catalytic converter with pic

So i was reading through previous post about catalytic converter, palladium in it and stuff and the more understanding I have, the more question popping up in my head so im hoping someone experience with this could help out. I read through alot of the previous post but many are asking the pricing for a particular catalytic converter and stuff. Gustavus posted some good post regarding this sometimes back but the picture is removed so I couldnt make any reference to some of his advice. I've uploaded some pics below.


Is all these catalytic converter? (I numbered it at the side so maybe you guys can much easier explain which is and is not)

What are the "biscuit" thing u guys are referring to? Is it in the "pipe with hole"? Where is the palladium or other pm?

I see you guys talking about shaking to hear if the beads are inside and stuff. Where are the beads suppose to be found or seen?

Can anyone refer me to somewhere that have some brief description and process of de-canning the catalytic converter? And what are the ways you guys do to get the platinum out?

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/...ps0308171a.jpg

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/...psec888d0c.jpg

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/...psa6d4a9c5.jpg

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/...ps7ba2a960.jpg

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/...psc54724a6.jpg

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/...psc1c7b892.jpg

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/...pse4420841.jpg


I probably could have sold it to some buyer in the original form and get some pretty nice profit and now that its being cut up, it might not be worth anything more than scrap iron price but i just wanna really see for myself what does it look like inside, and for anyone else who is curious what does one actually look like inside.

Any help is appreciated! thanks!

Those lool like resonators to me or possibly the bead type of converters. Those are not the honeycomb or foil types.

Those are all mufflers/resonators, none of them is a catalytic converter.

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Originally Posted by zito

Those are all mufflers/resonators, none of them is a catalytic converter.

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thats what i thought as well, hope you didnt pay for those

Oh... they look the same to me... Thanks for clarifying! I think I need much more time to learn to identify it.... Moderator can remove all these since its not related....

Haha... I paid scrap iron prices for these so im fine... Just some time wasted on cutting it up... haha...

Thanks guys anyway!

also its easy to tell the difference externally between a resonator and a cat because a cat will usually have heat shielding on it

cat is usually also alot closer to engine

your behind in your home work. Unless you plan to process and remove the PMz your self never remove the beads or honey comb from the cat.

And many, if not all, late model cars and pickups have a a pre cat, which is usually worth less, and a regular cat. And on chevy pickup with true dual exhaust will have two cats on each pipe so a total of 4 cats. Just a lil FYI, I'm sure most people know but I'm gona throw that out there anyhow.

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Originally Posted by olddude

your behind in your home work. Unless you plan to process and remove the PMz your self never remove the beads or honey comb from the cat.

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I disagree. By extracting the honeycomb / foil / pellets it reduces the shipping weight and i get paid much more total and per pound. Complete cats i get about $6 pound, ceramic honeycomb bricks i am getting $30 pound.

I sold this one out:
Scrap Catalytic Converters Platinum Palladium Rhodium Honeycomb 10 Pound Lot | eBay

Lets look at the shipping costs alone, $15 for 10 pounds of bricks vs $60 for 8 converters. That $45 covers my labor and tool costs of processing them. Now i have a pile of clean bricks in front of me that sell in the $20-$30 pound range. After shipping and fees i am still clearing $25 pound.

Thing is, you can only sell so many batches of those decanned cats on eBay. This is a case where supply exceeds demand for a lot of people, I believe. So for selling the excess you can't ebay, olddude is correct.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by zito

Thing is, you can only sell so many batches of those decanned cats on eBay. This is a case where supply exceeds demand for a lot of people, I believe. So for selling the excess you can't ebay, olddude is correct.

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I am selling it faster than i can produce it. So i have to disagree, as a small operation it works perfectly. If i was doing a hundred cars a year instead of 10-20 then yes i would run into that issue.

Processing them isnt for everyone, thats for sure. Another thing that you can do that im not seeing hardly anyone do is cut the ends off flush with the brick or about 1/2" out from it, that will cut the shipping costs by 30%. Use a tape measure to transfer the cutline and use a chop saw or angle grinder. I prefer the chop saw as it makes quick work of them.

every one is not an ebay guru.

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Originally Posted by olddude

every one is not an ebay guru.

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well i am certainly not one, i have the bad feedback to prove it =)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ChrisSG

Oh... they look the same to me... Thanks for clarifying! I think I need much more time to learn to identify it.... Moderator can remove all these since its not related....

Haha... I paid scrap iron prices for these so im fine... Just some time wasted on cutting it up... haha...

Thanks guys anyway!

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You might want to look over one of the cat buyers pages and look at all the different pic's of them, that way you can tell them apart.
They carry a bunch of pic's. Not promoting the site.

Photos - ConverterGuys.com – Core Buyers – Scrap Catalytic Converter Recyclers

You ever dealt with them guys, their cat prices seem too good to be true

Many thanks to all you guys for all the input and knowledge!! I never wanted to process them or anything (at least for now). I know there's tons of information online but there's a problem within me to want to try doing it myself to make sure I know it well enough.

But still, really appreciate all the constructive inputs I received from all of you here!