Better Copper Recycling
by notblue
With Better Copper Recycling, copper items, blocks and their variants can be smelted and blasted back into ingots and nuggets, which vanilla does not allow for the whole copper family.
What it does
Vanilla lets players recycle gold and iron but leaves copper out of most recipes. This pack adds smelting and blasting recipes for copper items, copper blocks and their variants, so chests of copper pieces can be converted back into ingots. The recipes cover the waxed, unwaxed, shiny, exposed, weathered and oxidized forms, and the nugget and ingot outputs follow the same pattern as the other metals.
The pack is a data pack, so it is loaded through a world or a server datapack folder rather than a mod loader. It is published for Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt across 24 release versions, 1.20 – 26.3. Only the server needs it, so players can join without installing anything.
Files are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 4.0 license, so the pack is not open source. Redistribution and modification are allowed under the license conditions, and the source code and issue tracker are public.
Key features
Copper recycling recipes
Copper blocks, items and variants can be smelted or blasted back into copper ingots and nuggets.
Copper block families
Doors, trapdoors, grates, cut blocks, cut stairs, chiseled blocks and lightning rods are covered by the recipes.
Decorative copper pieces
Copper chains, tools, bars and lanterns can also be turned back into their base metal.
Weathering stages
Waxed, unwaxed, shiny, exposed, weathered and oxidized forms all take part in the recycling.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
26.x5 of 5 versions with builds
1.21.x12 of 12 versions with builds
1.20.x7 of 7 versions with builds
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Use cases
Who it’s for: Players who build with copper and server owners who want consistent recycling recipes for the copper family.
How it compares
Smelting Plus is server required with client optional, under All rights reserved, and covers 1.19 – 1.21.11 across Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt. Copper Extension needs client and server, is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 and spans 1.20.1 – 26.2 on the same four loaders. Both are closed to modification in the way this pack is not, so the choice depends on which side and license a server accepts.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Better Copper Recycling | Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt | 1.20 – 26.3 | Server required, client optional | 2026-09-20 |
| Smelting Plus | Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt | 1.19 – 1.21.11 | Server required, client optional | 2026-04-01 |
| Copper Extension | Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt | 1.20.1 – 26.2 | Client and server | 2026-07-17 |
Questions
Does Better Copper Recycling need a mod loader?
Which side needs the pack?
Can the pack be modified and shared?
In the catalog
Better Copper Recycling is one of 29,952 Game mechanics mods on ModsFinder, and one of 19,630 Game mechanics mods for Fabric. 8,071 mods support Minecraft 26.3.
More from notblue
Similar mods
What the author says
And, for those using 1.21.9+, smelt or blast these items and their variants* into copper nuggets: - Copper chains - Copper tools - Copper bars - Copper lanterns *Includes waxed and unwaxed shiny, exposed, weathered and oxidized blocks and items.
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/copper-recycling
- Owner
- notblue
- Published
- 2024-06-26
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-09-20
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15