I guess you could do the math on it, firts find out the going price for cast iron in your area, then figure out how much gas is going to cost you and how much money you want per hour for your labor... take a stab at how much weight in cast iron you have and there you go .. the numbers will tell you if it a good idea or not.

turbo12, I am assuming these are the truck raditors you mentioned in your other post. Are they copper or aluminum? Either way with the price of metals at all time highs these days, it could be a very lucrative deal even with the haul time.
you can check metals prices at American Metal Market AMM.com - The World Metals Information Network

*edit*Sorry you have to have an account; copper raditors n the Atlanta market are going for $1.30-1.40/lb

I will try to answer your post with the following assumptions. (1) Using the term “mutilation” I assume you are looking at a governmental bid or liquidation and (2) your asking for radiator pricing so you have none / little business or working relationship with your local scrap processor.

In this scenario there are two grades of radiators you need to research or look at. (Or if they are in fact cast iron see Demopro’s response).

(1) Clean Radiators – free from iron, brass, foreign attachments, etc
(2) Dirty Radiators – “Ditto” dirty

I’m not sure what part of the country you are in but for “general reference purposes only” the current spot prices for the following grades are:

(1) Clean Radiators .82 cents per pound delivered less than 40,000 pounds
(2) Dirty Radiators .57 cents per pound delivered less than 40,000 pounds

If you look at bidding these items and the client lets you “mutilate” (i.e. smash them, etc) on site you may want to bid the dirty grade less your costs or bid clean less your costs to upgrade. The upgrade methodologies consist of either mechanical or torching operations. Beware in bidding as the market changes very quickly so the processing and bid time is critical. If you have any questions and/or need further clarifications let me know. Good luck and keep us posted.

TKC

TKC Corp,
thanks alot for your input. I get the impression that you have been around the industry for quite some time. It's good to get feed back from people that have been around and know the ins and outs. I myself have been dealing with scrap metal for just a few years. This summer 2 buddies and I took on our first large scale project. We had to rip a steel drying floor out of an old seed corn warehouse. The building was 60X300 feet. it had the outer skeleton of the building along with one tall wall running down the middle. Our process was to cut along the middle wall and then pull the metal down with an excavator or chain. This was for a large farm operation. The only thing we ended up paying for was diesel fuel to truck the 10 semi loads to the scrap yard. We still have another 6 loads to go but it must wait until this spring. I'm not trying to beep my own horn but I have taken pride in this project beings that my buddies and I are 18 years old. Beings that you know some information about me, I greatly appreciate any information that you are willing to give me.

Turbo12

A little information about us……

We started scrap, salvage, and demolition operations in the mid-70’s. Our group performs project development, project management and estimating/engineering services for the oil/gas, petrochemical, and offshore/marine industries specifically. Being involved in the “bidding and contracting” process for many years we now focus our project development activities on negotiated and/or preferred bid projects only.

Our group fully supports this forum as it allows the free exchange of ideas and methodologies from senior members, as you can tell from the answers to your posts, and rest assured that the senior members have learned “what not to do” in this industry”. Again, good luck with your projects and keep us posted…

TKC

turbo12
It's great to hear of a go getter like you and your friends. Keep up the good work, stay safe and don't hesitate to ask for ideas or help from us here.

I have another question. My buddies and I may be able to get a bunch of metal from some people whose father has died. The place is a mess, but is a glorified mess beings there is scrap metal everywhere. We asked the relatives of this person if they would like to have the place cleaned up. They mostly agree with the idea but want a certain portion of the profits. What percentage should they recieve? What are your thoughts? thanks..

Turbo12

Here are a few of my thoughts…..They mostly agree? They should whole heartily agree and here are a few reasons why.

1. The “added value” and increase to the property and land.
2. “Goodwill” value to the local neighborhood area
3. Potential insurance reductions
4. The elimination of hazards such as snakes, rodents, insects, etc...(This could be a potential or become a city or county issue)
5. May be eligible for “clean up” tax credits on costs

With some research and planning on your part regarding the above issues you would then be prepared to negotiate and plan your project. Some of the projects planning that you may want to explore or think about are:

1. How many estimated tons and what type of material
2. What are your risks and hazards (i.e. snakes, rodents, insects, etc?)
3. What are your potential upgrades both FE and NFE
4. Your estimated costs, schedule, and equipment needed
5. Market fluctuation risks
6. Hydrocarbon disposal and/or environmental issues (i.e. oils, antifreeze, Freon, etc)

In summary if they still insist on a % of your revenue make sure that you keep very accurate costs records and do not forget to deduct your taxes on income received from your costing. Armed with your project plan, and during the negotiations you may want keep in mind that would it not be fair that they give you back a % of the increase of the property value number just to be fair?

Have fun and keep us posted…I had a lot of fun thinking about this during my lunch break…This is what we usually get paid for …and just out of curiosity what state are you located in?

TKC

thanks for the info.. I'm out on the prairie in minnesota west of the twin cities.