The difference between bronze and brass
Brass is the name for a family of copper and zinc alloys. Bronze is copper with tin, and bronzes were the first copper alloys, developed about 4,000 years ago1. Today there are more than 400 copper alloys1, so in the yard they are sorted by grade, not just by name.
| Trait | Copper | Brass | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Nearly pure copper | Copper with zinc | Copper with tin; some also contain zinc, lead, aluminum or nickel |
| Color when scraped | Reddish or orange | Yellow | Reddish brown |
| Magnet | Does not stick | Does not stick | Does not stick |
| Where it shows up | Cable, bar, tubing and windings | Faucets, fittings, rod, pipe and condenser tubes | Valves, bushings, bearings and propellers |
If a piece has a green patina or is dirty, file or scrape a corner: the color of the clean metal tells you whether it is copper, brass or bronze. To know the exact alloy, a spectrometry analyzer is used.
Bronze and brass scrap grades
In the ReMA (formerly ISRI) specifications circular, brass and bronze sit with copper under "red metals", and each grade sets which alloys it accepts and which it excludes2. These are the most common.
| Grade | ReMA name | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Composition or red brass | Ebony | Valves, machinery bearings and machinery parts of copper with tin, zinc or lead. No semi red brass (78% to 81% copper), no aluminum, silicon or manganese bronze and no iron. Pieces up to 12 inches (30 cm) and 100 pounds (45 kg) |
| Yellow brass | Honey | Castings, rolled brass, rod, tubing and plated brass. No manganese or aluminum bronze, no unsweated radiators, no iron, no very dirty or corroded material and no munitions of any kind |
| Yellow brass castings | Ivory | Castings up to 12 inches, free of forgings and of silicon, aluminum or manganese bronze, with at most 15% nickel plated |
| New brass clippings | Label | Cuttings of new unleaded yellow brass sheet or plate, with at most 10% punchings under 1/4 inch |
| Brass pipe | Melon | Clean pipe, not plated or soldered, without cast brass connections and free of sediment |
| Yellow brass turnings | Nomad | At most 3% free iron, oil or moisture, free of grindings; sold on sample or analysis |
| Cocks and faucets | Grape | Mixed red and yellow brass, chrome or nickel plated included, with at least 35% semi red. No gas cocks and no aluminum or zinc parts |
| Auto radiators | Ocean | Mixed unsweated car radiators, free of aluminum radiators and iron finned radiators. Actual iron is deducted |
| Condenser tubes | Pales | Brass condenser tubing, plated or unplated, without excessive corrosion |
| Manganese bronze | Parch | At least 55% copper and at most 1% lead, free of aluminum and silicon bronze |
| Machinery or hard brass | Engel | At least 75% copper and 6% tin, with lead between 6% and 11% |
| Babbitt lined bushings | Elder | Red brass bushings and bearings from cars and machinery with at least 12% tin base babbitt, free of iron backing |
| Refinery brass | Drink | Mixed or contaminated brass and bronze, with at least 61.3% copper and at most 5% iron |
Aluminum bronze has no grade of its own in the circular: the circular excludes it from yellow brass, red brass and manganese bronze2, so it is sold by description or by analysis.
How to sort bronze, brass and copper
Scrape a corner
Green patina and grime hide the color. A file shows the metal: reddish is copper, yellow is brass and reddish brown is bronze.
The magnet
Copper, brass and bronze do not stick. If something sticks, there is iron: screws, stems, backings or inserts, and both red and yellow brass must come without iron2.
Chrome and nickel plating
Chrome plated faucets are usually brass. Yellow brass accepts chrome or nickel plated pieces, and so does the cocks and faucets grade2.
Red with red
Composition red brass does not accept semi red brass or special bronzes2: keep valves and bearings apart from yellow faucets and fittings.
Leaded and lead free
Leaded brass and lead free bismuth brass have different grades and are sold separately2.
When in doubt, analyze
To know the exact alloy, a spectrometry analyzer is used. Several bronze and brass grades are sold on sample or analysis2.
Propellers, valves and bushings
Most ship propellers are still made from bronze based alloys, and nickel aluminum bronze is among the most reliable copper alloys at sea thanks to its corrosion resistance and mechanical behavior3.
Propellers
A propeller is one large casting. It helps to know whether it is manganese bronze, which has its own grade (Parch), or nickel aluminum bronze, which has no grade of its own in the circular2 and so is usually sold on analysis. If it comes from a ship being scrapped, see ship recycling.
Valves
Bronze or red brass valves fall under the composition grade (Ebony), which accepts no iron. Remove iron handwheels, stems and bolts before you sell them2.
Bushings and bearings
Machinery bearings fall under the composition grade; red brass bushings with at least 12% babbitt have their own grade (Elder) and must come without iron backing2.
For abandoned or sunken boats, see what happens to them; for plants that close down, see industrial dismantling.
What lowers the price of bronze and brass
- Attached iron. Screws, stems, handwheels and backings. Yellow and red brass must come without iron, and actual iron is deducted from radiators2.
- Red mixed with yellow. Composition red brass accepts neither semi red brass nor cocks and faucets2; keeping red and yellow apart keeps each lot in its grade.
- Special bronzes mixed in. Aluminum, silicon and manganese bronze do not belong in red brass, and yellow brass accepts neither aluminum nor manganese bronze2.
- Lead. Leaded brass and lead free bismuth brass go in separate grades2.
- Dirt and corrosion. Yellow brass must come without very dirty or corroded material2.
- Unsweated radiators. Yellow brass accepts no unsweated radiators or radiator parts: they go in their own grade (Ocean)2.
- Oversized pieces. In red brass, pieces over 12 inches (30 cm) or 100 pounds (45 kg) go by agreement2.
Reference prices for each grade, with their date, are on scrap metal prices. Payment is calculated from the certified weighbridge weight.
Why bronze and brass are recycled
Brass and bronze are copper alloys, and copper recycles without losing its properties: there is no difference in quality between recycled and mined copper4. Some semi finished copper products are made entirely from recycled material4. See the impact of recycling scrap.
- 85%less energy is needed to recycle copper than to produce it from ore 5
- 32%of the copper used worldwide from 2009 to 2018 came from recycling 4
- Over 400copper alloys exist, among brasses, bronzes and others 1
Bluegreen's impact certificate covers steel and stainless steel today. For bronze and brass it will be issued once emission factors with a published source exist. See how it is calculated.
Mexico produces the metals in brass
Brass is made from copper and zinc, and Mexico produces both: in 2024 it ranked 11th in the world for mined copper and fifth for zinc, with 6.5% of world output6.
- 717,332 tof mined copper produced in Mexico in 2024 6
- 773,189 tof mined zinc produced in Mexico in 2024, 32.5% more than in 2023 6
- 80.1%of the country's copper came from Sonora 6
- 63.2%of the country's zinc came from Zacatecas 6
Legal origin
Stealing metal to sell as scrap can cause electrocutions, mass power outages and transport disruptions, and repairing and replacing what was stolen costs far more than the metal7. That is why a formal buyer asks where the material comes from: the plant, vessel or site it leaves, and who owns it.
At Bluegreen every transaction carries a CFDI 4.0 invoice and a Carta Porte 3.1 waybill, and payment is by bank transfer, never cash: both the material and the money can be traced. See what regulation requires at each step.
How to sell your bronze and brass to Bluegreen
- 01
Tell us what you have
Fill in the form with the type of piece (valves, bushings, propellers or castings), photos and an approximate weight. If you are not sure, choose "Not sure what it is" and send photos.
- 02
Get the offer
Once your lot is published, you get an offer within 24 hours. Each lot is assessed on its own.
- 03
Pickup
We collect with our own trucks in any state of Mexico. Projects outside the country are evaluated.
- 04
Weighing
The material is weighed on a certified weighbridge.
- 05
Payment and paperwork
We pay by bank transfer after weighing, never in cash, with a CFDI 4.0 invoice and a Carta Porte 3.1 waybill.
See how to sell scrap metal step by step and, if you also have copper, copper scrap.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between bronze and brass?
Brass is copper with zinc and bronze is copper with tin1. When you scrape a corner, brass looks yellow and bronze reddish brown. In scrap each has its own grades.
What is yellow brass?
The brass in faucets, fittings, rod and pipe. Its ReMA grade is Honey, which accepts plated pieces and excludes manganese and aluminum bronze, iron and unsweated radiators2.
How much is bronze scrap per kilo?
It depends on the grade: composition red brass, yellow brass, radiators and special bronzes are priced differently, and attached iron is deducted. Reference prices are on scrap metal prices.
Do you buy ship propellers?
Yes. Bluegreen buys bronze propellers lot by lot and collects them with its own trucks. If they come from a ship about to be scrapped, see ship recycling.
Why is red brass priced differently from yellow brass?
Because they carry different amounts of copper, tin and zinc, and each is its own grade: Ebony for composition red brass and Honey for yellow brass2.
Are chrome plated faucets brass?
Usually. Yellow brass accepts chrome or nickel plated pieces, and the circular has a grade for mixed red and yellow brass cocks and faucets (Grape)2.
What if the bronze has iron parts attached?
Iron is not paid as bronze: actual iron is deducted from radiators and bushings must come without iron backing2. Remove it before you sell.
Do you collect in my state?
Yes. Bluegreen collects with its own trucks in every state of Mexico and evaluates projects outside the country.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from a third party publication. Names and logos belong to their owners and only identify the source; they do not imply endorsement.
- International Copper Association (ICA)Copper Attributes and Alloys (2026)Open the publication
- Recycled Materials Association (ReMA)ReMA's ISRI Specifications Circular, Guidelines for Nonferrous Scrap (NF-2025), Red Metals (2026)Open the publication
- Materials (MDPI)Iatan, Cuculea, Ardelean, Stanciu and Pascu, Optimization of Pulsed Laser Cladding for Reconditioning of Ni-Al-Bronze (NAB) Marine Propeller, 18(18):4301 (2025)Open the publication
- International Copper Association (ICA)Copper Recycling, policy brief with ICA and Fraunhofer ISI data for 2009 to 2018 (2021)Open the publication
- International Copper Association (ICA)Circular Economy (2026)Open the publication
- U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)Mexico, 2024 Minerals Yearbook country review (Alberto A. Perez, National Minerals Information Center) (2026)Open the publication
- Recycled Materials Association (ReMA)About Stop Metals Theft (2026)Open the publication
