Scrap brass & bronze prices

What moves the brass price

Because brass is roughly two-thirds copper, its scrap price moves with the LME copper contract rather than having a market of its own. When copper rallies, brass follows at a proportion of the move.

The zinc content is the other half of the equation. Zinc is far cheaper than copper, so the more zinc an alloy carries, the lower the price. Bronze and gunmetal, which are tin alloys with higher copper content, sit above ordinary yellow brass for exactly that reason.

Attachments are the biggest single deduction. A valve with a steel spindle or a tap with a chrome-plated body will be graded below clean brass until the non-brass parts come off.

Understanding brass grades

Mixed brass with no attachments is the everyday grade: taps, fittings, handles and ornaments with any steel, plastic or chrome removed.

Gunmetal and PB solids are bronze alloys — higher copper, some tin — and they sell above yellow brass. Clean gunmetal outperforms gunmetal borings, since swarf carries cutting fluid and fines.

Brass swarf and rod borings are machining waste. They price below solids because of oil contamination and handling losses.

Compo rads and CB rads are car and industrial radiators combining brass and copper. Their price reflects the mix of both metals, plus the steel and plastic that usually has to come out.

Getting a better price for your brass

• Remove steel spindles, plastic handles and chrome trim before weighing in. Clean brass is a materially better grade than brass with attachments.
• Keep gunmetal and bronze separate from yellow brass — they are worth more and get paid at the lower rate if mixed in.
• Drain and dry machining swarf. Cutting fluid is deducted as weight you will not be paid for.
• Do not assume anything gold-coloured is brass. A magnet test rules out plated steel in seconds.