SMF Breakdown Contest: Transformers

I’ve wanted a horizontal band saw for about 6 months now and I finally got one. It was on sale and after using a 25% off coupon I was able to purchase the saw and a spare blade for $214.65. The saw will be used to process transformers I get out of battery backups, rectifiers, telephone systems, power supplies and power conditioners. These transformers are not the kind that has the ends welded on. I wish they were but I’ve already processed all of those. The yards around here pay only 10 cents a pound for transformers so I’ve been saving them for when I got a band saw. I’ve tried using reciprocating saws, angle grinders and cut off wheels but I wanted a better, easier way. With this saw I can place the transformer in the saws vise, adjust the feed rate and let the saw do the work. My goal is to show the break down process, number of hours spent and after a trip to the yard, how much I made.

This is my new saw. I brought it inside the other day to assemble because it was too cold in the garage.

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When I first started scrapping I was getting 25 and 30 cents a pound for transformers, which was great but when the price dropped to 10 cents I started saving them. I get a lot of transformers and because they are starting to pile up, I felt I could justify the cost of a saw. I have enough to pay for the saw and still have a lot left over for future processing. This is a small sample of transformers I’ll be processing. The small ones are about 1 pound and the big ones are 25 pounds each. I will be focusing more on the 25 pound ones first. They have about 5 pounds of #2 copper in each one.

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I’m taking a little extra time to remove any mounting brackets. On the 25 pound transformers there are also 2 laminated metal spacers separating the two copper coils. A hammer and chisel easily removes them. The transformer is now ready to cut.

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Transformer mounted in saw. It took about 5 minutes to cut the side off.

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Here is the completed cut. I’m trying to keep the blade from riding against the steel. Some of the cuts look a little off but that’s due to the blobs of varnish on the transformers. The stuff is like cement.

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After the cut is complete the copper is separated from the steel with a few taps from a hammer. I talked to the owner of the yard where I sell my copper and he told me I needed to remove the outer layer of tape and paper from the coils. The pic below shows the coils after the tape and paper was removed. Always check with your yard before you carry anything down to sell. They may require additional processing.

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The buckets of copper are ready to go to the yard. It took about 8 hours and I have around 90 to 100 pounds of #2 copper and 375 pounds of metal. I could do the same amount in less time since I’m more familiar with the saw and know how to adjust the feed. I still have a lot of transformers left but will process them at a later date. I plan on going to the yard tomorrow and will post the results when I get home. With current prices I'm hoping to get around $245 for the copper and the steel.

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Just got back from the yard and ended up with 98 pounds of #2 at $2.40 a pound. I'm going to wait until I have a full load before I sell my metal but I'm happy with what I got for the copper.

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