Price of steel

[DAVES89]

I have developed a friendship with a "full service" [not a You Pick] salvage yard owner. He allows me to bring in the Reatta parts I sell and ships them out for me. 

 Anyway he was telling me that the price of steel is so low that another yard in the area is now charging if they have to come pick up the car. In other words no money for the car and we charge to pick up.

 He also went on to tell me that he no longer buys "junkers" he goes to auto auctions and buys the "light hit" cars that are still totaled for pennies on the dollar. He says they are better taken care of and the parts/tires are in much better condition then the beaters that people want him to buy.

 So I guess what I am saying is that if you want to buy a Reatta for parts looks like $200.00 or less is where you should be. Junked cars have pretty much no value.

Edited November 19, 2015 by DAVES89 (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

If that's the case, there is much less incentive

for junkyards to turn their old cars into scrap steel.

 

Steel prices fluctuate, but that's good news for now.

[Barney Eaton]

I was at one last Saturday....for some time they have had a section divided from the other cars called "premium",  within the premium section they have complete cars for sale.  This last visit saw a new section.  They fenced in part of the parking lot and had at least 50 cars in there for sale.   Now I understand why they are selling cars....if they buy them low, they can sell them complete for more than they would make on the parts plus the scrap steel price.

 

In addition they charge a "core" charge on almost everything.   A power antenna was $12.46 + 1.86 core + sales tax with the total being just under $18

The neighbor I was with purchased a dash bezel for a Tahoe and it had a couple of switches in it and those were extra.

[KDirk]

Local scrap processer I deal with (I'm a plumber so always have brass, copper, lead, motors and steel scrap accumulating) has enacted a policy of a scrap steel load of less than 300 pounds net now being zero payout value. I can usually exceed that amount as I go ever 2-4 weeks when I have piled up enough to make it worthwhile. However, all commodity metals are way down in value and so scrapping doesn't provide the nice supplemental income it used to. Sure, it is still free money but now it is about half of what it was a couple of years ago.

Related to this is that I'm picking up a junk Reatta to strip for parts Sunday. I'm paying more than $200 but the parts value I'm getting from it still makes it a good deal. Tb3 from the forum is going to help me strip this one to the bare chassis as he wants the engine (which is good) maybe the transmission (which isn't) and the cradle if it isn't rotten.

I'm grabbing the hood, some other body components, all glass (windshield is good so will have it professionally removed) and all electronics plus some interior trim parts. Most of the interior is trashed but there is some usable stuff there still. Will trailer the rest off to the scrap yard when I'm done for whatever minimal money I'll get for it.

Anyway, the crash in steel prices will have some interesting effects on vehicle salvage as Dave pointed out. I expect many cars that used to go to a salvage yard will go straight to a scrap processer if yards are charging rather than paying out to come get them. This means fewer parts cars in the yard ultimately as they will bypass that stage and go right to recycling whole by those who can self-transport them with a trailer or dolly. Meanwhile a u-pick close to me here (it is in Illinois about 30 minutes away) is running a major radio ad campaign saying they are paying for junk and non-running cars. Don't know how much they are offering but bet it is next to nothing after you factor in the tow.

Of course, the crash in commodity metals portends bad things for the economy going forward. When they are this cheap there is no real growth taking place (low metal prices signal lack of demand due to a collapse in building and manufacturing) so worrying about a fist full of cash from selling a junk car, or the future lack of parts cars in the yard is missing the big picture. Something wicked this way comes...and it's not a slant back Seville.

KDirk

[DAVES89]

As i was talking to this guy he also brought up that back in the early 80's he would come to work and there would be junked cars laying in front of the gate. Back then they weren't paying anything either and really didn't want the steel, so people would drop them off knowing they would have to take it then.

[MrEarl]

Saw this in the Reatta forum,thought it would be of interest to all so with Daves permission left a redirect link in Reatta and moved it here. Thanks Dave

[NC-car-guy]

Scrap steel here is a penny a pound with a minimum 100lb load. The local guys are also charging for pickup.  $35 to come pickup your junker.  I guess this means the people that threaten to crush the car as a sales tactic will need a new gimmick.

[Barney Eaton]

^{There were  16.5 million vehicles sold in the US in 2014.......something eventually happens to these cars and they are no longer usable,  does that mean we are flooding the market with vehicles that will someday be scrapped?    Look at it another way.....is there a single new vehicle that was built in 2014 that you would consider a future collectable?}

^{With the amount of electronics and plastics in the new cars what is the likely hood that a 2014 model will still be driveable in 25 years (2039)  3D printers may help reproduce some of the plastic parts but will anyone be around that can service/repair the electronics.   As technical advisor for Reattas...there are owner complaining about the complicated electronics and these cars are already 25 years old.}

 

^{preserve the old cars you have..........they are not making any more (finish the sentence)}

[Ronnie]

I don't understand the logic behind Reatta owners going out and grabbing a running $200-500 Reatta then removing and storing the parts. Then you have to dispose of the skeleton that has no value by the pound. Seems to me like the most efficient way to store the parts that are being stripped is to keep them bolted inside the car until they are needed. With the parts stripped off you need a weather proof shed or garage to store them in and they are going to take up a lot of space. IF you leave the parts in place inside the car all you need is a good tarp to cover them with.

 

Don't get me wrong, I hope you guys continue doing this. Maybe I can get some parts from you if I need them. I have no room to store more parts in my small garage than I have now. ( a couple of cardboard boxes) The HOA will not let me keep cars that don't run (or aren't licensed) sitting outside.

[Guest tb3]

stainless and copper seem to still pull in a good $$$ around here though.

 

The only reason I personally would strip a car I own, is if the shell is all or mostly rotted.  

grabbing the useable parts off a mostly derelict car before the owner has the entire thing hauled off by the scrap man seems a shame to waste any stuff that is salvageable though  

[KDirk]

Ronnie,

Owning multiple of the same car and intending to keep them viable for years to come is my main reason for stockpiling. I can't keep whole parts cars sitting due to lack of space and the fact that busy bodies will complain even if they are fully concealed and not visible eyesores resulting in hassles from the local bureaucrats. If I lived way out in the sticks on several acres it would be a different story.

I have generally kept smaller stuff like modules and plastic trim which are likely to fail and are either expsensive to buy from a auto parts store (modules) or are not so easy to find (plastics). It is also desirable in my mind to have things that are critical to the car running (like ECM, BCM, ICM, MAF and so forth) on hand so if a failure occurs I can fix it immediately. I had my scrub 88 die on me once at a 4 way stop about 1.5 miles from home. ICM was oozing out green slime. After pushing it out of the way I went home (walked) grabbed a spare and went back to install it. Drove the car home and didn't have to go buy anything as I had it on hand. Money and time saved.

With larger parts (glass, body panels, seats) I have grabbed a few things to replace parts that were needing replacement on one of my cars. I do have extra glass stored, 1 windshield (about to be two but one is possibly sold) two rear glass and multiple sets of side and vent windows. I have grabbed several sets of the vent windows because they are easily broken due to the mirror design. I have sold replacements to local owners at various times over the past 5 years and made money each time. Since glass is all unique to the Reatta I feel the need to get it while I can. If I break a window I can have it fixed the same or next day instead of "trashbagging" it for a week or more while I hunt down a replacement.

I more recently grabbed a trunk lid and some bumpers (front and rear) as my scrub 88 needs bumpers (front is bent in slightly at pass side and back is all scratched up) and the trunk lid was the later design that fits both coupes and convertibles so can be used on all Reatta irrespective of year or model. Now I need a hood because the one on my 'vert got dented bad enough I don't know if it is repairable. That is the main reason I'm grabbing this local parts car Sunday. Anything else I grab is just bonus parts.

So, it isn't necessarily sensible or convenient to store all this stuff but I have my reasons. As far as the price of parts cars, I think there is a floor on that even if scrap value is next to nothing. Anything under $300 is likely to make a seller balk even if they can't get diddly from a yard for it. Anyone who knows anything about the Reatta knows there is always at least $300 in parts content in a car that hasn't been severely vandalized or burned out. A used windshield gets $500+ almost without question. CRTs and IPCs $150 a piece. If the parts car has both working there is the $300 minimum offer right there. And $300 isn't that much if you need/want parts and have a way to transport and dismantle it.

KDirk

Edited November 20, 2015 by KDirk (see edit history)

[Larry Schramm]

I cleaned up around the house the other day and dropped off some rotors and batteries.  Got almost nothing/ gas money. 

 

AND the place was empty of other customers. Only one other person when a couple of years ago you had to wait in line to get weighed.

[Guest Rp1967]

Wow , now I feel lucky

Sold a 1996 skylark with a spun rod bearing , they picked it up yesterday and I got a whopping $25

I cut the cat off of it and threw it under the work bench

Maybe some day I will get a little out of it.

Edited November 21, 2015 by Rp1967 (see edit history)

[60FlatTop]

I cleaned up around the house the other day and dropped off some rotors and batteries.  Got almost nothing/ gas money. 

 

AND the place was empty of other customers. Only one other person when a couple of years ago you had to wait in line to get weighed.

 "I cleaned up around the house the other day and dropped off some rotors and batteries." I like that one. When I was in my early 20's I lived in an apartment and batteries went to $6.00 each for junk. Growing up, we had blue spruce trees all around the yard with skirts that reached the ground. So I went to my Mother's and got six or seven old batteries from under the pines to take in for scrap.

 

Well, I was quite skilled, impulsive, and had a few other bad habits. Being the good Irish Mother she watched and said nothing while she created a long involved story in her head. She was convinced that I had "fired" an employer and had no money; reduced to scavenging old batteries to pay my bills. I didn't didn't find out about it until she had spent a couple of months wringing her hands and worrying. Seems like she asked if I needed money. Boy, Mom's sure know their kids. I really didn't quit a job..... that time.

 

If my wife saw me cleaning up around the house she'd probably think I was heading for the Cayman Islands....... Some things never change.

Bernie

Edited November 21, 2015 by 60FlatTop (see edit history)

[Larry Schramm]

I have some pressure to clean out the attached garage at the house.  It is called Winter and I would get a lot of "Wife Points" if I can find her a place to park in the garage this winter.

 

Put her Camaro away for the winter on Thursday night to beat the snow coming down now.

 

 

6 inches and still coming down.

Edited November 21, 2015 by Larry Schramm (see edit history)

[JohnD1956]

Sorry about the snow, but Nice Yard  Larry!

[lrlforfun]

OK Buick People: I have a bunch of parts cars. I have a bunch of excellent builders. I have a small bunch of decent drivers. I have excellent storage area.  That said, I was going to dismantle a few cars, take the carcasses to the metal place, get a few bucks and get my numbers down by a few cars.

 

Things I'm dealing with, in no particular order......

 

1. Mama says , "NO MORE CARS".  Now that the cars (junkers) I like are hardly worth anything it would be easy and of course more fun than a barrel of monkeys to accumulate another 25 or so cars for heck-a-cheep.  I can't do it or I'll be sleepin' in the back seat of a 60 Le Sabre sedan  Happy wife, happy life? Yeah.....

 

2. If I were to bust up a few cars I would have no place to warehouse the parts. I have the land area but not the storage area. That is a similar story I've heard from many others. The cars are much tidier together lined up in neat rows and I know where most everything is. I've taken hundreds of pictures of everything and they are an easy reference when I need something. I also love looking at the pictures.

 

3. I suffer from the "can't cut loose syndrome". My particular strain is , I can't cut loose with the categories of cars I collect.  A B-60?  I'm not choppin' that one up unless it's a Barney (like Rubble) car.  A B-59?  I'm sendin' it down the road with no regrets no matter what model or what condition it is in.  A friend of mine has a similar strain of this disease. He's into Japanese motorcycles of the late 60-mid 70s.

 

4. To cut loose?  Now, even if I could......my stuff is worthless.   Mitch        

[Larry Schramm]

The snow is up to almost 9 inches and it is still snowing.

[60FlatTop]

"Can't Let Loose Syndrome" cure- tied in a chair with seasons 1 through 6:

 

https://www.popscreen.com/prod/MTU3ODMxMDM5/Hoarders-The-Complete-Season-One-DVD-2010-2Disc-Set

 

Bernie

[whtbaron]

Geez Larry, I'm north of the border and we've just got ground cover the last 2 days... where you at? My neighbors pick up scrap iron and this year they have just been stock piling because of the low prices. They were getting around $240/tonne 2 yrs ago, but it's down around $100/tonne now. I keep an eye on the heap and trade off any scrap I have around the yard for something I can use. Too bad they have a nasty habit of picking things up with a hi-hoe though...

[Larry Schramm]

Geez Larry, I'm north of the border and we've just got ground cover the last 2 days... where you at? My neighbors pick up scrap iron and this year they have just been stock piling because of the low prices. They were getting around $240/tonne 2 yrs ago, but it's down around $100/tonne now. I keep an eye on the heap and trade off any scrap I have around the yard for something I can use. Too bad they have a nasty habit of picking things up with a hi-hoe though...

 

Rochester Hills, Mi.. 1/2 way between Detroit & Flint and just east of Pontiac.

 

I think that I got about $3.00 for 300 # steel.

[60FlatTop]

For the handy members of the forum, metal suppliers in my area usually, and probably yours, open their doors on Saturday mornings and sell to walk-in customers. There are a lot of scraps and trimmings that sell at low prices that would normally go into the company's scrap bin. You should be able to get a nice selection of sheet gauges, angle iron, bar, channel, and box stock. If they get to know you it can be a very good source. If you go there and try to chisel and bargain the already low prices you will be labeled and probably pay higher prices..... if they let you come back.

Bernie

[Lapham3]

A couple of us were at a good yard today-they post scrap prices and 40/ton

[MrEarl]

A couple of us were at a good yard today-they post scrap prices and 40/ton

 

Tha's 2 cents a pound.... I don't think I recall it being that low, not since I've been hauling parts cars into my pasture anyway.

[g-g-g0]

Sold the remains of a '51 sedan earlier this week. Weight was 2080# and my payment was $20.80. Likely won't be parting any more cars any time soon!

[MrEarl]

Sold the remains of a '51 sedan earlier this week. Weight was 2080# and my payment was $20.80. Likely won't be parting any more cars any time soon!

Did you haul it there or they picked up?

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Tha's 2 cents a pound.... I don't think I recall it being that low, not since I've been hauling parts cars into my pasture anyway.

 

 If one has the space, BUYING now would be a good investment. Should beat bank interest all to heck.

 

  Ben

[g-g-g0]

Did you haul it there or they picked up?

I hauled it. No room to store it (shop is in town and they frown on visible junk cars) so it had to go. Salvaged everything worthwhile.

[KDirk]

Heh. The Reatta I'm parting out (nearly done now) will be going to the yard for scrap next week. I was at the scrapper today taking in lead, brass, copper, motors and aluminum plus some smaller steel (about 320 #). Asked about bringing the car in while cashing out. Quoted 1.5 cents a pound for the bldy shell.

When done stripping it it will have no engine or tranny, no interior, no hood or trunk lid, no glass whatsoever, no bumpers (these are aluminum), no exhaust, and probably both doors and engine cradle removed. Will also be removing most if not all body wiring harness for copper scrap if I decide not to keep it for other future projects. So, it will probably weigh less than 500 pounds in the condition it is hauled in. Almost not worth the effort at these prices. I will have some other scrap to go again with it but will probably walk out with under $30 next trip. So much for the nice supplemental income.

Of course, the crash in commodity metals pricing portends other bigger problems so the loss of added income from this sideline will be a non-issue compared to what this all means for the economy in general terms.

I will say scrap metal had a pretty good run from 2009 until recently. It funded the acquisition of some nice things for me so I won't belabor the point by complaining further about it.

KDirk

[Larry Schramm]

On the other side of the coin with the crash in scrap metal prices, hopefully the scrappers that have been stealing everything in sight have stopped stripping buildings of all metal of value.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Larry Schramm (see edit history)