Scrap Iron Bandits

[85_Olds_Ciera]

Surging scrap metal theft around the world

Countries around the world have been plagued by scrap iron theft. Since early January, thieves in Korea have stolen manhole covers, LPG canisters, wrought iron tree guards, steel gates, and farm machinery parts. Britain imposed controls on scrap iron dealers after guardrails and even street lamps began disappearing. And in Khabarovsk, a city in the Russian Far East, traffic was thrown into chaos last December after night-time thieves made off with an 11.5-m-long steel bridge.

[Joseph Upson]

Surging scrap metal theft around the world

Countries around the world have been plagued by scrap iron theft. Since early January, thieves in Korea have stolen manhole covers, LPG canisters, wrought iron tree guards, steel gates, and farm machinery parts. Britain imposed controls on scrap iron dealers after guardrails and even street lamps began disappearing. And in Khabarovsk, a city in the Russian Far East, traffic was thrown into chaos last December after night-time thieves made off with an 11.5-m-long steel bridge.

That's nothing, idiots in South Carolina I believe are braving military ordinance ranges to collect scrap metal causing the military to have to stop live fire exercise when they are spotted from the air which costs the military thousands of dollars. Two of the clowns took a Vietnam era missile home from the range, they're dead now and one of the recycling plants in the area had employees injured by something they accepted that was stolen from the range and sold as scrap. Another is up on 1st degree murder charges after he tried to run down a military personnel before rounds were fired into his truck causing him to swirve and roll over.

Let's not forget the countless number of individuals who have to shell out large sums to have their A/C units repaired from being damaged in the process of steeling copper cores. It's time to crack down on the recyclers in the same manner the gov. needs to get those who still hire illegal immigrants and reap the savings while they go to jail when caught.

[85_Olds_Ciera]

That's nothing

How about:

1. Metal thieves steal museum train

2. Long Beach officials say about 50 of the 150-pound iron lids (manhole covers) have been stolen in the last eight months.

"An industrial area of East London had 200 covers and grates stolen in one brief period. An estimated 20,000 covers are stolen every year in Beijing. About 10,000 were stolen in Bogota, Colombia, until a 6-year-old boy was killed in late 2005 when he fell into an open manhole and a crackdown on the thievery was launched."

[1QUICKHATCH]

the parts guy at work was telling me that the hyundai dealers in montreal have to take the cats off of the santa fe's because they would get people with cordless impacts pulling off the cats on the weekends! must have been funny when they first found out when taking the customer for a road test!

[pocket-rocket]

Wow, this is all insane! My friend works for a trucking company said now is the time to take in scrap as well. He said it's something like $170/ton where he delivers to. He also said a lot of the guys that you see that haul scrap off for free are mad because people are taking their own cars in now to make a few pennies, and this was a couple weeks ago. I put a transmission cooler on his car for him today and told him about the article posted in the OP, and he got a laugh out of it.

The locomotive was said to be the first ever built in Soviet Ukraine back in 1924, so experts could not put a price tag on it.

But the thieves could have expected to earn about US$3,700 dollars (£2,200) from selling the 14.5 tonnes of scrap metal that remained of the locomotive.

Experts doubt that it could ever be put back together.

^ That there is just sad... So little value for a piece of history like that....

I knew a guy at my old work that was having a new house built. Someone had gone in in the middle of the night after it was wired and stole all of the wiring for copper scrap too.

[1QUICKHATCH]

I was talking to the owner of one of the auto wreckers around here this week and he said he was getting $600 a car for scrap so most of the yard was half gone.

[Joseph Upson]

Like I said, it's time to hold the recyclers accountable, it doesn't take a genious during these times to know that a man hole lid does not belong in the scrap yard considering they don't have a history of wearing out.

Quoting Stallin, "It takes a brave man to be a coward in the Russian Army", likewise, you gotta have a pair of good size balls to pull a stunt along these lines in China, they believe in a life for a life and sometimes a life for almost nothing.

[geoffinbc]

Well we had someone here try and steal the copper wire out of some field lights. While trying to do so they were electrocuted and killed. So there is a good side to every story.

[ForcedFirebird]

Weird, steel is only about $60-100 per ton here.

Aluminum and SS go for about $.60-$.70 /lb, brass is about $.080/lb and copper is about $1/lb (that could change in the morning) when scrapping.

We paid $2.01/lb for aluminum, and ~$3 or $4 /lb (? I think) for 316SS stock this week. the aluminum was etruded bars, and the SS was round stock. One bar was 319lbs, 5' long, 3" diameter.

[patgizz]

Weird, steel is only about $60-100 per ton here.

Aluminum and SS go for about $.60-$.70 /lb, brass is about $.080/lb and copper is about $1/lb (that could change in the morning) when scrapping.

We paid $2.01/lb for aluminum, and ~$3 or $4 /lb (? I think) for 316SS stock this week. the aluminum was etruded bars, and the SS was round stock. One bar was 319lbs, 5' long, 3" diameter.

here i'm getting .12/lb for steel($240/ton), .50 for dirty aluminum(caulked up window frames, storm doors, etc...), .60 for cans, 1.00 for brass, .40 for wiring harness, .90 for romex, and 2.00 for copper pipes.

my stripped rusted out TGP shell netted me just under $230.

[pocket-rocket]

I've been keeping everything metal I take off cars I work on lately, lol. Aluminum water pumps, coil springs, struts, everything. So yeah, eventually the plan is to toss it all in the back of my truck and haul it in for some money, lol.