The oldest record of the use of platinum is as an inlay in ancient Egypt. However, the Egyptians thought it was a variation of electrum (a natural mixture of gold and silver). Native Americans used it for centuries on small decorative items. Platinum was unknown to Europeans until the Spanish discovered it in Colombia. The Spanish called it platina, which means small silver. It was not identified as a new metal until the 18th century. The metal was introduced to Europe from South America in the mid-18th century. It is always associated with other metals, mainly rhodium, osmium, iridium, palladium.
Platinum is one of the rarest and purest precious metals in the world. The perfect jewelry material for these fortuitous times, platinum is considered by many to be a “new” metal. Platinum has long been held in high esteem as a symbol of wealth and nobility, the true value of platinum was underestimated until the 18th century, when Europeans began to recognize the beauty of platinum. In fact, Louis XVI of France proclaimed it the only metal fit for royalty. Legendary jewelers like Cartier, Faberge and Tiffany created their timeless designs in platinum. The world’s most famous diamonds, including Hope and Koh-l-Noor, are permanently insured in platinum.
Platinum reached its peak of popularity in the early 20th century, when it was the metal of choice for all fine jewelry in the United States. It dominated the world of jewelry design during the Edwardian era, the Art Deco period, and well into the 1930s. However, at the start of World War II, the US government declared platinum a metal. “strategic” and its use in non-military applications, including jewelry, was prohibited.
Very few countries have platinum supplies, with South Africa (80%) and Russia (11%) accounting for about 90% of the world’s supply. The annual production of these mines is only 150 tons, which is 1/25 of the annual production of gold. Also, the amount of platinum that can be produced from raw ore is relatively small. To make a single small ring of about 3 grams requires about 1 ton of raw ore.
Today, platinum is much more valuable than gold. Although used in many industrial applications, including the automotive industry, platinum jewelry consistently commands higher prices than even pure gold due to its rarity.
Two of the best ways to find cheaper platinum scrap is through catalytic converters and platinum scrap jewelry. Because platinum prices are so high lately, many people are becoming victims of thieves stealing their catalytic converters. Before you had to worry about your tires, stereos and GPS systems, well not anymore.
A catalytic converter is used to reduce the toxicity of emissions from an internal combustion engine. They were first introduced in automobiles in the US market for the 1975 model year to comply with the EPA’s strict regulations on automobile exhaust. Each catalytic converter contains between three and seven grams of platinum. Not a bad catch if you can find one legally. Catalytic converters are also used in generator sets, forklifts, mining equipment, trucks, buses, trains, and other engine-equipped machines.
From the junkyards, the converters find their way into the metal recycling industry, where platinum and other precious elements, including palladium and rhodium, are mined and used to build high-tech machinery, including more catalytic converters.
Although it’s being brought to the fore by thieves who steal catalytic converters, platinum still seems to be the great unknown in scrap metal. Some good places to find old catalytic converters for scarps are local junkyards, classifieds online, such as Craigslist, US Freeads, and Kiji. Another great place, as always, is Ebay. Some people even find them at flea markets and garage sales. The trick is once you get them, find refiners that pay decent scrap prices for platinum. It will be less than what the price of platinum is due to the fact that they have to mine it, that price is passed on to you.
Now there is a second way to find cheaper scrap platinum and that is through jewelry. Again, the best places to find great deals on platinum jewelry are flea markets and garage sales, followed by Craigslist, Us Freeads, Kiji, and Ebay. Or if you have a lot of resources, you can invest in a metal detector and hope for the best.
What’s so good about scrap platinum jewelry? Well, the number of informed buyers and sellers is low. Most people don’t understand that platinum jewelry is 90% platinum and the other 10% is a platinum group metal. If you call your local pawn shops, junk dealers, junkyards, coin shops, and jewelry stores, you’ll find that most of them are paying about the same for platinum jewelry as 14k gold and some can pay close to as much. They pay. for 18k gold. They are taking advantage of most sellers who just don’t understand what they have.
If you find the cheap platinum scrap you’re looking for, your next step is to locate a platinum refiner preferably in your area and get their buying hours or prices. Your goal is to find a refiner who will pay you for the “residual” values of your scrap alloy. The key is that you will need to guarantee that you will provide a minimum of 10-12 troy ounces in order to get paid for all your metal instead of just 90% platinum.