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PostPosted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:40 pm 

Joined: Wed Oct 21, 2020 8:15 am
Posts: 4
I will start out saying that if this topic/help is already out there you can just point me to it.
I am new to this and trying to learn. I have started scrapping a few hard drives (with more to come, hopefully) some for the scrap aluminum for a home furnace melting project with my son. After that plan to scrap sell everything else. I have got the big parts down but I am wondering if the little pieces are worth the time to separate them out. See the picture with arrows drawn. Is the "gold" film a sellable item on this site? Are the gold tabs trimmable and sellable here as well.

Thanks in advance for any help, tips, or tricks of the trade.

Michael from Hendersonville TN


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2020 12:35 am 

Joined: Mon Apr 14, 2014 12:41 pm
Posts: 558
Hi,

Lostinlodos, the moderator here can give you more in depth on parts to look for.

Here are my two cents on this one. In the first two pictures, if you trim all the wire/fiber I highlighted in red, those contacts may go for gold fingers. Third picture, that’s an IC chips. Remove all wire around and below. Fourth pic has some gold plating but that’s very small. The tip of the reader has a component rich in rhodium so you can save the over time and find a buyer for it. Rhodium is as expensive as gold. I’m not sure if the insulated wires in the reader go for something better that regular wire. The motor you can sell locally to a recycler. The black plastic contact you sell a gold contact here depending of your cost of shipping from Tennessee.


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2020 8:55 am 

Joined: Wed Oct 21, 2020 8:15 am
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Thank you for the help.


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2020 2:48 pm 
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Joined: Tue Feb 03, 2015 6:57 pm
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Spot on.

As for rhodium, my most favourite metal, it’s tuff. Rhodium is currently many times the value of gold per ounce. What’s in hard drive heads is as close to pure as you can ask for.
But, and a big butt,
If you typed a letter at 12pt font the rhodium piece would fit inside a period. It’s a pain to remove, (it’s an a thin shell), easy to loose, weighs nothing.

That all said as of yesterday 5PM EDT rhodium was at $14,000! Pet Troy ounce!
± A few hundred dollars in transaction variance.

I won’t tell you it’s worth it. It takes tens of dozens of drives to make a diamond scale register a weight.
But at that price: ...?
Rhodium isn’t an over the counter metal. All but the highest end jewellery shops will look at you funny. Coin shops and pawn shops have zero interest.
But if you find a buyer and have enough!
Or if you are in or near a big city, you can try to get an investment banker to do an assaying.

For the gold hunters who thought I was crazy a few years back. Gold was $900ish and rhodium was $2000 when I posted the hard drive breakdown. Who’s laughing now?!?
Just remember you need hundreds of hard drives before someone will take you seriously.

The rest is quite forward. Contacts are gold finger. Motors are motors; you may get auto or commercial motor price locally, a bit higher price.
Wire is wire. ICs are IC. The ribbon cable, free of plastic back pieces and ICs is mixed wire.
If you break the motor open you get copper, steel, some tin, and a kool cobalt circle magnet.
Cobalt is expensive in its own right. Around $1-$3 per pound if you find a yard that buys it. And you’ll need to remove it from the disc without shattering it. Good luck.

Ps: don’t vacuum up cobalt. I blew up my vacuum motor doing so. As in literal fire and brimstone. Clean broken cobalt magnets with a small piece of steel. Place the steel and shards in a freezer bag. Seal and place in recycling bin.

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PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2020 2:51 pm 
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Prices


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2020 3:32 pm 

Joined: Wed Oct 21, 2020 8:15 am
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Thanks Lostinlodos.

I doubt I will ever have access to 100s of hard drives.. :(

So that said if you Lostinlodos want the tips from the drives I have disassembled so far... I will clip the "big" tip whole and mail it to you and you can take out the Rhodium, yours for free. So I don't want to put my personal email on here but if you can contact me directly maybe we can work something out.


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2020 6:29 pm 
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I am greatly appreciative and humbled by the offer.
However it’s likely more trouble than it is worth.
My refinery is permanently closed. And my higher end yard pays a premium if I cut heads but not enough to make me go further.
They’re a cash business for non-companies and I’ve been turned away more than not because even a quarter ounce would wipe out their cash reserve.

They actually told me not to remove the tips because they’re too hard to keep track of!

Do try playing with a motor though. The absolute joy of FINALLY getting a ring that doesn’t break is epic. Cobalt is nearly as magnetically strong as neodymium. But without the bond strength.
The intrigue is in that fact. How much weight can you drag before the magnetic breaks. But it won’t let go of its own accord.
Just use care for when it does break. I’ve taken to wrapping it in a single layer or two of plastic food wrap.

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PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2020 10:17 pm 

Joined: Wed Oct 21, 2020 8:15 am
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All right well if you change your mind the offer still stands.

Any tips on how to get those cobalt rings off without breaking them.? I broke three today trying to do it they are in the shred pile now


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PostPosted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 4:42 am 
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I will never say no to free and if you truly want to send it free and no strings
My contact list is available on site [flash=HERE[/flash]]HERE

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PostPosted: Mon Oct 26, 2020 3:51 am 

Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2019 7:36 pm
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hey Lost can you take a pic of what we should keep for the Rhodium? the little black cube at the end of the triangle or should we keep the whole tip metal triangle and black cube together? i have about 200-300 hard drive arms i have been striping down


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