Thursday, October 30, 2008

Extruded Aluminum pays the most

When I first started scraping aluminum, I quickly learned there are several forms aluminum can come in and the scrap yards pay very different rates for different forms of aluminum.

Just a few of the forms aluminum can come in are:
  • Cast Aluminum

  • Ingot Aluminum

  • Forged Aluminum

  • Extruded Aluminum


  • For example the decks of Lawn Boy lawnmowers (the ones that have the funny front wheel set back a bit, they're green) they are made of cast aluminum. So are Toro lawnmowers, cast aluminum.

    Cast aluminum is brittle, it'll break if you hit it with a hammer.

    Ingot Aluminum, well unless you're a Commercial Forgery that builds Aluminum engine blocks, you're not likely to see much Ingot Aluminum in a dumpster.

    What scrap yards pay the most for is Extruded Aluminum



    Dumpster in Frederick MD

    Extrusion is a process used in manufacturing to fabricate parts of uniform cross-sections by squeezing the material through a high-pressure outlet. A die is used to give the desired shape to the extruded metal. While many metals are used for extrusion, aluminum is most widely used for the advantages it offers. Aluminum extrusions form 50% of the total extruded products market


    From http://www.zycon.com/Design-Info/Aluminum-Extrusions/Aluminum-Extrusions.asp

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