Majestics in the PSI catalogs

[pianomanpj]

Anyone else notice that the Majestics in PSI's recent catalogs are listed as being plated with chrome versus rhodium? But when you check their website, it still comes up as rhodium. Is this a typo? Or are they switching to a less expensive plating? I hope they keep the rhodium.

 

[ed4copies]

Hey Roger,
Rhodium, I am told, is used in electric vehicle batteries. And it is relatively rare. So, the price went through the roof.
All the manufacturers we know are not even quoting prices using rhodium at the moment. I don't think this will change. The
story is consistent from one maker to another.

 

[jttheclockman]

This is another tragedy due to this virus. I am sure it will not be the last either. Materials as well as finished products just keep climbing and lead times are rediculous. I am going through this right now with the renovation of my Kitchen and Bathrooms.

 

[monophoto]

This is another tragedy due to this virus. I am sure it will not be the last either. Materials as well as finished products just keep climbing and lead times are rediculous.

Tell me about it!

Our 24-year old fridge died on Wednesday. The appliance dealers we talked to told us that they were declared to be 'essential businesses' so they were open and selling new appliances throughout the lockdown, but the factories that manufacture appliances were all closed, so there is now a multi-month backlog on new stuff. In addition, there is also a shortage of shipping containers.

When we built out house, we planned to reuse the fridge from our old home, but we designed the cabinets in the kitchen to accommodate a fridge two standard sizes larger so that we would have options when the old unit died. Unfortunately, the only fridge that we could find in a local warehouse is the same size as the failed unit, and it can't be delivered until next week. We were able to buy a 'mini-fridge' that we put in the garage that gives us enough a small amount of cold storage to get through until then (and that will serve as a overflow fridge after that).

Wife has been anticipating this for a couple of years, but she's entirely too fussy about what she wants (and doesn't want), and she only reads the negative reviews so she's convinced that whatever she buys will only last a few months. I've told her repeatedly that she would be wise to made a decision and buy a replacement before the old fridge packed up - because if she waited until it failed, she probably wouldn't be able to get a suitable replacement right away. Naturally, she ignored me. Being a husband calls for great patience!

 

[WriteON]

a husband calls for great patience!

May I add. Calls for a pool table. Beer. Lots of tools. Ear plugs. A garage.

 

[wolf creek knives]

May I add. Calls for a pool table. Beer. Lots of tools. Ear plugs. A garage.

Check out furniture. I ordered furniture for the new place back in February and it's still not here and they have no date for delivery. Got lucky on the appliances after ordering them in January, they got here this week. Still waiting on one more Freezer but the rest of the appliances have come in. How about a Ping Pong table? I need to get one pretty quick.

 

[SteveG]

Tell me about it!

Our 24-year old fridge died on Wednesday. The appliance dealers we talked to told us that they were declared to be 'essential businesses' so they were open and selling new appliances throughout the lockdown, but the factories that manufacture appliances were all closed, so there is now a multi-month backlog on new stuff. In addition, there is also a shortage of shipping containers.... We were able to buy a 'mini-fridge' that we put in the garage that gives us enough a small amount of cold storage to get through until then (and that will serve as a overflow fridge after that).

Have you considered buying a used fridge (Craigs List or ??) that will serve as a larger temporary stand-in that will allow you (actually her) to be selective, wait out the delays, and get just what her little ole heart desires. The plan could be to then resell the 'temp', and live 'happily ever after'?

 

[pianomanpj]

Wow, this thread took a hard left turn. It's like herding kittens! Lol

Oh, look - a squirrel!

 

[egnald]

Wow - I'm glad I have a few in my stash. Ed isn't kidding when he says the price of Rhodium has skyrocketed. It was less than $2000/ounce for over 10 years between 2009 and 2019 and then wham - it shot up to $27,000/ounce - nearly 20 times more expensive than gold. The driving factors have been fundamental supply and demand.

Rhodium is one of the very rare metals from the Platinum group and is estimated to make up only 0.2 parts per billion of the earth's crust and is primarily found in South Africa where they produce 80% to 90% of the total global production. The remaining 10% to 20% is mostly found in Russia. The primary use is in catalytic converters used by the automotive industry to meet strict emission requirements.

South Africa production was severely affected by Covid-19. Also there has been virtually no investment in new mines in the past couple of decades to cover spikes in demand. In addition, one of the producers shut its operation down following an explosion.

At the same time, there is increased demand from the automotive industry particularly due to the relatively recent commitments by India, China, and Japan to reduce their emissions as part of the Paris accord along with an increased demand in the USA and Europe.

I attached a chart that shows the cost over the last 5 years. The spike in price has also increased the level of crime related to theft of catalytic converters from peoples automobiles. - Dave

 

[ed4copies]

Thank you Dave!!! Good to see accurate information--in English!!

 

[egnald]

Thanks Ed. I was the Director of Purchasing for Vishay Dale Electronics LLC for a short stint before retiring and the price of Platinum family metals was something that I watched very closely. While Rhodium is primarily used in automotive applications, three of it's cousins, Ruthenium, Iridium, and Palladium are primarily used in thick film resistor inks and plating. Resistors including thick film technology are products that Vishay Dale manufactures.

In 2019 Ruthenium skyrocketed almost the same as Rhodium has done recently and Iridium has also followed suit. The short supply of Ruthenium was traced directly to trade disputes in South Africa related to mining of the Platinum family of metals.

Dave

PS Iridium is the most corrosion resistant material that exists. Although they are still referred to as Iridium nibs on some fountain pens, it hasn't been really used in them since about 1960 when it was essentially replaced by tungsten in nib alloys.