For all practical intents and purposes ... right at this moment ... i would tend to agree with you guys. The magnets and their backer plates are exotic alloys that most yards simply aren't set up to deal with. If there's no market ... there's no value there. Don't waste your time with it. Chuck it in the shred pile and move on.
On the other hand ....
We might be overlooking a potential opportunity because it's a thing that we don't ordinarily deal with.
Quote:
The price of neodymium has fluctuated on world markets largely because of changes in Chinese production. In mid-2011, it sold for about $500 per kilogram; but, by the end of that year, the price had fallen to less than $350 per kilogram, or 35 cents per gram ($9.92 per ounce). Pricing has continued to slide, fetching less than 4 cents per gram ($1.13 per ounce) as of late November 2017.
Source: https://www.recyclingtoday.com/artic...als-recycling/
It's just my thing, but i'm more concerned from a national security standpoint. The profit potential in time of war is strictly secondary. The way i figure it ... if every scrapper's shop had a few pounds of rare earths ... it might make a positive difference with powering up our military industrial complex in time of crisis. Call it strategic stockpiling ?
Anyway ... they don't take up much space. The magnets are glued on to the alloy backer plates. They pop right off with a little bit of heat from a heat gun. Apply a little extra heat and the magnets lose their magnetism. They're less of a hassle to store that way. The backer plates are some kind of nickel alloy ? There might be potential value there if a market opens up as well.
Just something to keep in the back of your mind. If you're ahead of the curve ... you're sitting pretty IF the time comes.
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