CPU gold prices

[Chook]

I wish I could get those prices in Australia! I sold around 300kg of motherboards and expansion cards and got just over $100 for the lot.

[Barren Realms 007]

[Glory_Cloud]

Man Chook, someone was smoking a cigarette after your drove
off saying, "was it good for you"?

That's a lot of dollars left on the table. Like about $2,000.00!

Sorry!

[Barren Realms 007]

Chook did you at least get a kiss?

[Barren Realms 007]

15 cents a pound, I will buy them for that and even pay the shipping.

[Chook]

Unfortunately, the gold refining business in Australia is almost non existant. The best I could get was about $280 per ton.

I did cut all the contact edges from the expansion cards and sell that seperately.

[Barren Realms 007]

Perhaps you might be looking at a buisness opportunity in the making. We might should consider working together.

[Neon_WA]

the big issue here is the cost of postage out of Australia and the limits Oz Post puts on package weights.

One reason i rarely put up any of the 2000+ spare CPUs i have for sale.. even for gold recovery.

This was an interesting burb on a eBay gold recovery sale

"You are bidding on 10 Pentium Pro gold plated ceramic CPUs for use in gold recovery. This appears to be an anti-static packet containing ten gold plated Pentium Pro chips and so they are probably not blown and also may still be usuable or of interest to collectors. However, of interest to those involved in gold recovery: I had one of these Pentium Pro chips analyzed at a government lab and learned that each one contains approximately 1 gram of 21 kt plated gold which if recovered as is and left unrefined at today's gold prices is currently worth about $39 gram. The legs are copper and gold plated with 21 kt. The outer lid casings are also plated with 21 kt as is the internal processor compartment and bonding pads although the internal bonding wires, I learned from an atomic mass spectrometer analysis I had done on the wiring, are actually aluminum and so one needs to consider that if using aqua regia to refine these since aluminium and copper dissolved in your AR solution, if not dropped out first, will make it harder to recover your refined gold. The internal silicon chip itself contains gold but needs to be pulverized to dust to recover it and it is hardly worth it since 95% of the gold is in the plating.

However, since the full refining process is both dangerous and toxic outside a fully equiped lab, I found that the best method to pursue is simple gold recovery via reverse electrolysis in a bath of either sulphuric acid or citric acid mixed with a glycerine electrolyte. When current is run, the gold will delaminate and drop to the bottom of the container and resemble a black or brown mud. It is then easily washed, de acidified with bicarbonate solution, recovered, dried, mixed with boric acid flux and then wrapped in a toilet paper squib soaked in alcohol before being melted back into yellow metal form. This is accomplished with a 2000 degree oxy-acetelyne torch and a crucible to produce the 21 kt gold pellets. After a quantity of these pellets are accumulated they may be then melted together to cast a larger ingot. There are also some specialty fluxes available which will remove more copper impurities from your gold and possibly bump it up to 22 or 23 kt. My advice however: stick to gold recovery and unless you are a dedicated chemist with a lab, leave the refining to the pros since otherwise the dangers to your health are very real.

There is money in this but to do it correctly one needs to invest in some equipment first: oxy-torch, gas bottles, crucibles, goggles, chemical gloves, a reverse electrolysis/electroplating machine, a fume hood and some chemicals, etc..and you will be out $1500 before you even get started. Don't fall for those offering easy answers and get rich quick schemes and do your home work first. Novices: Stay away from toxic AR and cyanide extraction processes completly, if possible. Use a well ventilated garage with fans and windows and do not do this work inside your house.

Gold recovery is tedious work though and every cent realized from it is hard earned. Without the equipment and knowledge of how to do this however, the cpus are useless and should not be considered as either cash or good as gold. On the economic side and to make this work profitable and worth the while one should not pay more than 50 % of the current spot price gram weight for 21 kt gold per each of these chips otherwise you will soon start to loose both money and interest. Unless you are willing to accept a lower profit margin and depending on the price of gold, $18-$20 each for these chips is a fair."

[Barren Realms 007]

Out of respect I don't want to start an argument. But I wouldn't listen to a thing that is said on Fleabay about gold processing. The people that buy on fleabay generally pay more than what you can get the chips for. The yield data you have on the pentium pro is a little off as far as what is available from the outside plating on the chip. And electrolysis is not the way to go with one especially if you are doing them in quantity. Even if you are doing a yield data on one it is not the way to go. I will not get into how to do this eletricaly but some of what you posted is correct and some is not.

Now let me add that using chemicals to process this material with can be very dangerous if you do not follow the safety precautions involved. And I will not discuss how this is done because
I don't want someone trying this and not knowing what they are doing and getting them selve hurt. As far as AR being used to process the chips that is the last thing you want to start off with to process the chips. I use a process similar to that to process the material I run. But let me add here that I have worked with these chemical for over 20 years so I know what to do and what not to do with them and what reaction's can be expected.

As far as shipping here to the US from Australia, I think it can be cost effective for chips. Possibly not for boards unless done in sufficent quantity to make it worth while. And I am talking container load. If have doubt's about this send Kosmo a PM and ask him if it is worth it.

There are 2 other members on this forum that know these processes very well. Cutabove and Glory Cloud and there are 3-4 others that are on the same forum. But as far as quantity I would say I process more material than anyone here on the forum. And Cut above has been doing it longer than any one here as far as I know.

If you want to know about the process's you can PM me and I will go into further detail but I will not give all of the steps because the competition is not needed or wanted. I have already discussed this with certain members here that with the price of gold and other PM's going up that once the prices get to a certain point and you see me start buying chips here they are chips that will be dissapearing from the scene.

As far as the chips you have, perhaps you should ask me in a PM about what you have and what might be offered for your material. I can buy any quantity from any where in the world and have it shipped here one way or another. So are you throwing away cash?

Now Cut aove and Glory Cloud will back every word tht I have just spoken. We are all friends, but buisness is buisness.

Thank you.

[Neon_WA]

I have no idea if any of the info was correct or not

I posted it.. because it was a shift from the normal make money fast burb on some gold recovery lots.

Was wondering if this guy was trying reverse physiology on his buyers

[Cutabove]

Most of you know I was one of the first refiners on this forum.I contacted john when I recieved that haul from the navy a couple of years ago and did not want to see valuable,collectable,and potentially reusable chips,being scrapped.And of course the amount that the chips are sold for on this forum,usually well exceeds that of the precious metal content.
I have read both Neon and Barrens post,and I will have to agree with everything barren has said.The guy that wrote that stuff on that auction was out of his mind.I have spectrophotometry printouts from many chips and one of them is a PPro,and unfortunately there is less than half the amount that you said was in there.If the chip were completly pulverized to 60+ mesh,to expose the hidden gold wires within the ceramic,you would be able to extract less than 1/2 of a gram.
I also feel barren was being reserved in his response.The idea of anyone new working with chemicals is something I HIGHLY discourage.And yes some of it does have to do with me not wanting added competition.But it is mostly because this is a life I would not wish for anyone.It is difficult at best,and dangerous does not begin to describe it.Mix pure sodium with water one time,and you will not live long enough to make another post on this forum.Let the ph of a cyanide leach fall below 5 and you'll be gone within seconds,and anyone within smelling distance will follow suit.Accidently leave the cap off of some hydroflouric acid in the corner of your shop and your bones and cartilage will dissolve.If you have any doubts about what I say,then look this stuff up.I have a very expensive shop with very expensive safety equipment.I have rediculous discipline when donning my gear and dealing with the chemicals.Barren has hoe'd a hard road to get to where he is today and he has paid a steep price a few times for it.He knows,more than most,the trials and dangers associated with this line of work.
Unless you have a refinery like ours all ready to go,it is not feasible to start buying escrap for the gold.The market is flooded with every tom,dick,and harry thinking they are going to make it rich in this market.But let me warn you,I have literally tons and tons and tons of equipment given to me for free every year.Probably enough to fill 3-4 tractor trailers.If it were not for that,I would not be doing this.The cost to purchase and the price to sell,is too close.There is a hairline margin for profit in this field,unless you can get it for free.And I promise you,every company you can think of calling to try to get their excess equipment for free........there have already been 50 guys that beat you to the punch.
I have always said,If I were ever unfortunate enough to have a serious accident,hopefully I will be lucky enough to only kill myself.
Stick with what you know.If you want to try a dangerous profession,then take up bomb disarming and disposal...............it is much safer.

[Neon_WA]

should i have posted a disclaimer about the post.. "that the views & opinions listed below do not necessarily correspond or reflect the views of Neon_WA"

my own personally opinion about gold refining (for newbie wannabees) is that it would be safer for them to start a meth lab

[Barren Realms 007]

[Neon_WA]

nup.. not a nice thing

and I can say that from experience.. when i was 18 i was caught in an explosion in a petrochemical lab and have also seen first hand the effects of hydrofluoric acid on the human body

to give an idea of postage costs out of Oz to the US here are a few
Air mail take about 10 days... sea mail 60 - 90 days

5kg (11lbs) Air Mail $105
5kg (11lbs) Sea Mail $66

20kg (44lb) Air Mail $320
20kg (44lb) Sea Mail $190

[Barren Realms 007]