STOLEN!! Catalitic Converter - Page 3

Victor · 03-01-2008, 05:55 AM

Hahahaha

I needed that first thing in the morning

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Bobthebuilder · 03-01-2008, 11:36 AM

My cat clogged and broke apart inside the can, so I beat the rest of the broken pieces out and they went into the dumpster.... I had no idea they were worth anything. good grief

kwick66 · 03-01-2008, 01:30 PM

i may be wrong, but here in California isnt it illegal to sell used catalytic converters...?

a co worker got his stolen also, will all O2 sensory attatched! used a simple pipe cutter, no noise no shaving under the truck!

runner4thebeat · 03-01-2008, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwick66

i may be wrong, but here in California isnt it illegal to sell used catalytic converters...?

a co worker got his stolen also, will all O2 sensory attatched! used a simple pipe cutter, no noise no shaving under the truck!

I was under that impression also. Any info?

904_runner · 03-01-2008, 03:48 PM

i thought i heard that too. I heard you couldn't buy cats from pick and pull because of that! But then again i haven't tried to buy or sell one

Kiwipushrod · 03-01-2008, 03:51 PM

Hey Guys,

In Wis. its illegal to sell used cats for reuse, but ok to recycle, ie; scrapyard.

I thought i saw a thread once, were the guy's idea, was to put a pile of dog crap under his truck.

Thanks Kiwi

hmmwv15 · 03-01-2008, 09:32 PM

I have 2 cats that I'm not gonna need! One on the 85 project runner, and one on the parts truck that's soon off to a new owner. Sweet, more stuff to take to the scrap yard. I may be able to talk my boss into letting me take all the old cast iron & aluminum engine heads laying around to the scrap yard for a lillte money.

TRD_JW · 03-01-2008, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rootedtree

There's no way that they are worth more for scrap than they cost to begin with.
.

the way gold is jewlery is worth more melted down and finished can you say 900 smackers and ounce 24k that is

RRIND · 03-02-2008, 01:08 PM

I just had to chime in here cause a buddy a work showed me an article on this subject, cause his cat got jacked the other day for the second time and his had one of those fancy cages on it too, they cut his right past the header and took everything all the way back from there, needles to say he was pissed.

Anyhow the article he showed me basically said, if your cat hasn't been stolen YET, it's gonna be stolen, so that's why I came on here and I found this post. I read through the post and I've come to the conclusion, that I'm just gonna remove my cat first and buy an aftermarket one, either the Downey Offroad or the Magnaflow, both have bolt- on's(I think, so don't quote me on it), both are similar in price, so I haven't decide which one yet.

One other thing is my curiosity is getting the better of me, now I am no metalurgist at all, I do know the difference between aluminum, stainless and iron.

So let's say I wanted to cut up my cat myself after I got my new one...? I know there is enough precious metals in there, otherwise Tweakers wouldn't be stealing em. But, could the average joe like me figure it out which metal is which and just melt it down myself or are they blended together in such a way that I would need a degree in metalurgy to separate them.

Reason being is, if I can hack it up myself, I'm gonna head straight on and cut it up, sell the precious metals, pocket some dough and buy an aftermarket cat and replace it.

Whatta ya guys think, is it worth the hassle...? Or am I pissin' with my pants on...?

RRIND

leo the lion · 03-02-2008, 01:30 PM

I Wish A Person Would ! Drop My Drolics And Its Over.

**Lysmachia** · 03-02-2008, 01:59 PM

Yeah I thought that the cat clamp might cause the thieves to just go ahead and cut it out further up. So far not many problems here in Colorado.

Oh and ~tc~ is a metallurgist. I'll lean over the couch and ask him about separating the metals yourself.. LOL

mt_goat · 03-02-2008, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RRIND

Whatta ya guys think, is it worth the hassle...? Or am I pissin' with my pants on...?

RRIND

You're pissin, there is no way you can seperate those metals out cost effectively.

If you're wanting to keep the cat shell I think there are people that will buy just the guts but you might not get as much that way because the different cats have different guts and they might not be able to ID the guts as well.

tc · 03-02-2008, 05:01 PM

Not sure exactly what the pellets are in a cat - I know palladium is what's in there that's valuable, but not sure if it's combined with something or not.

Regardless, you don't have the means to generate the heat required to melt significant amounts of metal - especially high melting point materials like palladium.

Oh, and if you don't have a chemistry lab, you're not going to get much more from a scrappy without them knowing the exact purity. At least if you bring in the cat, they know exactly what they're getting.

RRIND · 03-02-2008, 08:48 PM

Ok alright, it was just a thought, I'm probably gonna take it off and swap it out for an aftermarket anyway, before it gets stolen anyway. The one thing I don't want and can't really afford right now is to be replacing the whole enchilada like my buddy, he ended up replacing not only the exhaust from the headers back but the O2 sensor too.

Thanks again for the input.

RRIND

artofliphkd · 03-02-2008, 09:50 PM

went to work. went on my break. saw the pipes hanging and knew right away.
and the funny thing is that it happened in broad daylight. in a parking lot at the theatre! how can no-one see that? ! hahaha damn it i need to save up for one now.. and im poor. lol

mpavolka · 03-02-2008, 10:42 PM

My brothers cat got stolen on friday off his 95 4Runner during a high school basketball game! I told him when he is downtown he needs to start parking in a puddle or over mud... make them work for it.

Dare44 · 03-02-2008, 10:57 PM

hook and aux. battery cable to the pipes, so when u shut ur truck off it runs electricity down the pipe. i dont think i would touch that pipe twice

904_runner · 03-02-2008, 11:04 PM

I never heard of people stealing them before! Id sure be pissed! But if i wake up to find a pair of legs under my truck! Ill make sure that guy won't ever be there again.

BTW i like the writing on the cat with sharpie idea! lol

mpavolka · 03-03-2008, 12:13 AM

I think I am going to spot weld my brother's next time I am home. He got a new one wholesale and it was still expensive.

artofliphkd · 03-03-2008, 03:56 PM

haha

4xJedi · 03-03-2008, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mpavolka

I think I am going to spot weld my brother's next time I am home. He got a new one wholesale and it was still expensive.

That won't help when they're cutting them off.

**DeathCougar** · 03-03-2008, 04:40 PM

Pallidium and Platinum are the big money makers in Cats, at thousands per troy ounce.

They also contain a small amount of Rhodium, but im not sure they bother taking that out.

**DeathCougar** · 03-03-2008, 04:49 PM

BTW As of right now, Platinum is worth $2240/Ounce, Pallidium is $578/Ounce, and Rhodium is $9085/ounce.

Yes you read that right, Rhodium is almost ten THOUSAND dollars per ounce. Feb 2 it was $7000/ounce, so its jumped almost $3000 in a month. Wow.

**Lysmachia** · 03-03-2008, 07:28 PM

Crap. thanks Death Couger. Now the tweakers really are gonna start combing the back woods of colorado. It will be like a 2 FOR 1 BUFFET at the HOW (House of wrenching) with 2 93 Runners... Dammit!

904_runner · 03-03-2008, 07:33 PM

Same here! We got two yotas at my house, and my neighbor has oneacross the street! But we all own guns!

03-01-2008, 11:36 AM	#52 (permalink)
Bobthebuilder Registered User Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: topton pa Posts: 92	My cat clogged and broke apart inside the can, so I beat the rest of the broken pieces out and they went into the dumpster.... I had no idea they were worth anything. good grief __________________ 94 t4r 3.0 5spd...many fun things to come 87 bmw 325is (for stress relief :-) 67 bug flat black and low 72 & 74 honda cb450's (stock & cafe racer)

03-01-2008, 01:30 PM	#53 (permalink)
kwick66 Registered User Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Orange County, Ca Posts: 4	i may be wrong, but here in California isnt it illegal to sell used catalytic converters...? a co worker got his stolen also, will all O2 sensory attatched! used a simple pipe cutter, no noise no shaving under the truck! __________________ '94 Pick up 4cyl,4x4 4.88 W Detroit Lockers Downey Header Downey Intake Head Mill'd and Ported an Polished 33x12.5x15 Swamper TSL's American Racing Wheels

03-01-2008, 09:32 PM	#57 (permalink)
hmmwv15 Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Good 'ole Georgia Posts: 1,805	I have 2 cats that I'm not gonna need! One on the 85 project runner, and one on the parts truck that's soon off to a new owner. Sweet, more stuff to take to the scrap yard. I may be able to talk my boss into letting me take all the old cast iron & aluminum engine heads laying around to the scrap yard for a lillte money. __________________ I haven't failed, I've just found several different ways NOT to fix this truck. :D Sean

03-02-2008, 01:08 PM	#59 (permalink)
RRIND Registered User Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: SoCal Posts: 45	Just Had to I just had to chime in here cause a buddy a work showed me an article on this subject, cause his cat got jacked the other day for the second time and his had one of those fancy cages on it too, they cut his right past the header and took everything all the way back from there, needles to say he was pissed. Anyhow the article he showed me basically said, if your cat hasn't been stolen YET, it's gonna be stolen, so that's why I came on here and I found this post. I read through the post and I've come to the conclusion, that I'm just gonna remove my cat first and buy an aftermarket one, either the Downey Offroad or the Magnaflow, both have bolt- on's(I think, so don't quote me on it), both are similar in price, so I haven't decide which one yet. One other thing is my curiosity is getting the better of me, now I am no metalurgist at all, I do know the difference between aluminum, stainless and iron. So let's say I wanted to cut up my cat myself after I got my new one...? I know there is enough precious metals in there, otherwise Tweakers wouldn't be stealing em. But, could the average joe like me figure it out which metal is which and just melt it down myself or are they blended together in such a way that I would need a degree in metalurgy to separate them. Reason being is, if I can hack it up myself, I'm gonna head straight on and cut it up, sell the precious metals, pocket some dough and buy an aftermarket cat and replace it. Whatta ya guys think, is it worth the hassle...? Or am I pissin' with my pants on...? RRIND

03-02-2008, 05:01 PM	#63 (permalink)
tc Contributing Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Longmont, CO Posts: 8,372	Not sure exactly what the pellets are in a cat - I know palladium is what's in there that's valuable, but not sure if it's combined with something or not. Regardless, you don't have the means to generate the heat required to melt significant amounts of metal - especially high melting point materials like palladium. Oh, and if you don't have a chemistry lab, you're not going to get much more from a scrappy without them knowing the exact purity. At least if you bring in the cat, they know exactly what they're getting. __________________ Check out www.coTTORA.org to hook up with great Toyota 'wheelin' folks! Current - 93 4Runner: 3VZ 33"x10.50" no lift ARB F/R 96 Impala SS: My own personal cop car Previous - 89 2WD Pickup 22R, Fabtech "Ivan Dan" lift, 31x10.50, IASCA World Finals 4th Place Stop with the mods and get on the trail! Pix at www.4wheelingoh.shutterfly.com/action

03-01-2008, 03:48 PM	#55 (permalink)
904_runner Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Chico, California Posts: 3,782	i thought i heard that too. I heard you couldn't buy cats from pick and pull because of that! But then again i haven't tried to buy or sell one

03-01-2008, 03:51 PM	#56 (permalink)
Kiwipushrod Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 241	Hey Guys, In Wis. its illegal to sell used cats for reuse, but ok to recycle, ie; scrapyard. I thought i saw a thread once, were the guy's idea, was to put a pile of dog crap under his truck. Thanks Kiwi

03-02-2008, 01:30 PM	#60 (permalink)
leo the lion Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: BALTIMORE MD Posts: 83	I Wish A Person Would ! Drop My Drolics And Its Over.

03-02-2008, 08:48 PM	#64 (permalink)
RRIND Registered User Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: SoCal Posts: 45	Ok Ok alright, it was just a thought, I'm probably gonna take it off and swap it out for an aftermarket anyway, before it gets stolen anyway. The one thing I don't want and can't really afford right now is to be replacing the whole enchilada like my buddy, he ended up replacing not only the exhaust from the headers back but the O2 sensor too. Thanks again for the input. RRIND

03-02-2008, 09:50 PM	#65 (permalink)
artofliphkd Registered User Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Baldwin Park, California Posts: 87	my cats gone too.. went to work. went on my break. saw the pipes hanging and knew right away. and the funny thing is that it happened in broad daylight. in a parking lot at the theatre! how can no-one see that? ! hahaha damn it i need to save up for one now.. and im poor. lol

03-02-2008, 10:42 PM	#66 (permalink)
mpavolka Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Tacoma, WA Posts: 311	My brothers cat got stolen on friday off his 95 4Runner during a high school basketball game! I told him when he is downtown he needs to start parking in a puddle or over mud... make them work for it. __________________ 99' 4Runner SR5 5spd 3.4L Sonoran Steel 7.1/7.2/OME891 Previous Vehicles: 1985 4x4, 1990 4Runner

03-02-2008, 10:57 PM	#67 (permalink)
Dare44 Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: grass valley, ca Posts: 910	hook and aux. battery cable to the pipes, so when u shut ur truck off it runs electricity down the pipe. i dont think i would touch that pipe twice __________________ 1997 Toyota 4x4 SR5 4runner 3.4 auto Toytec 3 inch coil spring Lift Custom Front bumper Trail Gear Rock Sliders Modified Stock skid plates Maxxis Bighorn M/T's / Goodyear Wrangler TD's Amp Custom Rims Cobra CB, 5ft Firestik http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3008195 Near Future List Rear Bumper Lockers 1st Gen Roll Bar Winning the Lottery?

03-02-2008, 11:04 PM	#68 (permalink)
904_runner Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Chico, California Posts: 3,782	I never heard of people stealing them before! Id sure be pissed! But if i wake up to find a pair of legs under my truck! Ill make sure that guy won't ever be there again. BTW i like the writing on the cat with sharpie idea! lol

03-03-2008, 12:13 AM	#69 (permalink)
mpavolka Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Tacoma, WA Posts: 311	I think I am going to spot weld my brother's next time I am home. He got a new one wholesale and it was still expensive. __________________ 99' 4Runner SR5 5spd 3.4L Sonoran Steel 7.1/7.2/OME891 Previous Vehicles: 1985 4x4, 1990 4Runner

03-03-2008, 03:56 PM	#70 (permalink)
artofliphkd Registered User Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Baldwin Park, California Posts: 87	haha

03-03-2008, 07:33 PM	#75 (permalink)
904_runner Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Chico, California Posts: 3,782	Same here! We got two yotas at my house, and my neighbor has oneacross the street! But we all own guns!

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