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Thrift store find thread.

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cyclone3d

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I'm kind of surprised that there isn't already a thread dedicated to thrift store finds.

I go quite often and find awesome deals on computer and console games as well as finding deals on controllers, etc.

Just today i was able to snag a Logitech MOMO (red) steering wheel and pedals for FREE. They had put it out on the floor without inspecting it properly.

The wheel assembly itself had been taken apart and was missing the wheel turn limiter thing. It looked like it had originally been made out of plastic as there were a few plastic bits in the box as well as inside the wheel assembly. When they saw I was looking at it and that it was in pieces, they said I could have it for free.

I brought it home and made the piece that was missing out of an aluminum shim, put it back together, and it works like new.

I also picked up a NIB Gravis Gamepad Pro USB for $5 from the same store. I had seen it last time I was there and decided to go ahead and buy it since they had given me the wheel and pedals.

I also found a couple of $130 attic fans for $15 a piece at a different thrift store. I bought them both as I have been needing to add a couple more to my house... $30 for $260 worth of stuff... awesome deal!
 
picked up an ati tv wonder pro for 5 bucks a few weeks ago. its not the hd one but the one right before it.

got some really nice cerwin vega and pioneer floor speakers for 8 bucks per set, i mean the big wood cabinet ones, i had to refoam the cerwins but they all sound amazing.

i find a lot of random rare games and stuff. A few years ago i found a graphic designer 21 inch crt for 30 bucks, was flat screen and all.

i actually need to hit one up tomorrow, gf saw a dress she wanted but we were there right before they closed.
 
Nice job!

I don't know of any good thrift stores in my area. I've had some average craigslist deals buts thats it.
 
Scored a giant super soaker, which I chucked back to another thrift store recently while "uncluttering".
 
my friend goes all the time and finds stuff, he hits a certain 3 or 4 and has a route all planned out, the stuff he gets for cheap is mind boggling, iMacs for $25, full 1080p 23.6" Samsung monitor for $25 (I was there with him when he snagged this one, it would power on and then shut off, he googled the problem, bought some caps online for about $8 shipped and replaced them and now it works fine), about 3 or 4 laptops anywhere from $15 to $50, newer laptops, usually about a year or two old when he finds them, most of the time the OS is the only thing fubarred, once he loads an OS it works fine, the one he bought for $15 wouldn't boot so they had it sitting out for parts, when he took it to the counter they offered him a screwdriver to use to take what he wanted out of it but he just bought the whole thing for $15, went home, loaded XP and it booted up fine, and these places are also goldmines for connectors and chargers which are usually around a $1 apiece...

his wife is PISSED, he has about 5 computers and 6 laptops in the house and they only use a few of them, she wants some of the shit gone, lol, but he just keeps buying more because it doesn't make sense not to as cheap as he finds them, CHKD and Goodwill are usually the best two places to go when I go with him, he goes a lot so it just seems like he finds stuff all the time, but he finds a lot of stuff intermittently, enough to make all the trips worthwhile, Linksys routers are also really popular, you can get two or three for about $5 and Motorola cable modems (5100s and 5120s) for about $3 or $4 (sometimes you get lucky and they've been removed from the account but sometimes people forget to remove them from their account before donating them, worth the risk for a few bucks)...
 
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I live in the wrong area, around here a "good find" at the local thrift store is a laptop from like 1998.
 
I have gone around to some of mine but nothing good so far. The best I could do was an old ass comcrap (CompaQ) loaded with Windows ME>>>>AHHHH....
 
Last week I picked up Monopoly Deluxe for $5, and today I picked up a Pentax Super Program camera with a nice Pentax SMC-A 50mm 1:1.7 lense for $15. The lense by itself regulary goes for $60-100+ on Ebay.

And it is a lense I have been wanting to get. I did a couple quick tests and I like it more than my sears 50mm MC 1:1.7 lense.
 
got a dlink dgl-4300 for 15 bucks and a dgl-4100 for 10 bucks at the local thrift store yesterday

also got the original big box wing commander complete for a dollar, also some collectors edition AD&D big box game collection from the late 80s
 
huh,I havent been in a thrift store in years, maybe I'll hit up a couple myself this weekend
 
Some of you guys are lucky. In my area, anything newer than 10 years is priced like it came off the space shuttle fleet. :(
 
GushpinBob said:
Some of you guys are lucky. In my area, anything newer than 10 years is priced like it came off the space shuttle fleet. :(
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It really depends on the thrift store...

Almost all the thrift stores in my area price furniture, TVs, and computers like you are buying from a retail store.

For the prices asked for most of those items, I might as well go out and buy it brand new.

Electronics sold "as-is" are usually VERY VERY cheap... one example is a Dell 1720 Laser Printer I picked up for $7. The only thing wrong with it was the drum counter needed to be reset.

Camera equipment varies greatly from store to store. It is usually very cheap unless it is some massive lense or if a worker there actually knows what it is worth.

But old computers that have been tested and work usually have an asking price of $80 - $200.... and that is for a PIII, Celeron, or PIV system.... so not worth it.

Also keep an eye out for thrift stores that have discount days... a few where I live have a schedule of when certain stuff is on sale.... or senior, student, military discounts.
 
This weeks finds are as follows:

Games for SNES:
Chrono Trigger :-D - going to sell this one since I already have a copy
Final Fantasy III

Games for NES:
Defender of the Crown
Contra
Final Fantasy
Crystalis
Top Gun
Super Spike V-Ball
Destiny of an Emperor

And best of all... every single game cost me a whole 70 cents each.
 
Sounds like thrift stores are similar to business/government auctions. Sometimes you can get pallets of stuff for a buck, and other times everything goes for near new or upper end used prices.

I suspect a lot of the stuff that gets bidded up to maximum price are by people who know that the thing was rarely used and still works fine. Sometimes it might just be "bidder's frenzy" where people feel like they have to win...while they are actually losing money and probably ending up with something that doesn't work.....but perception is all that matters.

Most the thrift stores in my area sell obviously damaged/broken items...they did this for so long that I don't bother going anymore...it's possible they've cleaned their act up. I know they refuse donations of couches, matresses and things that are difficult to determine their level of clean and are difficult to clean. This was before the pre-bedbug scare so I dunno what they are like now with accepting donations.
 
My thrift store finds are essentially audio based.

My Finds:
Sennheiser HD-580's for $4.99
EPI 120 Series 3 Speakers (Pair for $18)
Pioneer CS-R370-Q $9 for the pair
Onkyo SR-505 Receiver for $5.99
Yamaha HTR-5730 Receiver $20

Countless new CD's ~$2
New Games (X3, CoD: WaW, Unreal Tournament 3 are my most recent) (Range from $3-$7, depending on the store)

Canon Canonet 19 Camera
Sears KS Super II Camera (I'm in love with this camera right now)

I love thriftstores, Goodwill in particular. It has some of the greatest deals and quickest turn around of the thrift stores I've seen. Not too mention the 50% off colors every week and central Indiana Goodwill stores have a quarterly 50% off day (all falling on the same day, calls for some epic Goodwill shopping).

Tips:
- Know when your local stores put out new stuff. Some are continuously re-stocking shelves while others simply do it once a week.
- Some Goodwills get the stuff that Target damages out. It can often be rather expensive (especially the furniture), but the smaller items like CD's and games are priced nicely.
- Student/Military discounts. Even if you're no longer a student, if you have an ID, they'll often give you the discount.
- Steam games and Blizzard games can be tied to an account with just a serial code. Be careful buying them if they're open (or take a picture of the code, go home, activate it yourself and then return to buy it. This makes sure you can get the full game).
- Check speakers for foam rot. I've had so many friends try to one up me with speaker finds (mine aren't even that great, Pioneer are some 90's mid-fi and the EPI are bloated sounding as hell) but they didn't check to see if the foam around the woofer was still there or not.
- Plug electronics in. Goodwill normally has an outlet or two around the store somewhere that isn't being used if there isn't a power strip near their electronics stuff. I've been swept by amazingly priced CD players and turntables, only to get home and find that they need extensive electronics work.
- I guess a big thing to keep in mind is that stuff is donated for a reason, you've got to just hope the reason is lack of use/not needed instead of it being broken.
- Whenever I'm looking to find a book, but I don't have a particular one in mind, I hit up a thriftstore. $0.50 tends to be about the going price of paperbacks, and generally the stores have a very good selection.


Edit: Fixed/Added Model numbers, added tips
 
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got a vertically stacked washer + dryer combo for $75 on a 50% off sale
wasnt state of the art but was reasonably modern and to this day works like new
 
very nice...the goodwill's around me don't have much in the way of audio...and trust me i'm always watching for it.

i think because i live in what amounts to a town out the 70s there are a few "stereo repair" shops that go around and buy all the shit to fix up and turn around before anyone gets to it.

Bomo said:
My thrift store finds are essentially audio based.

My Finds:
Sennheiser HD-580's for $4.99
EPI 120 Series 3 Speakers (Pair for $18)
Some Phillips tower speakers which are much nicer than the EPI's $9 for the pair
Onkyo SR-605 Receiver for $5.99
Yamaha HTR-5730 Receiver $20

Countless new CD's ~$2
New Games (X3, CoD: WaW, Unreal Tournament 3 are my most recent) (Range from $3-$7, depending on the store)

I love thriftstores, Goodwill in particular. It has some of the greatest deals and quickest turn around of the thrift stores I've seen. Not too mention the 50% off colors every week and central Indiana Goodwill stores have a quarterly 50% off day (all falling on the same day, calls for some epic Goodwill shopping).

Tips:
- Know when your local stores put out new stuff. Some are continuously re-stocking shelves while others simply do it once a week.
- Some Goodwills get the stuff that Target Damages out. It can often be rather expensive (especially the furniture), but the smaller items like CD's and games are priced nicely.
- Student/Military discounts. Even if you're no longer a student, if you have an ID, they'll often give you the discount.
- Steam games and Blizzard games can be tied to an account with just a serial code. Be careful buying them if they're open (or take a picture of the code, go home, activate it yourself and then return to buy it. This makes sure you can get the full game).

I've got more, but I'm in class. Happy Hunting.
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Nothing all that good by me. Broken lcd's go for $20. Speakers are cheap though like $3.
 
Yeah as others have said the key to finding stuff at thrift stores is just to check out what they have all the time.. They are not like normal stores that only get in stock every now and then.. The good stuff just pops up at random and just accept that most trips you will not find anything.

that being said I once found a new in the box black AnthroCart
http://www.anthro.com/computer-furniture.aspx?desk=anthrocart-24w
They run $300 and it was $20. I was shocked it was even there. I peeked in the box think it was going to be some ikea knock off at best. "Ohhh wait, that really IS an AnthroCart!?"
Found some older style Ergotron monitor arms for $10.
10+ foot DVI cables for $2..
Linksys router for $3, with the power brick. Those things show up all over the place but most of the time they don't have a power adapter.

Sacramento area has a ton of thrift shops for some reason. We even have a goodwill "outlet" store that just hucks everything into huge bins and sells it off at like $1.65 a pound.. but goooood lord that place is a filthy FILTHY mess of a store. Sure I scored some tv antenna for $2 or whatever but I felt like I should have gotten a tetanus shot after leaving that place.
 
Found a US 1st edition hardcover of The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien for $3.99. Was in excellent
shape with dust cover and map insert. Went into my son's collection. :)
 
In Utah, we have the Deseret Industries stores. It's like Goodwill and such, but owned and run by the LDS church. While the stores mostly exist to take clothing donations they give to needy families and foreign countries while training people for jobs, they get a lot of really good stuff if you know what to look for.

"Hey *derp* does that shirt itch? *huurr*"
"oh, lemme guess... It did when you gave it to the DI?"
"*derp* yeah because you shop there *hurr**hurr*"

The stores just along the Wasatch Front kept me alive for over a year with randoms I'd buy and resell. I pretty much owe that year of my life to the value of 8-bit Nintendo gear and my knowledge of it. A few years later, I got the same effect for a further six months while job hunting.


Holy shit. Where to begin? This is just a small sample I remembered off the top of my head.

Kawai K1 Mk II synthesizer - $10 (Still got it)
1988 Cannondale MTB - $45 (Still got it)
2007 Cannondale MTB - $100 (Still got it)
Canon SD600 digital camera - $10 (still got it)
Nikon CP 5700 digital camera - $10 (currently at Nikon for the CCD recall repair)
Dell 1800FP - $25 (still got it)
Brand new portable massage table - $75 (What the hell did I buy that for?)
11 AXP 2000+ PCs with Win XP Pro OEM tags - $55 (Kept the tags, re-donated the rigs)
39 TI-83 Plus calculators - $390 (re-sold for $49 each)
Delphi XM satellite receiver with lifetime account and boombox style dock - $20 (still got it)
Delphi XM receiver with lifetime account and car kit - $10 (still got it)
Marantz 2216B receiver - $7 (sold it for $150... God I miss it)
Philips 7851 receiver - $8 (still have it)
Sansui G-7500 receiver - $35 in '97 (sold it for $175 when life went to shit in 02)
Sansui G-9700 receiver - $60 in 1998 (sold it for $350 in '02... shouldn't have)
32" HDTV - $20 (needed logic board repair. Got it, don't use it.)
78 Wittnauer Sterling Silver coins - $75 (Sold for $280)
 
MisterDNA, awesome collection of equipment! I wish I had your luck in thrift store finds!
 
450 said:
MisterDNA, awesome collection of equipment! I wish I had your luck in thrift store finds!
Click to expand...

Thanks. It's not really luck, though. More like thirteen years of persistence.

Actually, all of the stuff I listed came from DI stores. There was another chain I started to frequent in 2002 called Savers. I found really odd stuff there. The weirdest was a $20 Siecor portable Fusion Splicer used for joining segments of fiber optic cable. I replaced the lead-acid battery in that and sold it for $150 (should have sold for about $400 at the time).

One buy I didn't mention before was a killer Sony TC-630 reel-to-reel I bought for $25. It came with a box of tapes. I listened to the tapes before I sold the unit. Classical, Jazz, Blues. The quality blew away standard cassette tape and sound better to me than CD, really. It sounded good enough that a Rock/Metal guy like myself enjoyed it. I sold the whole shebang for $350. I would have kept it if I didn't need the money.
 
I'm installing a gas fireplace at my Mom's house, and I found these two oak bookcase like things to use as built-ins on either side. They were fifteen dollars each (badly scratched up, but refinish-able). When I brought my Mom their to see if she liked them, she told me they had a 40% off on Tuesdays, so we got em dirt cheap. A lot cheaper than just buying the wood to make my own built-ins, and saves me tons of time. I'll try to remember to post photos when it's all complete.
This was at a Savers, in MN. We don't usually get a lot of really good stuff here, but I don't spend a lot of time looking. I did score a Bridgestone MB-3 in excellent condition for $50 awhile back. I prolly could still get $100-$150 if it hadn't been stolen.
 
Reading this thread makes me want to go.researching places in houston right now.
 
tvdang7 said:
Reading this thread makes me want to go.researching places in houston right now.
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lol, just don't get your hopes up, it's like dumpster diving, takes about 10 dumpsters until you find a pack still sealed sharpies, but missing half the sharpies (but still sealed)! :p
 
I once found a Commodore VIC-20 in the original box for 99-cents at a local Goodwill. I sold it for about $20 on ebay . There was a VIC-20 programming book in the box and I wound up selling that on ebay for over $60!
 
Persian Hand Knotted Wool Rug, tribal style. Saw it, saw the price tag, looked at the lady and said "you have no idea what this is worth do you?" She said "price tag says $30". I felt bad buying that.
 
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Paul_Johnson said:
Persian Hand Knotted Wool Rug, tribal style (Borchelu). Saw it, saw the price tag, looked at the lady and said "you have no idea what this is worth do you?" She said "price tag says $30". I felt bad buying that.
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You shitting me? How much was it really worth? $2000? 7000? More!? :D

A lot of people dont understand the value of a Persian rug. Any legit persian rug for $30 is a steal.


I too frequent DI here in Utah and have come up with a few things. Their book selections are normally really good.

-6x CCNA Certification books by Wendell Odom, $2 a book. Resold for $20 a book.
-Various computer monitors for $10-25 a piece. Usually once or twice every 3 months I can find a good monitor for cheap.
-Lots of random PCI cards for computers. From TV tuners to USB add-in cards. I try to only buy stuff that will be worth it and not clutter my apartment
-Old school audio equipment. I can usually get turntables/old speakers etc fairly often. Lots of people in the Wasatch front just toss their old speaker equipment... that is normally worth more and sound better than the things they replace it with.
 
Langly said:
You shitting me? How much was it really worth? $2000? 7000? More!? :D

A lot of people dont understand the value of a Persian rug. Any legit persian rug for $30 is a steal.
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It's a 4" by 10", that I have about another $250 in it for cleaning, and about to have another $400-500 for repair. Appraisal on it was ~$3-3.5k (market has suffered like everything else) for retail/insurance because of condition and asymmetrical finish. We'll see how it is after it is repaired. I don't know a shit ton about them, but I knew enough to know that at $30 even if it was a machined Persian or Turkish copy it was still something to grab, let alone that it was an original as it turned out to be.


It is perhaps the only dumpster diving style score of any real magnitude I have ever made, and since then I have not seen any more rugs in that Thrift store. It borders a really nice community in the area so I go through pretty often hoping, but I may have used all of my good luck that day in one shot.
 
Everytime I go to a thrift store I always think to myself where are all the deals, but then again I rarely go. One lolworthy item for sale was a blank CD-R in a stack of cds for a buck.
 
Paul_Johnson said:
It's a 4" by 10", that I have about another $250 in it for cleaning, and about to have another $400-500 for repair. Appraisal on it was ~$3-3.5k (market has suffered like everything else) for retail/insurance because of condition and asymmetrical finish. We'll see how it is after it is repaired. I don't know a shit ton about them, but I knew enough to know that at $30 even if it was a machined Persian or Turkish copy it was still something to grab, let alone that it was an original as it turned out to be.


It is perhaps the only dumpster diving style score of any real magnitude I have ever made, and since then I have not seen any more rugs in that Thrift store. It borders a really nice community in the area so I go through pretty often hoping, but I may have used all of my good luck that day in one shot.
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just curious how can you tell if a rug is Persian?
 
tvdang7 said:
just curious how can you tell if a rug is Persian?
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That is one of the shortest questions with the longest answers around, and it all depends on material, knotting, print, construction, dyes used, etc. Persian rugs worldwide are actually not that rare. Iran makes something on the order of ~25% to 30% of the worlds rugs (then China, India, Turkey, etc.). In the US they are about to become harder to get though since they were banned from import in September. Real tribal rugs are more rare as they are not normally made in large quantities for the export market.

If you are really interested in learning to ID them there are some great resources on the web. Shoot me an email and I can round up a few for you.
 
squall78 said:
Everytime I go to a thrift store I always think to myself where are all the deals, but then again I rarely go. One lolworthy item for sale was a blank CD-R in a stack of cds for a buck.
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You paid too much.


Ive found a couple hundred things at the local thrift stores usuall video game related. Some of the owners are totall jackasses about pricing tho. High markup for no reason.


Could you send me a link for the rugs?
 
Paul_Johnson said:
That is one of the shortest questions with the longest answers around, and it all depends on material, knotting, print, construction, dyes used, etc. Persian rugs worldwide are actually not that rare. Iran makes something on the order of ~25% to 30% of the worlds rugs (then China, India, Turkey, etc.). In the US they are about to become harder to get though since they were banned from import in September. Real tribal rugs are more rare as they are not normally made in large quantities for the export market.

If you are really interested in learning to ID them there are some great resources on the web. Shoot me an email and I can round up a few for you.
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hmm how about i just go and if i see a rug ill buy it and take a gamble.:D
 
Cataulin said:
You paid too much.


Ive found a couple hundred things at the local thrift stores usuall video game related. Some of the owners are totall jackasses about pricing tho. High markup for no reason.


Could you send me a link for the rugs?
Click to expand...

send me an email

tvdang7 said:
hmm how about i just go and if i see a rug ill buy it and take a gamble.:D
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That too. Anything handknotted wool and asymmetrical will be most likely worth something. So if you are in the sub $50 range you are going to probably be a couple times your investment on it at least.
 
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