Category Archives: Platinum

I have removed the platinum from catalytic converters. What is the value by weight? – From Rob in Pleasant Hill, Oregon

Hi Rob,

We do buy the pellets and honey combs from catalytic converter units that have been “de-canned.” It sounds like your materials are already “de-canned.” Some other information from you would help us give a more accurate estimate for your material such as how many pounds do you have? Do you have loose pellets or honeycomb? Are the catalytic converters from non-diesel engines or diesel engines?

For shipments less than 100 lbs., we go by this payment schedule:

Non-Diesel Engines

For loose pellets from non-diesel engines we pay $3.00 per pound.
For honeycomb material from non-diesel engines we pay $8.00 per pound.

Diesel Engines

For loose pellets from diesel engines we pay $3.00 per pound.
For honeycomb material from diesel engines we pay $3.00 per pound.

If you have greater than 100 lbs. of “de-canned” catalytic converter material, please contact us for a custom estimate. Hope this information helps!

I’m just a humble jewelry designer from NY who is trying to get used to all this stuff! From Natalie in New York, Arkansas

Hi Natalie,

Don’t worry if you don’t pickup on everything right away. It takes sometime to get to know the precious metal industry. Here are some helpful tips that I’ve put together for you and other jewelry designers out there that may have some scrap precious metal to refine.

It’s great that you are learning and researching about this now so you have all the tools at hand. We work with jewelry designers, jewelry sellers and gold party representatives from all over, let us know if you have any questions about precious metal!

Keep in mind that precious metals include: gold, silver, platinum, palladium and rhodium.

Pay attention to where you scrap is going.

From small gold chain links to shavings of silver, try to account for it all. For larger pieces of gold, silver or platinum that you cannot use in creating or fixing jewelry its best to keep them as separated as you can. We recommend working on smooth, dark surfaces so you can see scrap easier.

Don’t throw anything out, it could be precious!

Even your facility that you resize, shape and design jewelry in can contain valuable precious metal scrap. Areas where precious metal can be accumulating include sink traps, floor mats, carpets, rags, floor sweeps and vacuum bags. Think about this when you’re cleaning your facilities. If you regularly clip, size and shape precious metal chances are small pieces of it have gotten away from you. As precious metal refiners we can extract even the smallest amounts of precious metal from these items.

Keep your stones and gems.

As precious metal refiners, we only return payments for metal materials, not stones and gems. To reclaim the value on these items, make sure you remove them before sending them to any metal refinery.

I have thermocouple wire to sell/refine. Total weight is about 2000 grams. Half is pure platinum, the other half is 87% platinum, 13% Rhodium. Do you buy from the general public. Also, do you pay for the rhodium content or only the platinum? – Steven from Virginia

Hi Steven,

We are a precious metal refiner that does buy from the public. We will pay you for 70% of the fine platinum content by weight. We do pay on rhodium, but the rhodium amount you described is too small to offer a payment. You can find more information about our platinum recovery services on our website.

Is there any way to tell if my platinum ring is pure platinum? — Beth in Stillwater, OK

The two most common purities of platinum used in jewelry are:

Plat – 950 Plat is considered nearly pure platinum and usually contains 95% platinum and 5% iridium.  It is quite expensive and typically the highest grade of platinum available for jewelry making.

IridPlat – This platinum is 90% pure platinum with 10% other metals mixed in…typically iridium. These rings can be marked with a hallmark of “.90 Plat” as well and therefore have a slightly lower melt value than their purer platinum counterparts.

Obviously pure platinum will yield higher returns, however at around $1,322.00/troy ounce, platinum alloyed with other materials can return a surprisingly high melt value.