How honest is your yard?

[Scrap man]

Has anyone ever tried saving the weights from weight benches and bringing a load of just them in to see if your yard is cheating you or not? I've always wanted to try this with the yards in my area, but I've never been able to accumulate the weights.

[Iamthatguy80]

no but i have a scale and have thrown barrels on it from time to time full of the heavy iron.. The yard is usually pretty close depending on how much gas i go through sittin at the yard with my coffee staring at the guy that just pulled in with a truck load of copper...

[Mechanic688]

At our yard their incentive is, the steel should go across the large scale at .10 lb or inside on the smaller scale at .02 lb. All alum. copper, brass, stainless, goes inside on the smaller scale.

[Scraplogic]

I just step on the scale every few visits. If I like the weight it shows me, I'm good. They're honest.

[easyrecycle]

I just step on the scale every few visits. If I like the weight it shows me, I'm good. They're honest.

+1 to that. But to get a good weight check weight your self on a good scale (not some bathroom scale that is 5years old) With what ever close an shoes you will be wearing. Dont eat or drink until you step up onto the scale. There are some shoes that can weight as much as 7 or more pounds. So you have to take all of that into account.

[scrappy187]

my yard is so honest he would lie in church and bribe jesus at the crossroads there is no way in the world a 90s c1500 ext cab long box 2wd weighs 7200lbs empty with a empty utility trailer that was empty. have you guys ever went to a yard that never cleans the scale off cause this yard around here has mud on it from last year

[Mechanic688]

As long as they recalibrate it with the mud it should still start out at zero. They would not do that here in Ind. for too long without a chain thru their gate. The state shuts the gate till they straighten it out. One guy years ago cut the state chain and opened his place back up for business and within the day the state marshals had him in cuffs and straight to jail.

[Hypoman]

I think my yard is really honest. They are always telling how to make more money with them. Their scales always seem right on. I don't think all yards in Indiana are honest though Mechanic. Logansport is the biggest rip-off this side of the Mississippi.

[wayne1956]

My main yard is pretty honest. I have a set of Detecto scales (same thing used in doctors office) and have weighed stuff several times. Each time our weights have agreed.

[dherik]

As long as they recalibrate it with the mud it should still start out at zero. They would not do that here in Ind. for too long without a chain thru their gate. The state shuts the gate till they straighten it out. One guy years ago cut the state chain and opened his place back up for business and within the day the state marshals had him in cuffs and straight to jail.

I deal with the Indiana State Weights and Measures guys with my full time job on a regular basis. Thy're very cut and dry and follow the regulations and laws to a T.

[newattitude]

I like the main yard I go to - the scale is inside and I can stand there and watch the weights of all my stuff no problem and I weigh my bags of copper first and so far they match. They are always helpful and tell me if I'm getting something sorted wrong or how to better clean something to make better $$

[TheFatMan]

As long as they recalibrate it with the mud it should still start out at zero. They would not do that here in Ind. for too long without a chain thru their gate. The state shuts the gate till they straighten it out. One guy years ago cut the state chain and opened his place back up for business and within the day the state marshals had him in cuffs and straight to jail.

LOL, you ever go south a bit and visit JB salvage? Their scale only weighs in on the 10th of the pound. No single pounds. Everything is 10-20-30 and so on per hundred.

[Mechanic688]

That would be ok for the trucks loaded down with steel, but smaller stuff,,, No thank you, I'll pass

[Ditchdigger]

Based on reading this thread, I just weighed a bucketful of stripped copper wire before taking it to the yard. I weighed it on my wife's little postal scale, and had to break it into three batches to weigh it, but I got a total of 16 lbs., 4 oz. The bucket itself weighed 1lb., 11 oz.

At the yard, the guy weighed the whole mess, bucket and all, and then never weighed the empty bucket.

I got paid for 14 lbs. of #1 copper.

They might get another chance, just to give them the benefit of the doubt, but I'm not real happy, and they're not the only place nearby.

[wayne1956]

LOL, you ever go south a bit and visit JB salvage? Their scale only weighs in on the 10th of the pound. No single pounds. Everything is 10-20-30 and so on per hundred.

All of the scales I have been to the weights are rounded. I asked at one place where I have tested the weights and theirs matched with mine for non-ferrous, and he said the large drive on scale rounds it up to the next 20 lbs number. Example, I have 1806 lbs, it records it as 1820.

[Saroro]

Based on reading this thread, I just weighed a bucketful of stripped copper wire before taking it to the yard. I weighed it on my wife's little postal scale, and had to break it into three batches to weigh it, but I got a total of 16 lbs., 4 oz. The bucket itself weighed 1lb., 11 oz.

At the yard, the guy weighed the whole mess, bucket and all, and then never weighed the empty bucket.

I got paid for 14 lbs. of #1 copper.

They might get another chance, just to give them the benefit of the doubt, but I'm not real happy, and they're not the only place nearby.

You had 17lbs 15oz. Most scales I hear of round down, so you have 17lbs on their scale. (almost had it at 18, but not quite) Then the yards usually take 2lbs off for buckets instead of weighing empty, so you would of had 15lbs accounted for. Sounds like your yard takes an extra lb off for the bucket. You might want to talk to you yard super or manager about that. Have them weigh the bucket and mark it if they need to.

[Ditchdigger]

Most scales I hear of round down, so you have 17lbs on their scale. (almost had it at 18, but not quite)

So they beat me out of 3 bucks, right out of the gate.

Then the yards usually take 2lbs off for buckets instead of weighing empty, so you would of had 15lbs accounted for. Sounds like your yard takes an extra lb off for the bucket.

It was a kitty litter bucket, not a five gallon drywall bucket. No way in hell it weighs 3 lbs.

Have them weigh the bucket and mark it if they need to.

I'll dump it in a pile on the scale and remove the bucket from the equation altogether.

Of course, if the scale only rounds down, then they'd mark it as one pound, and I'd have made back 11 of the 15 ounces the scale beat me out of to begin with. That I could tolerate. And that's probably why they don't bother to weigh the empty buckets.

As it was, I got beat out of $7.20 on my copper today.

[Mechanic688]

Weigh your empty bucket and write the weight on the sides with a magic marker, that way the scaleman can see it and "might" adjust accordingly. All the gaylords and wheelbarrows at my yard have the weights written on them real large so there is no doubt. Like if they bring a barrow out to my car for a load of batteries, they slide the empty barrow on the scale to double check every time, while I'm watching.

[Saroro]

Mayeb we could ask them to "trust us" on our pail weights since we have to "trust them" on the weight of our loads. lol

[Dumpster-Dee]

I never considered that my buckets might weigh a lot different....maybe we should go to bags like some other scrappers have suggested....use our buckets to separate at home then pour into bags. I might try that next time.