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Get a carbide quote
A carbide quote starts with the form below, which takes a rough weight, up to six photos and a choice between shipping to us and a pickup in California, Arizona or Nevada. You can also email help@carbidebuyersusa.com or call us.
What each of the five steps asks
- What do you have? Tick every box that fits the lot, and tick Mixed carbide when it is a jumble. Inserts are the small indexable tips used for turning, milling, grooving, threading and drilling. Brazed and saw tips are carbide joined to steel, and grindings, sludge and powder are what ITIA, the tungsten industry association, counts as soft scrap, as against solid hard scrap. Ticking Exotic metals opens a line for the alloy's name.
- How much, roughly? Type a weight in pounds or kilograms, or describe the containers if nothing has been weighed. An estimate is enough to start.
- Photos. Attach up to six. Large phone pictures are fine, because the page shrinks them before they go.
- Ship it, or pickup? Choose shipping from anywhere in the US, where we pay the shipping, or a pickup in any city in California, Arizona or Nevada. City and state are required; the ZIP is not.
- Your details. We need a name and a phone number with its area code. Company, email and notes are optional, and the last menu tells us whether to call you or email you.
Sources: ITIA, Cemented carbides: a success story; ITIA, Recycling of tungsten, part 1; ITIA, Recycling of tungsten, part 2.
Photo tips that make a quote easier
- Use daylight or a bright lamp. Coating colors and worn edges read far better without flash glare.
- Lay a ruler or a coin beside a few pieces. A size reference shows at a glance whether a rod is pencil thin or bar thick.
- Sort before you shoot, if it is easy. A separate pile for each form, even on a sheet of cardboard, lets one photo describe the lot.
- Photograph boxes and labels you still have. A printed grade or brand on an insert box saves guessing.
- For grindings or sludge, show the container open. That way we can see whether it is dry powder or wet paste; say in the notes which coolant or oil it came from.
What happens after you press Send
Your answers and photos arrive together as one email in our inbox. We then reach you the way you picked on the form: a phone call if you chose Call me, or an email if you chose Email me and gave an address.
The form confirms on screen once it has gone. If it shows an error instead, the request did not reach us, so call us or email the photos to help@carbidebuyersusa.com.
What you send is used only to answer this request, and the privacy page sets out what the server keeps and for how long.
If you plan to ship: carrier limits to know
Carrier rules decide how big each box can be, so check them before you pack. These are the carriers' own published rules, read in November 2026.
- USPS accepts no mailpiece over 70 pounds, so a large lot goes in several boxes.
- USPS rules put dense items such as tools, hardware and machine parts weighing 20 to 45 pounds in a box of at least 200-pound test board, or an equivalent wood, metal or plastic container. Ordinary paperboard or corrugated boxes, USPS says, are best up to 10 pounds.
- USPS asks for the box opening taped and every seam reinforced with 2-inch-wide tape.
- FedEx Ground takes packages up to 150 pounds, and FedEx says anything heavier ships as freight.
- Under USPS rules the mailer must identify a material's flashpoint and other hazards before deciding it can be mailed, which is one more reason to name the coolant or oil in your notes when the lot is grindings or sludge.
Ship pieces as they are, without grinding or cutting them to fit. Cobalt is the most common binder in cemented carbide, and OSHA says breathing cobalt metal dust may scar the lungs and sensitize the airways and skin.
Sources: USPS Domestic Mail Manual 201; USPS Domestic Mail Manual 601; USPS, Preparing packages; USPS Publication 52, section 323; FedEx Ground; FedEx Freight; OSTI, cemented tungsten carbide binders (LLNL, 2018); OSHA, Cobalt dust.
Selling in California, Arizona or Nevada: have ID ready
Scrap metal laws in all three pickup states have the buyer record who the seller is, so keep a photo ID at hand for the sale. None of the three statutes names carbide, so read these as the general scrap metal rules.
- California: the buyer records the seller's name and a method of identification, such as a valid driver's license or state-issued ID card.
- Arizona: the record holds the seller's name, physical description, address, date of birth and signature, with a photocopy of a current driver license or another listed photo ID.
- Nevada: a scrap metal processor keeps a copy of the seller's state ID card or driver's license, a US military ID, or another accepted ID.
Once our quote reaches you, set it beside any other offers you hold in the offer calculator.
Sources: California Attorney General, Information Bulletin 2025-DLE-12; Arizona Revised Statutes 44-1642; Nevada Revised Statutes chapter 647.
Questions people ask
Do I need an exact weight for a carbide quote?
No. A rough figure or a count of buckets and boxes is enough to start, and the notes box takes any detail you want to add.
Can I ask for a quote without photos?
Yes, the photo step can be left empty. Photos show us the forms and their condition, though, so add them if you can, or email them to help@carbidebuyersusa.com.
Can I get a quote for exotic metals on the same form?
Yes. Tick Exotic metals and name the alloy, such as titanium turnings or a nickel alloy. Carbide is our focus, and we also buy exotic metals and alloys.