Took this pic a few years a ago at a scrap metal recycler. The were 48 large compressed hay bales of aluminum license plates. Each bale weighs 700 lbs. 48 x 700 = 33600 lbs of plates! How many plates does it take to make 1lb?
According to a website about how they are made: Raw Materials The raw materials used to make license plates include sheets of aluminum, preprinted and colored reflective and adhesive sheeting, and paint. The aluminum blanks are usually precut to size by metal manufacturers and supplied in this form to correctional institutions or other plate makers. Decals for annual registration renewals, county designations, or other uses are made by specialty printers on reflective sheeting much like that used to cover the license plates themselves Read more: http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/License-Plate.html#ixzz65x9c9mz4 So, I'd say most of them, if not all.
...current plates fail fridge magnet test. Don't know when change took place, wasn't paying attention...
I just went and checked my current plates.....non-magnetic?!?! I guess I missed when they made the change too....
