HMS 2
Most heavy steel that's actually been in service carries some paint or coating, which makes HMS 2, not HMS 1, the realistic grade for a lot of genuine scrap steel. That's not a problem to apologise for, it's the normal condition for real steel that's done a job. Here's what it covers and how to sell it properly.
HMS 2 is mixed heavy steel that can include coated or painted material, the same underlying metal as HMS 1, just without that grade's strict no-coating requirement. Painted structural steel, powder-coated fabricated components, and steel carrying light surface rust or old paint residue are all typical, everyday HMS 2 material.
It's genuinely common, arguably more common than pristine HMS 1, because most steel that's actually been used in a building, a machine, or a structure picks up paint, coating, or surface wear along the way. That's not contamination in any meaningful sense, it's just what real, in-service steel looks like.
Large-volume and export traders often deal in blended parcels, mixed loads traded and priced as a combination of both grades rather than sorted purely into one or the other. That's a bulk-trading convention more than something an individual seller needs to manage, if you're listing a genuine load of your own material, describing it accurately as HMS 1, HMS 2, or a mix of both is enough.
Is it worth stripping paint or coating off to try to reach HMS 1 grade? Rarely, for most sellers, removing coating properly takes real time and equipment, and the price gap usually doesn't justify the labour on a typical load. HMS 2 is a genuinely good grade to sell as-is.
Painted structural offcuts from a renovation or demolition are one of the most common examples, structural steel that's been painted for weather protection or aesthetics during its working life. Old machinery frames, powder-coated fabricated brackets and components, and equipment casings with factory-applied coatings all fall into the same category, genuinely heavy steel that just isn't bare metal.
Light surface rust on otherwise heavy steel doesn't automatically make it HMS 2 either, rust is oxidation of the steel itself, the same as it would be for HMS 1. What actually moves a piece into HMS 2 is a genuine applied coating, paint, powder-coat, or similar, sitting on top of the metal.
ScrapTrade's live-priced HMS 2 category covers exactly this: mixed heavy steel that can include coated or painted material. If your steel is genuinely spotless with zero coating at all, it's worth checking whether it actually qualifies as HMS 1 instead, an accurate grade gets a more confident offer either way.
Check today's HMS 2 priceHMS 2 follows general construction, demolition, and equipment turnover, common everywhere rather than tied to one region. Melbourne and Brisbane both carry large, ongoing construction and demolition activity generating genuine, steady volumes of exactly this everyday grade of steel.
Neither city is a requirement. Builders, demolition contractors, and fabricators generate this material anywhere in Australia, and ScrapTrade connects buyers and sellers nationally regardless of where a listing is posted from.
A coat of paint doesn't change what the underlying metal is, HMS 2 is fully recyclable steel, the same as HMS 1, just requiring a small extra processing step to burn off the coating before melting. That processing gap is exactly why HMS 2 sits a step below HMS 1 on price, not because it's a lesser material, and it's worth remembering that if an offer feels low: it should reflect a minor extra step, not a write-off.
Because HMS 2 isn't the top grade, it's an easy target for a lowball offer from a buyer betting you won't check further. On ScrapTrade, you check a live reference price first, then list at a fixed price, run it as a live auction so verified buyers compete for it, or negotiate directly, negotiation is on by default on every listing. Every listing is GPS-video verified before it goes live, and payment sits in escrow from the moment a deal is confirmed until pickup or delivery is done, so neither side is exposed first. The full case for why that beats a single yard quote is on Why Choose ScrapTrade and Trust & Safety.
Not lesser, different condition. HMS 2 is genuinely heavy steel, the same as HMS 1, it's just allowed to carry paint, coating, or light contamination that HMS 1's stricter definition excludes. Most real-world scrap steel is naturally HMS 2, not because it's poor quality, but because painted and coated steel is simply the normal condition for most steel in service.
It refers to a blended parcel, a mixed load traded and priced as a combination of both grades, common in bulk and export trading rather than individual small sales. You don't need to worry about this as a typical seller, it's more relevant to large-volume traders moving mixed tonnage.
Painted structural steel, powder-coated fabricated parts, and steel with light surface rust or old coating residue are all common examples. As long as it's genuinely heavy steel underneath and not badly contaminated with non-metal material, it's a normal, valuable HMS 2 candidate.
Rarely, for most sellers. Removing paint or coating properly takes real time and equipment most people don't have on hand, and the price gap between HMS 1 and HMS 2 usually doesn't justify that labour for a typical load. List it accurately as HMS 2, it's a genuinely good grade on its own.
Yes, HMS 2 is one of ScrapTrade's live-priced calculator materials. Check today's reference price before you list or accept an offer, the same as any other real material category on the platform.
Yes, if it's genuinely heavy steel with some contamination beyond plain surface oxidation, old grease, dirt, or minor attached debris, for example, it can reasonably grade as HMS 2 rather than HMS 1. Describe the actual condition honestly and let a buyer confirm the grade.
It can be, if you're selling it as one combined load rather than sorting it first. Sorting into separate HMS 1 and HMS 2 piles where practical usually gets more total value, but a genuinely mixed load listed honestly as HMS 2 is a reasonable, accurate option too, worth noting clearly in the listing.
Check a live price, then sell at a fixed price, run an auction, or negotiate directly.
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