MICROSCRAPPINGE-waste field guide
Contacts & relays · Tier D

Trimmer Potentiometers (Cermet)

There is no gold worth chasing in a trimpot — the only payable variant is a hermetically sealed metal-can military trimpot, identified by its welded body and glass-to-metal seal, not by anything on a plastic one.

Au <0.15 g/lbBase Ru ~0.05–0.20 mg per unitPd <0.5 mg per unit
eBay typical$5–15per lb
Refiner pays$0per lb
Metal in it$3.92per lb at 4 Aug 2026 spot
Confidencelowof the yield figures

How to spot it

Blue, white or black square (3296) or round (3306) 6–10 mm body with a brass adjustment screw and three pins; multiturn types have a worm gear. Cermet types show a ceramic substrate through the base with a dark grey resistive arc. Marked 3296W-1-103, 3006P, Bourns, Vishay, Murata or Copal; 0.3–1.5 g each.

Metal content

MetalQuantityNotes
Gold<0.15 g/lb, hermetic/military onlyTerminal flash; commercial plastic trimpots have none worth chasing
Base metalRu ~0.05–0.20 mg per unitRuO2 in thick-film glass frit; ~7,000 trimpots per gram — order-of-magnitude estimate only
Palladium<0.5 mg per unitPd-Ag or plated bronze wiper

At 4 Aug 2026 spot prices that works out to $3.92 per pound of contained metal — Gold 0.03 g = $3.92. A refiner paying $0 returns about 0% of that, which is normal: refining costs money and the buyer takes a margin.

Safe removal

Working temperature: Hot air 300 °C

Desolder at 300 °C or simply shear the pins. To reach the element, prise the crimped metal cover and the ceramic wafer lifts out. Not worth doing.

Hazards

☠ Lead — dust more than fume

NEVER dry sweep or use compressed air on a scrapping bench. HEPA-vac or wet-wipe only.

☣ Beryllium copper

NEVER put BeCu in a grinder, a sandblaster, or a melt.

Before you scrap it

Yes — this is essentially a resale-only item, 10–100× any conceivable metal value. Bourns 3296/3299 multiturn trimpots are current production at $0.50–2.00 each and hermetic military types $5–20. Never scrap a working trimpot.

The common trap

Cermet is read as ceramic + metal, so it must be metal-rich. The metal is ruthenium oxide at about a tenth of a milligram, dispersed in glass frit that is hard to leach. No assay, no manufacturer statement and no refiner category for trimpots exists — these figures are computed from thick-film literature only. Same non-viability as thick-film chip resistors.

Questions

How much gold is in trimmer potentiometers (cermet)?

Gold: <0.15 g/lb, hermetic/military only. Palladium: <0.5 mg per unit. At current spot that is about $3.92 of contained metal per pound.

How do you identify trimmer potentiometers (cermet)?

There is no gold worth chasing in a trimpot — the only payable variant is a hermetically sealed metal-can military trimpot , identified by its welded body and glass-to-metal seal, not by anything on a plastic one.

How do you remove trimmer potentiometers (cermet) safely?

Desolder at 300 °C or simply shear the pins. To reach the element, prise the crimped metal cover and the ceramic wafer lifts out. Not worth doing.

Is trimmer potentiometers (cermet) worth more working than as scrap?

Yes — this is essentially a resale-only item, 10–100× any conceivable metal value. Bourns 3296/3299 multiturn trimpots are current production at $0.50–2.00 each and hermetic military types $5–20. Never scrap a working trimpot.

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