sealed units?

If you stand the compressor upright for a day the oil will all drain to the bottom. Cut it open as mentioned above (I use a cutting torch) and remove the four bolts.
Pull the motor core out and set it in a vise. I have seen the vid were the guy is using a cutoff wheel to cut one end of the windings off, but I use a sawzall with a 24 tooth per inch metal blade. Then I turn the core over and pry up the wire, being that it was in oil all it's life, the windings are the easiest of all the motors I do!

Here in my area they give about $3.00 for "large" compressors.
If I get , say < /> #4.00 of #2 copper @ 3.45 and #60 of steel @ $0.10
So now I took $3.00 worth of scrap and in 15 minutes made it worth $19.80 . Some will have almost 5 pounds of copper.

Again I use a torch to cut them open! The grinder with a cutoff will do the job, but the torch cuts them like butter!
I wait till I have a few before I even bother.

This is were the yards make there easy money! Motors paid @ $.20 a pound and compressors @$3.00 each in the front and cleaned in the back all day long!



This is how I make a buck plus I cut up the coils unlike what I see at the yard! These guys are selling them as "ACRs" @ $1.50 a pound. Most of the weight is copper. One word! " BANDSAW!"

Good luck and be careful;
Joe

Originally Posted by injunjoe

but I use a sawzall with a 24 tooth per inch metal blade. Then I turn the core over and pry up the wire, being that it was in oil all it's life, the windings are the easiest of all the motors I do!

I recently tried this & the blade would grab/break the individual wires & send them flying everywhere, making a mess. It was my first compressor teardown. I still havnt finished cutting off the copper winding ring from the motor. I am looking for a better, less messier way. Picking up strands of wire from the floor is not my idea of fun. I wanna cut that ring off whole and then pull out the rest.