Processors · Tier B

Slot 1 / Slot A cartridge CPU

Plastic cartridge with a long gold-fingered edge connector. The shell and steel thermal plate are 60–70% of the weight and contain nothing — strip both before weighing.

Au 0.3–0.75 g/lb wholeAg trace–0.5 g/lb

eBay typical$60–120per lb

Refiner pays$33per lb

Metal in it$65.8per lb at 4 Aug 2026 spot

Confidencemedof the yield figures

How to spot it

Pentium II, Pentium III Slot 1, Athlon Slot A, Slot 2 Xeon. Ceramic-packaged Slot 2 Xeons are notably richer at 0.4–1.0 g gold per unit.

Metal content

Metal	Quantity	Notes
Gold	0.3–0.75 g/lb whole	0.3–0.5 g per unit; trimmed fingers alone ≈3.3 g/lb
Silver	trace–0.5 g/lb

At 4 Aug 2026 spot prices that works out to $65.8 per pound of contained metal — Gold 0.5 g = $65.3, Silver 0.3 g = $0.57. A refiner paying $33 returns about 50% of that, which is normal: refining costs money and the buyer takes a margin.

Safe removal

Working temperature: Cold

Pop the plastic clamshell with a flathead, unscrew or pry off the steel plate, then shear the fingers off the daughtercard.

Before you scrap it

SL-coded overclockable Celerons and specific Slot 1 Xeons are collectible.

The common trap

Refiners pay $33/lb for whole cartridges and $8/lb for trimmed ones — because the trimmed ones have had the good part removed. Sell the fingers separately, not the stripped board.

Questions

How much gold is in slot 1 / slot a cartridge cpu?

Gold: 0.3–0.75 g/lb whole. Silver: trace–0.5 g/lb. At current spot that is about $65.8 of contained metal per pound.

How do you identify slot 1 / slot a cartridge cpu?

Plastic cartridge with a long gold-fingered edge connector. The shell and steel thermal plate are 60–70% of the weight and contain nothing — strip both before weighing.

How do you remove slot 1 / slot a cartridge cpu safely?

Pop the plastic clamshell with a flathead, unscrew or pry off the steel plate, then shear the fingers off the daughtercard.

Is slot 1 / slot a cartridge cpu worth more working than as scrap?

SL-coded overclockable Celerons and specific Slot 1 Xeons are collectible.

Related in Processors

Ceramic CPU — gold lid + gold pins Processors · $500–650/lb Au 2.0–3.5 g/lbAg 0.5–2 g/lbBase Kovar S Pentium Pro Processors · $500–700/lb Au 0.25–0.45 g eachAg trace S Ceramic CPU — no gold lid (black top) Processors · $130–250/lb Au 1.0–1.8 g/lbAg 0.3–1 g/lb A AMD ceramic with aluminium top (K6) Processors · $80–150/lb Au 0.7–1.2 g/lbBase Al plate B IBM Multi-Chip / Thermal Conduction Modules Processors · $36–115/lb Au 1–5 g per module ≈ 0.3–0.7 g/lbCu ~48 g/lbBase Mo internal wiring B Plastic CPU with gold pins (P4, Athlon, S370/462/478) Processors · $30–90/lb Au 0.5–1.0 g/lbAg trace–0.3 g/lbCu IHS on P4 B

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