that’s Right, Tossed!

With platinum trading for nearly $900 on the London Fix, why would anybody throw it away? But the fact is, people do toss platinum for several reasons, including . . .

In most parts of the country today, “We Buy Gold” stores have become common sights. But chances are you haven’t seen any stores that post prominent offers to buy platinum, rhodium, or even silver.

So what are you supposed to do if you have platinum scrap that you would like to sell or recycle?

Crooks aren’t nice people, they hurt people, and we don’t like to write about them. But the fact remains that if we look at crime trends around the country, they can teach us some lessons about the value of precious metals. Also, because crooks make money by selling what they have stolen, their crimes tell us there is a market for the metals they are selling.

Here’s a trick question for you.

If you visit an automobile junkyard and find a wrecked Tesla Model S sitting next to a wrecked 2005 Ford Crown Victoria, which one of them contains more precious metal? And if you are someone who likes to collect and recycle precious metal scrap, which one should you pull apart?

“How to Eliminate the Middleman and Make More Money from Your Used Catalytic Converters” is one of the most popular posts we published on this blog. Although we published it back in 2014, the advice it contains is still relevant today, and we urge you to read it.

If you have ever donated a car to a charity, you know the routine. You call to schedule a time when your car will be picked up. A flatbed truck arrives, the driver writes out a receipt, and your old car gets hauled away. A little while later, you get a receipt from the charity that took your car. That receipt should provide a value for the car you donated, which should be what the charity sold the car for.

Why Precious Metal Scrap Makes a Great Holiday Gift

Are you looking for a great present to give to someone special this holiday season? If so, we have a suggestion to make . . .

Where to Find Precious Metals in Your Local Junkyard

Where can you find platinum scrap, gold, and other precious metals in your local automotive scrapyard? Here’s a guide.

Urban legends are stories – usually untrue - that are so weird that people keep repeating them and sending them around via email. They tend to take on lives of their own – some people even think they really happened. There are even urban legends about precious metals. Here are three we have heard…

It is easy to find businesses that are for sale. You will find them advertised in newspapers that are published near where you live. Plus, you can find hundreds of them online on BizBuySell.com and other online listings of businesses that are for sale. Just search online for “businesses for sale” and you’ll soon be looking at hundreds of them. 

Platinum wire can turn up just about anywhere where platinum was used in manufacturing. Even though it doesn’t look valuable to the casual observer, it could be. So, if you find bright, shiny white wire... 

Our editorial team had a very busy 2016, writing a total of 46 blog posts on a variety of topics. Some posts contained only nuts-and-bolts advice on finding and processing precious metals. Others covered trends. Yet we did our utmost to deliver practical, usable advice in every post we wrote. In today’s post, we’ll organize those 2016 posts by topic, so you can quickly find the information you’re looking for.

Did you know you can search for the term “platinum scrap” on eBay and find mixed platinum scrap for sale? I just tried it, and I found a bag of floor sweepings, said to contain platinum, that I could buy for $500. I found plenty of other items that were said to contain platinum too, including hard disk blanks, catalytic converters, bags of mixed jewelry findings and scrap, and old laboratory testing crucibles. So, could I buy those items, send them to Specialty Metals Smelters and Refiners to be recycled, and make a healthy profit? It’s possible. Yet the chances of it happening are probably slim, because…

If you ask most people how a catalytic converter works, they’ll say, “Dirty exhaust from your car’s engine goes in one side and cleaner exhaust goes out the other side. The exhaust gases then go through the muffler and leave the car via the exhaust pipe. That’s pretty accurate, but it lacks some of the subtler information about what really happens in your car’s catalytic converter. It also doesn’t explain what the recyclable precious metals that catalytic converters contain are, or where you can find them. Well, there's nothing like a video...

It took a long time, but this month VW and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reached an agreement to compensate owners of VW 2.0 diesels or to repair or buy back their affected cars. So, what does the new agreement mean for you if you collect and recycle catalytic converters for a profit? Although full details of the agreement have not yet been announced, here are some issues to keep in mind if you are hoping that the agreement could yield a windfall in available converters.

We just went to the famous New York Auto show and went sniffing for catalytic converters in some of the newest models there. We discovered quite a few new cars that use – or do not use – catalytic converters in interesting ways. 

With platinum currently trading at $940, it’s worth knowing all you can about this bright and beautiful precious metal. That’s why we’re covering the basics for you in today’s post.

Frankly, we are not going to answer that question on today’s post, because it is a question that only your financial advisor or tax preparer can answer for you. There are many variables to consider – your tax bracket, your other investment gains or losses – and we are not in a position to offer that kind of advice. What we can do, however, is answer the following question . . . 

There has been so much hoopla about VW’s diesel crisis that it’s easy to overlook the chance that even more carmakers could be affected. We don’t have a crystal ball and we’re not saying that more car manufacturers have engaged in emissions deception. But let’s review who else is selling diesel-powered cars and light trucks in America right now... 

If you’re interested in collecting and recycling catalytic converters for a profit, the arrival of all these high-tech vehicles can get confusing. Which of them contain cat converters, and which don’t?