gladly pay to save them from the scrapyard or landfill.
I'm just getting started in scrapping and my biggest hurdle is deciding what metal a thing is. These videos really help! Thanks for the entertaining educating.
I enjoy your explanations as it gives me a comparison to what I'm doing already. I'm a mostly casual scrapper that enjoys the micro-scrapping, even if it doesn't really pay.
I also use a car jack a lot to quickly break things apart. You just need to find something to press against. Electric motor casing break nicely with a good jack.
I have never scrapped a thing, but have a big old bucket of sprinkler and irrigation parts. You have sparked my interest in selling that stuff. Thanks, Thub!
I like being called a “Panda”. You have taught me a ton about scrapping. As for my speed , so slow because I’ve never used tools before. let’s just say i cannot just whack a light ballast or transformer a few times to set the copper free. But I’m enjoying you, one of my favorites! Scrapin’ Grandmumm Love to buy my children and grandchildren things they need/want. So I’ve got to speed it up!
I honk the speed comes with practice, as well as knowing what parts aren’t worth fiddling with 😊 Very grateful to be on your favourites list, and thank you for saying hello!
I do the brass plugs as I get them. Maybe a few at a time if I have a few cords, then it doesn’t seem that bad taking a few seconds, they add up. If I hold the plug with pliers just right, the dull wire cutters in the other hand, I can “roll” out the entire brass piece including the 1” of wire attached to the end and avoid breaking it off and leaving half of it behind. 👍
Check yard sales and rummage sales etc for unwanted silver plated serving pieces (platters and tea sets etc); lots of that is silver on copper or brass.
I buy lots of "worthless" silver plate at yard sales and auctions for practically nothing. It's usually copper or brass and worth cleaning up for scrap. Also lots of old beaten up light fixtures and chandeliers sell super cheap and are mostly brass.
Hold the plug in one hand and wiggle the prong back and forth, on newer plugs they will snap, but on older ones normally they just pull out. Great video though!
Thanks Thub, enjoyed the series. I have watched some of the micro recyclers and they just seem to enjoy the challenge of recycling as much as possible more than the money.
Just discovered you, I think you're awesome bro. I do much of the same thing down here in South Florida. The only real difference between you and I is that I focus more on the treasure finds and sell those at flea markets and scrap minimally. Also down here bottles and cans and cartons don't make any money maybe cans if you want to do that and have the space. But I mostly adhere to a lot of what you said as far as choosing wisely, about time equaling value on what you choose to tear down. And all that stuff to about hurting wrist sore fingers it's pretty easy to determine what's valuable to yourself but to each one of us we value all these things differently so we do them in different proportions so I think you're doing a great job anyways this is gone on too long. Wish you the best of luck in are uncertain current time / future.
My scrap yard has a category called "brass recovery". It targets all plug ends. It is usually 4x the price of scrap steel. Gives more value then having to manually pulling plug ends apart. You should see if your yard accepts this alternative category.
Your videos really are helpful!! I really appreciate it 🙏 If you find the time i would love to see a video where you takes the most common brass copper aluminum scrap items and make like a list i guess of what items are #1 #2 or clean or dirty bc ive seen videos on copper where they say #1 tubing is bright or newish and has no metels etc then other videos say it can have patina but no metals paint etc and is #1 lol
I just run a grinder right up the middle of the faucets nuts and bolts aren’t so bad when you cut them in half and since most of the metals are soft it’s easy. Watch those fingers and a mask isn’t optional like you said those rubbing fittings.
I’m always happy to be the guy! The funny thing is how we’re all constantly learning, makes me want to remake every one of these vids now that I’ve got a bit more experience haha
I just found a massive solid brass lamp in the alley a few days ago. I used my handy bastard file to shave a little chunk off of it and it exposed the most beautiful shiny brass. It was an exciting find!
That is exciting!! I’ve found many that are cast aluminium with a finish intended to make them look like brass. Makes me think they used to all be brass but I’ve never found one that actually was. Nice score!
I usually use my vice to tear out the brass in plugs. It’s probably more time consuming but its easier on the wrist. For the year 2019 I melted them all down into two ingots totaling 6 lbs so it won’t yield very much brass
Its usually easy to tell if its brass or zinc alloy/plastic is by weight or feel. Brass is heavy and doesn't feel cheap like the chromed plastic/zinc alloy does. Scraping is always the best way to check though
Hope this wonderful piece of advice helps for getting plug ends out faster. Smash with a maul hammer on the side of the plastic. They normally fall out. Then pick it up after a few are done.
I had a falling out with my main scrap yard, the guy disrespected me, so I reminded him I don't scrap to survive and it's not the only stuff I do. I used scrap aluminum wires to make the chainmail I'm wearing in my channel image and I scrap things I can't fix, can't use, or have been around my house too long. I have a collection of brass I've kept for the purpose of casting it for a prop for comic con type stuff and I've had it for years... If I was desperate for cash I wouldn't be essentially hording a "high value" metal :P I was treated as a charity case and then disrespected claiming I was expensive and other crap for work I did for him off site. Told him I dont work on or for crap and exercised my right to take my business elsewhere. Basically, I'll expand Thub's thing about researching the scrap yards in your area to say don't allow scrap yards to believe they are the only show in town, it leads to them thinking you are dependent on them and they can treat you as they please. Your dignity is worth a small price hit, don't let them treat you as less because you do scrap work.
hi the way i do plugs is by using a old pot and boiling them put in vice and they come out easy a bit time consuming but if you have a big bucket of them it can be worth it
Geoff T sure! I’ll do my best, but I’ll have to take a bit to think of all the details a person might be wondering about. Guess that means cutting one in half!
Thub, boil them. Boil the plug ends for about 10 minutes at a rapid boil and they slip out, without breaking, and with little effort; side benefit that the remaining copper wire does too, and can be snipped off. Hope you read comments from older videos...
I am good at sinks. On foot, I never carried an angle grinder (more useful for cutting steel welds on transformers) or a file. I used utility knife to cut deep. If yellow underneath, it's brass. Die cast faucets crumble when hammered; however, stainless steel is very tough when hammered. As for the fool's AL, pot metal, it is nonmagetic like brass & Al, but more dense, so just weigh with hand & you can tell difference usually (smaller pot metal is harder to judge). So, like you, I use destructive testing. Lamps & cupboard handles more than faucets almost all look like brass, but I've only ever found 2 brass lamps. You'll need some small Allen keys to take apart many faucets.
I wonder if you could use a tumbler to get the forks out. Not sure if you already did video on that but I will look in just a moment, if you haven't yet I'd be interested to see.
Well I was aiming to help people who are brand new, but it’s still entertaining (hopefully) for folks who are familiar with scrap. I was expecting more people to add tips I missed! Maybe brass just isn’t that complicated 😄
Hi. I always learn something new every time I watch your videos. A while back, I came across a huge pipe. It has some brass on it and I guess it has red brass or copper. The issue is is that it was painted blue and I'm wondering if it's worth the time to sand off the blue paint so that I can at least get the clean brass price for it? Thanks for any help you can give me. Have a nice day! 😎👍
I personally wouldn’t bother, if it was a copper pipe I’d cut it off and bring it in as a piece of copper and a piece of dirty brass. I love brass but you can lose a lot of time trying to clean it up which could only be making you a couple cents an hour
I am not really a scrapper, I am a carpenter but if I am not mistaken, hinges are brass as well and they have some weight to them. Check the dumpsters of door and window installers and you will find lots of these metals there. I also never use the tiny brass screws that come with hinges because they are always, always always about 1/3 the length they ought to be. Antique hardware in good condition could also be sold for much much more than scrap to antique dealers or restoration carpenters
Nowadays it's made from steel but they do hold weight
Awesome suggestion!
@@comennish9994 Door hinges are usually steel nowadays, sometimes stainless, but furniture hinges are usually brass still. Same with many of the knobs.
Try refurbishing and selling them if they're not too worn.
I see lots of older brass hinges on eBay selling for upwards of C$18/pair.
A SERIOUS note on scrapping brass: You may want to consider the value of the item you want to scrap out as a collector or restoration piece FIRST. You may be able to get MUCH more money for an item due to what it is than what a scrapyard will give you for it. Antique cabinet hardware, especially locks, drawer handles and handle plates, hinges, etc. will be worth much more to a furniture restorer than a scrapyard. Antique brass padlocks are always worth more than scrap value, even without the key. Even later brass padlocks (up to the mid-1960s) are desirable with at least one working key, still much more than a scrapyard will give you. Also consider antique and vintage lighting fixtures, antique door hardware (especially if it has an ornate pattern), and other antique items. These things are in demand by restorers. If It looks like an antique item with some considerable value, and if it isn't damaged or horribly corroded, consider trying to sell it on eBay first before scrapping it out; chances are VERY good that you WILL get much more money for the item.
Starting out with scrapping and was happy to read your comment mentioning this. I’m learning how to do architectural salvage and a LOT of old house groups on social media are searching for these pieces and will gladly pay to save them from the scrapyard or landfill.
Brass is my standby. I found an industrial group that went through brass pump heads regularly. It was a good source for years.
Nice! I really love brass. Big chunks of the stuff come from all sorts of things. Shame your supply dried up but sounds good while it lasted!
I'm just getting started in scrapping and my biggest hurdle is deciding what metal a thing is. These videos really help! Thanks for the entertaining educating.
Thanks for telling me " If your gonna bail, bail early" great advice!
I don’t remember where I heard that, probably a really corny show or something, but it’s one of my favourite pieces of life advice!
Yeah that's deep actually!
@@thubprint cause once your in too deep, it's just depressing.
The alternative saying is... Cut your losses !
Omg I just commented the same thing 😆 🤣 😂
I enjoy your explanations as it gives me a comparison to what I'm doing already. I'm a mostly casual scrapper that enjoys the micro-scrapping, even if it doesn't really pay.
I also use a car jack a lot to quickly break things apart. You just need to find something to press against. Electric motor casing break nicely with a good jack.
I have never scrapped a thing, but have a big old bucket of sprinkler and irrigation parts. You have sparked my interest in selling that stuff. Thanks, Thub!
Very good, smart, & instructional video right down to the minor nuances & details. If all video's were like this we would only need yours. 👍👍👍👍
Great stuff Thub. Brass and copper are my main money maker. I clean as I watch Netflix or RUclips. Builds up fast!
Use a vice and a peir of chanel lock, to pull the brass bits from plug ends. You will also find copper wires in the ends.
Thanks for this great series, just recently made my first run to the scrap yard!
ScoutsIX3 nice work! Hope you had fun and made money!
Thanks for this series! My 10 year old son has been scrapping (easy stuff, no microwaves or anything like that) and he loved the info!
Nicole D yeah, microwaves aren’t worth the shock risk generally. A lot of the time they work too, easy to sell them for $15-20
yup, thats me all right! brass is everywhere!
Love the beginner vids. There just are not enough on RUclips explaining the nuisances of each Metal.
Lauton Sutley that’s what I was thinking!
I like being called a “Panda”. You have taught me a ton about scrapping. As for my speed , so slow because I’ve never used tools before. let’s just say i cannot just whack a light ballast or transformer a few times to set the copper free.
But I’m enjoying you, one of my favorites!
Scrapin’ Grandmumm
Love to buy my children and grandchildren things they need/want. So I’ve got to speed it up!
I honk the speed comes with practice, as well as knowing what parts aren’t worth fiddling with 😊
Very grateful to be on your favourites list, and thank you for saying hello!
Hello, my nephews love your beginner vids. Keep up the great work. Stay safe.
I've debated about pulling the brass out of the plugs. Good advice! Thanks!
In Atlanta Ga. Just got my 2 boys into scrapping. It's fun to see eyes light up when they get that $$ !!
I'm 86 years old, that's what I'm doing but learning from you, I know I need more little tools,
I do the brass plugs as I get them. Maybe a few at a time if I have a few cords, then it doesn’t seem that bad taking a few seconds, they add up. If I hold the plug with pliers just right, the dull wire cutters in the other hand, I can “roll” out the entire brass piece including the 1” of wire attached to the end and avoid breaking it off and leaving half of it behind. 👍
Hi amigo from Houston Texas thank you for the information keep up the great work 🤙
Check yard sales and rummage sales etc for unwanted silver plated serving pieces (platters and tea sets etc); lots of that is silver on copper or brass.
I buy lots of "worthless" silver plate at yard sales and auctions for practically nothing. It's usually copper or brass and worth cleaning up for scrap. Also lots of old beaten up light fixtures and chandeliers sell super cheap and are mostly brass.
Hold the plug in one hand and wiggle the prong back and forth, on newer plugs they will snap, but on older ones normally they just pull out. Great video though!
Thanks Thub, enjoyed the series. I have watched some of the micro recyclers and they just seem to enjoy the challenge of recycling as much as possible more than the money.
zolledz yeah, fair point. Even if it isn’t very profitable, it can be calming to pick apart something into its scrap components
I love scrapping brass i agree..its heavier and when i worked at a nursey home in Maintenance i used to save all the old brass stuff...good pay days
Nice brass
😂
Just discovered you, I think you're awesome bro. I do much of the same thing down here in South Florida. The only real difference between you and I is that I focus more on the treasure finds and sell those at flea markets and scrap minimally. Also down here bottles and cans and cartons don't make any money maybe cans if you want to do that and have the space. But I mostly adhere to a lot of what you said as far as choosing wisely, about time equaling value on what you choose to tear down. And all that stuff to about hurting wrist sore fingers it's pretty easy to determine what's valuable to yourself but to each one of us we value all these things differently so we do them in different proportions so I think you're doing a great job anyways this is gone on too long. Wish you the best of luck in are uncertain current time / future.
Mentioned you on my video today. You are top man! Stay safe. I left it better than i found it!😊
PEAKY PART TIMERS nice, thanks!
Great videos and vibe all around. Just started scrapping. Kind of obsessed already lmao😅
Nice brass tacks/brass hacks play on words at the start.
😜 I was 100% prepared to be the only person who liked it lol
My scrap yard has a category called "brass recovery". It targets all plug ends. It is usually 4x the price of scrap steel. Gives more value then having to manually pulling plug ends apart.
You should see if your yard accepts this alternative category.
I wish mine had that! I’ve asked, it was a tough sell finding someone who would buy the plug ends from me. I had a bucket full of them too.
This guy has LOTS of good videos. I like lots of things that come from Canada- including his videos!
Your videos really are helpful!! I really appreciate it 🙏 If you find the time i would love to see a video where you takes the most common brass copper aluminum scrap items and make like a list i guess of what items are #1 #2 or clean or dirty bc ive seen videos on copper where they say #1 tubing is bright or newish and has no metels etc then other videos say it can have patina but no metals paint etc and is #1 lol
Keep them coming. Stay safe
I just run a grinder right up the middle of the faucets nuts and bolts aren’t so bad when you cut them in half and since most of the metals are soft it’s easy. Watch those fingers and a mask isn’t optional like you said those rubbing fittings.
Thub is the scrap king!!
Thanks man. We need some knowledge/advice from someone as experienced as u here in the scrapping community.
I’m always happy to be the guy! The funny thing is how we’re all constantly learning, makes me want to remake every one of these vids now that I’ve got a bit more experience haha
Whoa! I was waiting for this one Thubber! You finally gave it to us! Such an informative video good work
I made money scrapping for the first time today. I buy some brass for 3 and sell it to the dealership for 6.20. Keep doing the thing !
Just gotta do that a a hundred times and you’ll have some decent grocery money! 😆
I just found a massive solid brass lamp in the alley a few days ago. I used my handy bastard file to shave a little chunk off of it and it exposed the most beautiful shiny brass. It was an exciting find!
That is exciting!! I’ve found many that are cast aluminium with a finish intended to make them look like brass. Makes me think they used to all be brass but I’ve never found one that actually was. Nice score!
You are a good scraper the best I know.
I usually use my vice to tear out the brass in plugs. It’s probably more time consuming but its easier on the wrist. For the year 2019 I melted them all down into two ingots totaling 6 lbs so it won’t yield very much brass
I always enjoy sitting down watching tv and cleaning every copper wire and brass
Nice tips Thub! Gotta love Brass!
Ryan Timmins ohhh I sure do lol
Its usually easy to tell if its brass or zinc alloy/plastic is by weight or feel. Brass is heavy and doesn't feel cheap like the chromed plastic/zinc alloy does. Scraping is always the best way to check though
Truth! A scrapper has to learn sometime though
Great content!
Try putting the plug pins in very hot water to soften the plastic
Good tips Thub! Happy scrapping!
Thanks! Same to you 😊
@@thubprint Holy smokes, I'm starstruck! 😄
Hope this wonderful piece of advice helps for getting plug ends out faster. Smash with a maul hammer on the side of the plastic. They normally fall out. Then pick it up after a few are done.
Great video
Hello from Arkansas great videos. Leave it better than what you found it!
Thank you your videos always help me through this scraping journey
Happy to be here friend! Thanks for saying hi!
Idk why but I am drawn to brass. Just love the stuff
Brass in UK, from scratching plugs, probably worth the effort. Thanks for video
Hay, recently found your channel and wanted to give you a shout out and say hope you keep up the great content. ✌
excellent information
I had a falling out with my main scrap yard, the guy disrespected me, so I reminded him I don't scrap to survive and it's not the only stuff I do.
I used scrap aluminum wires to make the chainmail I'm wearing in my channel image and I scrap things I can't fix, can't use, or have been around my house too long.
I have a collection of brass I've kept for the purpose of casting it for a prop for comic con type stuff and I've had it for years... If I was desperate for cash I wouldn't be essentially hording a "high value" metal :P
I was treated as a charity case and then disrespected claiming I was expensive and other crap for work I did for him off site. Told him I dont work on or for crap and exercised my right to take my business elsewhere.
Basically, I'll expand Thub's thing about researching the scrap yards in your area to say don't allow scrap yards to believe they are the only show in town, it leads to them thinking you are dependent on them and they can treat you as they please. Your dignity is worth a small price hit, don't let them treat you as less because you do scrap work.
You can drop the plugs into boiling water . It softens the rubber and the pull out fairly easy. Plus you get the bit of #1 copper tail.
Can’t wait to see your experiment.
Thanks for sharing your tips & tricks 😀
hi the way i do plugs is by using a old pot and boiling them put in vice and they come out easy a bit time consuming but if you have a big bucket of them it can be worth it
As i strip electrical wires i take the quick second and pull the brass prongs and let them accumulate in a bucket
Same here.
My mouth, in reality, is just a poor man's vagina.
Good info. Thanks.
Good information for a beginner
Great videos
Cool! I like these metal scrapping tips videos. Can you do one on lead and batteries. thanks
Geoff T sure! I’ll do my best, but I’ll have to take a bit to think of all the details a person might be wondering about. Guess that means cutting one in half!
@@thubprint bro, don't cut batteries - too dangerous. Many different types of batteries. What's worth scrap. thanks
Great video.
Good video!
Thanks!
Thub, boil them. Boil the plug ends for about 10 minutes at a rapid boil and they slip out, without breaking, and with little effort; side benefit that the remaining copper wire does too, and can be snipped off.
Hope you read comments from older videos...
I am good at sinks. On foot, I never carried an angle grinder (more useful for cutting steel welds on transformers) or a file. I used utility knife to cut deep. If yellow underneath, it's brass. Die cast faucets crumble when hammered; however, stainless steel is very tough when hammered. As for the fool's AL, pot metal, it is nonmagetic like brass & Al, but more dense, so just weigh with hand & you can tell difference usually (smaller pot metal is harder to judge). So, like you, I use destructive testing. Lamps & cupboard handles more than faucets almost all look like brass, but I've only ever found 2 brass lamps. You'll need some small Allen keys to take apart many faucets.
Nice vid man!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience.
Cool video
Hi thub, do you have any newer brass educational videos? Thank you for your time.
Great! Thanks!
thanks
Don't forget the magnet! A lot of times those bed frames and floorlamps are just plated.
Trash cans, too.
Clear and fast talking i like it :-)
Hi!! This was great info!
Thanks man!!!!!! Very informative and entertaining video. Loved it.
Just trying to help! 😄
Very helpful
Doin my best!
I wonder if you could use a tumbler to get the forks out. Not sure if you already did video on that but I will look in just a moment, if you haven't yet I'd be interested to see.
Great refresher demo video.
Well I was aiming to help people who are brand new, but it’s still entertaining (hopefully) for folks who are familiar with scrap. I was expecting more people to add tips I missed! Maybe brass just isn’t that complicated 😄
That's like the best advice ever! "If your gonna bail, bail early" 😅
Great piece of information... much appreciated 🙏
I enjoy your channel thanks for your many efforts
Thanks so much! I try to be helpful, even if I don’t always manage to haha
Hi. I always learn something new every time I watch your videos. A while back, I came across a huge pipe. It has some brass on it and I guess it has red brass or copper. The issue is is that it was painted blue and I'm wondering if it's worth the time to sand off the blue paint so that I can at least get the clean brass price for it? Thanks for any help you can give me. Have a nice day! 😎👍
I personally wouldn’t bother, if it was a copper pipe I’d cut it off and bring it in as a piece of copper and a piece of dirty brass. I love brass but you can lose a lot of time trying to clean it up which could only be making you a couple cents an hour
@@thubprint Ok. Thanks for the suggestion.
Thanks for all your insights!
Love your videos 👍🏾👍🏾
🎵Brass Monkey! That funky Monkey!🎵
Helpful advice, love the series and all your videos!
Thanks so much! 😄 I’ve got a couple more ‘guide’ type videos to do in December, still scrap related but much more specific. I think they’ll be fun!
@@thubprint Can't wait for them!
Love me my brass and copper
Scrapper for over 35 years; always good to see others do it.
Thanks
Your a polite dude I left a like and a comment thank you
Thanks for the comment! 😊
Awesome bro!!
Put your plugs in a big pot and pore hot water over the plugs bring to the boild then plull the prongs out
Well done
Thanks! Commonsensical and humorous!