Metals & Recycled Scrap

Irony Brass Scrap (Brass with Iron and Steel Attachments)

Name: Irony Brass Scrap (Brass with Iron and Steel Attachments)
Brand: CBIL
Availability: InStock

The grade below Honey: brass solids that fail the magnet test, priced on what the refiner recovers

Irony brass is the bottom rung of the brass ladder, and it exists because removing iron costs more labour than the metal is worth at the yard. A water meter with a steel spindle, a tap with a steel screw, a radiator header with its brackets still on, a lock body with a spring inside: each is yellow or red brass by weight, but a magnet sticks, and once it sticks the lot cannot be sold as Honey. Clean yellow brass runs about 60–63% copper and prices on contained copper against the LME settlement; irony material prices on the same copper after the iron share is deducted, and because that share is uncertain until the material is sorted or smelted, the discount is wide. Buyers quote it as a percentage of the yellow-brass price or as a flat deduction per tonne, and the spread between a 5% iron lot and a 20% iron lot is larger than most sellers expect.

Two things decide the price. The first is the declared iron content, which is tested by magnet on a sample and, for a contract, by a sort-and-weigh on a 100–200 kg sample witnessed by the surveyor. The second is what the brass underneath actually is: irony red brass from valves and meters carries about 85% copper in the brass fraction and is worth segregating from irony yellow fittings even before the iron is dealt with. Chrome-plated and brass-plated steel are rejected, not discounted, because there is no brass in them to recover. CBIL buys irony brass from plumbing and meter replacement programmes, demolition, HVAC and radiator dismantling and general yards in Europe, the UK and North America, contracts an iron ceiling by weight with a price adjustment above it, and loads 20–24 MT per 20-ft container with radiation certificate and SGS or Intertek supervision on FOB, CFR and CIF terms.

Need the ship as well? Our chartering desk prices Misurata to Izmir scrap freight on LaycanDesk.

Excluded origins are not offered, including product re-exported, blended or re-processed through a third country. Every lot moves with a certificate of origin naming the producing plant, mine or grower country, and nothing is quoted before the seller and loading point are known.

Indicative reference

Discount to yellow brass, on declared iron content USD / MT

as at September 2026

IncotermsFOB · CFR · CIF

OriginsEurope, UK, USA, Canada

PackagingLoose or baled in 20ft containers; radiators stacked and strapped

HS Code7404.00

Reference level only — not an offer, and reviewed quarterly. Levels shown are as at September 2026. Firm pricing is quoted per RFQ, subject to volume, terms and inspection.

Irony Brass Scrap (Brass with Iron and Steel Attachments) — sourcing, inspection and logistics

Europe · UK · USA · Canada

Typical Specification

Brass fractionYellow Cu 60–63% or red Cu ≈ 85%, declared by stream

Iron / steel contentDeclared by weight · contract ceiling, typically 5–15% · adjustment above ceiling

TestMagnet on sample · witnessed sort-and-weigh on 100–200 kg for contract

RejectsBrass-plated and chrome-plated steel, military and cartridge material

PricingDiscount to clean yellow brass, or contained Cu × LME cash less iron share and refining allowance

Loadability20–24 MT per 20ft container, loose or baled

Specifications are indicative and adjusted to the agreed contract and destination requirements. Final spec confirmed on COA / SGS.

Available Grades

Irony Yellow Brass — fittings, taps and lock bodies with steel attachments (iron declared by weight)Irony Red Brass — valves, meters and pump bodies, 85% Cu brass fraction with steel spindles and boltsIrony Brass Radiators — headers and tanks with steel brackets and fittingsMixed Irony Brass — unsorted, priced on witnessed sort-and-weigh

Applications

Secondary brass ingot makers with magnetic separation
Secondary copper smelters
Brass foundries taking mixed charge

Irony Brass Scrap (Brass with Iron and Steel Attachments) — buyer questions

What is irony brass?

Brass scrap that still has steel or iron attached or embedded: valve stems, screws, springs, brackets, meter spindles, radiator fittings. The brass itself is ordinary yellow or red brass; the iron is the problem. Because brass is non-magnetic, the yard test is a magnet, and anything a magnet holds is sold as irony rather than as clean Honey or Ebony.

How much less is irony brass worth than clean yellow brass?

It depends on the declared iron share, and the market does not use one fixed percentage. A lot with 5% iron trades close to clean yellow brass less the cost of removing the iron; a lot at 20% iron is discounted far more, because the refiner is paying freight and processing on steel it cannot sell. The honest way to price it is a witnessed sort-and-weigh on a sample, then a contract iron ceiling with an adjustment above it.

Is brass-plated steel irony brass?

No, and this is the most common dispute on mixed lots. Brass-plated or chrome-plated steel has no recoverable brass and is rejected outright, not discounted. A file cut or an XRF reading at the yard separates plated steel from solid brass with iron attached; the magnet alone does not, because both attract it.

Should irony red brass be kept apart from irony yellow brass?

Yes. Valve bodies, water meters and pump housings are usually red brass at about 85% copper, against 60–63% in yellow fittings. The iron on them is the same problem, but the brass underneath is worth substantially more per tonne, so a red irony stream priced as mixed irony yellow is money left on the table.

Which origins are excluded?

The same rule as all scrap: material of excluded origin, including scrap collected or re-exported through a third country, is not offered. Each lot moves with a certificate of origin and a radiation-free certificate, and the seller declares where the scrap was generated before price is discussed.

Ready to source Irony Brass?

Send your quantity, specification, preferred Incoterms and destination port. Qualified requirements receive a workable offer against verified supply.

Have Irony Brass to sell? Submit an offer — we'll match it against live buyer demand.