The Official "Thrift finds" Thread

[DragonGrafx-16]

1 hour ago, Madwindoman said:

5 dollar GameCube controller at value village. They used to give these things away. Now they’re like 20 bucks at pawn shops around here

Never seen a Game Cube controller like that before. I bought an OEM one from Goodwill once for  $3.88.

Edited March 4, 2023 by DragonGrafx-16

[Madwindoman]

2 hours ago, DragonGrafx-16 said:

Never seen a Game Cube controller like that before. I bought an OEM one from Goodwill once for  $3.88.

Yeah it’s not great. Apparently it’s made by hip gear and is the players gamepad. Doesn’t have the octagonal gate on the right stick and the buttons are kinda mushy. Nice to have some extra controllers around for 4 player gauntlet legends

[Reaperman]

I'm totally counting my chickens before they hatched on this one, because there's still time for "sorry, Item got 'lost' once I realized what it was," But I just snagged Blue Thunder for Action Max, which is by-far the rarest game on the system, and the game that completes my collection.

 

I've had a saved search for it for as long as eBay has had saved-searches, probably a decade, and today it just pops in on my feed refresh for ($20 buy-it-now) with reasonable shipping.  It was one of those 'hands shaking as you check out' moments.

 

 

I haven't really been collecting video games lately (positive reasons), and don't plan on making this a habit, but I just had to complete my Action Max collection.

Edited March 12, 2023 by Reaperman

[Tanooki]

Not thrift, wish the topic was a little more broad given all the posts.

Local friend I made last year through a facebook sale of gaming stuff we both kind of help each other out.  More I send him info, repair systems, give techniques, etc to his collection and selling/modding since i don't do that anymore.  Anything I don't want anymore I get him at 1/2 off so he can resell or keep as a sweet deal, in turn I get stuff at cost and at times a nod of...whats this to interested?

 

Yesterday morning he flashed me a Panasonic 9" PVM (CRT) a local had, dude wanted 150 or maybe trade.  I got to in the end where he just wanted 5 video games from me and no money which was a surprise.  Met up early Wednesday evening and got the thing.  It's fantastic, and of course, first thing I do is whip out my old retired Action Set I pieced together last decade and it fired up perfectly...with duck hunt!  That was 15 years long overdue, think I did alright too.

 

[+GoldenWheels]

Scored a 20 inch Trinitron at the dump last week. Great shape, though it is mono only. I put it in the rack under the 20 inch WEGA.

 

As a nod towards common sense, I decided I will bring the 13 inch Sony to the dump THIS week. Somehow, in my head, this is balanced.

[DragonGrafx-16]

1 hour ago, GoldenWheels said:

Scored a 20 inch Trinitron at the dump last week. Great shape, though it is mono only. I put it in the rack under the 20 inch WEGA.

 

As a nod towards common sense, I decided I will bring the 13 inch Sony to the dump THIS week. Somehow, in my head, this is balanced.

Mono only doesn't matter if you are using a home theater system like I am (I have my Trinitron next to me HDTV and so they share the same speaker setup). Though my Trinitron is stereo.

[+Cafeman]

A couple of unrelated coincidences happened yesterday and I got some cool games.     

 

Earlier this week I organized my game collection for 90's and newer consoles, and updated my game media list excel spreadsheet, and put a copy onto my i-phone.

 

I went to pick up my guitar at the guitar shop, but it still had a problem they didn't fix so I left it with them.  Walking out a bit perturbed, I noticed next-door a toy/retro gaming store and figured I'd check it out since I was there.  With my game list on my phone and knowing what I already own, I leisurely browsed through their PS2, GCN, Xbox, DC  and Genesis selection.  This place is so stacked with product that there is barely room to move through it.  I haven't done this kind of selective browsing for quite a long time.   I was really looking for racers or collections I didn't already own.  The store was closing at 6PM, it was 5:50PM and I'd only found 2 games (for PS2) that I thought worthy enough to buy and play:  Wheel of Fortune, and Suzuki TT Superbikes (the later 2009 Championship upgraded version, not the 2005 original, although the price was the same on them , $4   I noticed there were several copies but 2 different box arts for some reason, then a quick Google confirmed the 2 versions).  I can't wait to play Saturn Manx TT, then compare with the Manx TT more realistic course in this game.   Look forward to watching Vanna on DVD quality too, not Sega CD dithering quality like my other Wheel of Fortune game. 

 

They didn't have much else I was interested in, that I didn't already own, for PS2/GCN/Xbox/DC era systems.  And then, right before I gave up and went to checkout,  my eyes noticed another obscured row of Xbox games on the floor, and BANG!!!   3 great finds for me:  Xbox Midway Arcade Treasures 1,2, and 3! I was happy. I didn't own these and there are tons of classic arcade games on these discs.  Each was $10, in good condition and I was happy to pay it.  The lady at checkout said they just got those in yesterday so it was fortunate coincidence I was even there. 

 

So I now own 24 PS2 games and 30 Xbox games. 

 

 

[Zap1982]

Not a thrift find but a free find. Spotted this lot in a store room in where I am working now, anyway just yesterday I was told everything in this room can be thrown out! Needless to say I asked if rather than this stuff being chucked out, perhaps I can have it instead?

 

Well, I was more than welcome to have it! I was warned that much of it probably doesn't work (?) But I plugged it all in last night and it is all in full working order 🤗 

[Tanooki]

Well I'm going to be posting images here for now on when it comes to finds.  I got a few to share going back to late June.

End of June I ended up having a large chunk of the day with the father in law out which is rare, he wanted to see the local flea market stuff in/outdoor.  He talked me into buying a 50% off open box gas leave blower/vac which isn't in this image.  But at that same spot I bought that cool NES game F-117A Stealth Fighter for $10 which is a good discount.  Then at an indoor one near a firehouse he had to stop at, I found (first for here) shockingly a Taiwanese 80s robot toy brand new in the box too for not much like $15 which amazed me as you can see it's bits and pieces are all sealed up and on the plastic tree.  That went onto my tiny shelf of NIB overseas toys on the wall.

 

Then onto a week ago about...and this was a couple days apart.  The CDs below I found for $20(FF9 import) and $6/ea on the others at the half price up the street, been wanting those specifics for a long time.  And then the weekend days later the other half price shocked me having all the 1-11 set of Twilight Princess at $5/book as I've wanted this for a long time, and never see more than random issues I gave up hope and then that.  And up the street found the new plushie in a bin for $2, that's Aggretsuko an adult anime that Netflix picked up, Sanrio is the maker, you know, the Hello Kitty people.  Think of it like extreme anime OFFICE SPACE with death metal as a release for the star(the plushy girl Retsi.)

 

And finally today, I was supposed to take my kid to a thing out of town, but thanks to the stupid dog wetting the bed and keeping me up in the middle of the night I couldn't drive...slept in, hit the small flea east of here, and got super lucky in my mind at least.  I found those two items at 2 different locations (and Dr Mario was the day earlier at a half price at the further one for $6.)  The big guy is from 1984 - Computer Control Vehicle Force Voltron.  See here: https://www.collectiondx.com/toy_review/1984/computer_control_vehicle_force_voltron  anyway the neat thing here is, it works, and unknown it was $15.  The really neat thing here for perspective, this 1984 toy is programmable at a basic level.  The back of the legs even with the red/yellow fronts are a set of buttons for forward, left, right, 8, and go.  Each push has it do that movement for X distance(I think 3 sec) and then onto the next, or it stops.)  You code in your path, hit go.  It confused me at first buttons didn't seem to do anything, then I tried a series and got it.  Not sure how many steps it can do before maxing out, but it's quite neat.  It now sits with my small collection of 8" and up Golion/Dairugger Voltron toys over my desk, though I do have a couple Popy(bandai) all die cast earlier ones with my other shogun warriors elsewhere.

 

Then wow, I had that tape as a teen when they blew out DKC for the SNES, it was $5 I felt it was fair, and it will sit now with my DK Super Set box as it fits right in.

[Tanooki]

I avoid ebay the last couple years largely, where I once was buying stuff weekly or better, I'm down to monthly and almost always it's import games you can't get here, anime, or random parts I need which is great.

 

There were a series of 5 Famicom games I wanted to get/get back and after poking about found a canadian with 3/5 with best offers, and wrangled up a nice package of these games below.  You probably have to wonder... Hello Kitty?  Aren't the others NES games anyway?

 

Hello Kitty is Balloon Kid re-skinned for Famicom, basically Balloon Fight 2, starts easy on world one, then it's definitely not easy but it's rewarding and fun even if it's now sugary cute.  Sqoon -- just avoiding the clown rates, enough said.  Now After Burner is interesting because it is  NOT After Burner as in the janky low rent game Tengen put out, it's actually After Burner II which saw release on the SMS, Genesis, etc under either name.  There is a cool compare/contrast post about it on TCRF of the US AB1 vs FC AB2 versions.  More stages, more detail, a bit more color, a bit smoother, arcade difficulty(not watered down), has some nice transitions, more music, and has a few speech samples as well.  It's so well done Sega sites point out it's marginally better than the Master SYstem port (same with Altered Beast and Space Harrier too which I'll get in time.)

 

[Tanooki]

Flea market frenzy. I got lucky could get out a couple hours today. Did the two small fleas in a row south of me.  
 

The first hadn’t seen that nice before and it worked out.  Knew this guy for years from the lower. I get better prices as such as we like to talk.  All below Masters aside $20. The two masters were at the other for $5. 
 

The tomy works amazingly well and very loud. I remember a friend with it in the 80s.  
 

[Tanooki]

Alright I can try and keep this going alive here.

 

I did some flea, thrift, second hand scouting this weekend between here and the 2 fleas in the neighboring counties.  It worked out fairly well.

 

Saturday: 3 GB games for $15 at the first (south) flea, then goodwill $17 N64 controller w/tight joystick with the Galaga (newer non NOAC one) for $10

 

Sunday: Flea market (east) had Gundam for $5 and the SNES controllers+power for $20, local shop had Slalom for $10 (I had the manual in a dollar bin at least 6mo ago.)

 

I'm out $77 which is a bit much for me usually, but I think the returns are well more than worth it.  This stuff is for keeps, though I just realized I have SEVEN SNES controllers, maybe I can cobble a system together slowly?  The winner was the $5 Catrap as it's worth around $40.

 

[Tanooki]

Anyone else want to share?

 

I got some more stuff I found locally since I've been off this week and luck was with me after so long.  Newest to oldest here, that image you see with Hydro Thunder that was nearly a 2yr local quest, and didn't have to overpay, slightly under given the shape it's in as battered ones are $50(which I paid.)  I went over to Indiana where that was, also found the two toys for 50% off ($3/ea) and the controller was a in great shape at $25 which is again like HT64 like a $10 savings (plus shipping.) 

 

Before that the anime girl in the box is from Infinite Saga but a line from Bandai with weapons, got it for 1/2 the going rate at a goodwill, the same one, separate image, I got over 230 keshi China RL branded Pokemon knockoff figures out of a box for $45, at just a few cents a piece I didn't mind, they're so derpy and weird I wanted them for laughs, fun, and research.

 

The blue thing is a bit of an online enigma, Famicom Yarou is what it's called, a Japanese based famiclone which is weird since they confiscate, fine, lock people up for that in those days over there for it, but there it is.  Cost me all of $20 shipped, problem was, one controller was ruined, the other damaged, the system with rust and crust in the pins and 2 of the boards.  I had to rehab the thing, I let the guy on ebay know and I was not asking for it, but was refunded so it was nice.  I took a spare OEM d-pad dremeled the crap out of the fairly working controller left, and made it work almost comfortably well.  I'll end up getting a couple cheap 9pin famiclone pads for this, it's a keeper.  It seems to like complex high end mappers most clones crap out on, and even does their audio as I can run VRC6 Castlevania III on this.  It's not a 100% one, seems to dislike my After burner sun-4 chipped cart, background scrambles, and oddly Gradius II is really pissy to work but will when it comes up, yet it's better by far than my old famiclone handheld that broke.

 

That console I had to use plenty of vinegar to neutralize the mess, many hits of that and IPA back and forward, then after to get it up, and using a toothbrush into the various cracks, corners, and on the pins to get it safe to use and thankfully that did bring it up to working order.

 

[Reaperman]

For once I didn't get totally skunked at the thrift shop.

 

(embiggen)

wii games were $3.99 each:

• Hot Wheels Beat that
• Cooking Mama Cook Off
• Lego Star Wars 'the Complete Saga' (at least complete up to that point...)

Two handhelds in a sack for $3.99

• a 'Pox' virtual pet of some kind
• Tiger Toy Story from 1994--Battery compartment isn't great, and would not immediately come to life (not even sound)

Nerf Rapidstrike w/ magazine for $2.99.  The wife bought me one of these for xmas when they first came out. I want to say it cost her $75--they saw her coming a mile away. I much prefer them to be $2.99

 

Then there's the thing I left behind. An Xbox one X for $89--But no controller and I probably don't want to get involved with the AMD consoles. The last two console generations really haven't been for me.

Edited August 4, 2023 by Reaperman

[fakecortex]

4 hours ago, Tanooki said:

Anyone else want to share?

I haven't found anything worth buying in a long time 😕 but I'm glad you guys have had success!

[Reaperman]

Nobody worry--Tiger's Toy Story lives(!). Positive battery wire came off. They picked a very bad metal for the battery plates. 

 

Fun fact: the board inside toy story clearly read "Lion King" so I'm going out on a limb and saying they're probably the exact same game with different shaped blobs on the screen. 1994 was kind of into the 'lazy cash grab' era of handheld lcd games.

Edited August 5, 2023 by Reaperman

[Tanooki]

42 minutes ago, Reaperman said:

Nobody worry--Tiger's Toy Story lives(!). Positive battery wire came off. They picked a very bad metal for the battery plates. 

 

Fun fact: the board inside toy story clearly read "Lion King" so I'm going out on a limb and saying they're probably the exact same game with different shaped blobs on the screen. 1994 was kind of into the 'lazy cash grab' era of handheld lcd games.

Great, and no surprise there.

There is one I think it's called Mouse Maze, it's clearly what they used to do Gauntlet and explains why they moved it from the logical overhead look to the third person shifting maze.

 

Earlier leaving a car repair place stopped at the goodwill I found stuff oddly recently at, and did again, $10 was one of those early World's Tiniest Arcade games still seemingly new in the box, but the tape circles were mostly shot -- Space Invaders.  It's not a bad rendition of it compared to some of the other compromised ones they do.  It's on my desk now.

[Tanooki]

I forgot to add the derpy KO pokemon image I had taken.  Have fun with the image and see if you can figure out what some of them are with strange colors that don't match, or the set of them in just largely hot pink.

 

And I forgot also to take one, but on Saturday i did come across a new old stock Tiger handheld LCD game re-release of Transformers Generation 2 for $10, and another $10 I found 2 Japanese Famicom games locally there too -- Gyrodine and Gegege no Kitarou (Ninja Kid uncensored.)

 

 

[Reaperman]

Another long-term eBay saved search finally paid off.

I'd always wanted a Gradius handheld, but never enough to pay for it.

Until one came along for $13 shipped.  

 

I don't know how I was thinking this would play, but not super-fun.

• Shoot all the enemies, missing them decreases health.
• Does not appear to be any pickups, weapons or health.
• There's a boss that appears on the right sometimes.
• Gameplay-wise, it plays about as much like Kaboom as Gradius.

(embiggen)

Edited August 13, 2023 by Reaperman

[Tanooki]

Oooof that there, that is something I've been trying to pick off working or not(since it's surely fixable outside extreme rot) and they keep slipping by.  Sorry you feel that was @Reaperman but I truly enjoy that one and could get a few stages into it.  Yes it does suck you lose health with the misses which is just cruel, but I figured out the patterns a ways in where I could safely sit to dodge a shot while taking down enemies.  Another one that's pretty solid is Star Trek, taking on enemies and shifting shields about while using primary and secondary weapons, might be more your speed with the tactics involved.  Top Gun is fine too, but generic like most of those LCD shooters (afterburner, 1943, etc.)

[Tanooki]

I've been a bit distracted the last two weeks, nothing of a bundle of sorts at one fell swoop of a day but I've had some solid personal interest finds.  Anyone else??

 

For example, took some dollar anime dvds I got recently to half price, used the credit ($15) and picked up Love Hina complete series for $15, and at a flea market which was a near total washout, in a stack of comics/mini books I come across NINTENDO FUN CLUB of all things, the Zelda II issue and only for $2!!  I had it, but my copy had some fair bit of wear, this one was far better treated in very much better shape so that's a win.

 

Recently also ended up getting Tenchi Muyo GXP and Blue Gender both the boxed complete series sets on DVD too which in both cases were also $15/ea.  So far just finished BG, it's solid, good, heavier, I'd watch it again so I won't turn n' burn it.  I was going to do Tenchi but the other Love Hina I've been curious about a long time so that's next.  I did also find $10 Super Robot Wars Collection DVD too but it's all subbed, so I need to make time since I can't read that, watch it, and work at the same time which I largely like to run stuff between the 2 computers.

 

 

Also anyone a fan of Gaming Alexandria?  Last week I saw they had just posted like 100+ FC games all for a flat $10 each with cheap shipping, but then promo'd it for B3G1 free!  I went through the list, found ones I was interested in, and then added it but made sure it was to come out ahead.  I ended up getting nice clean copies of Twinbee, Macross, Ike Ike Nekketsu Ice Hockey, and then the bigger one Urusei Yatura Wedding Bells for Lum which usually sells around $20(hockey for 15) so I made out like a bandit at $33 shipped.

[Reaperman]

Friday is 'thrift store on the way to groceries' day.

I'm not sure if I needed any of this, but here it is.

 

(embiggen)

 

[Tanooki]

  I’d have bought those top two definitely. 

[Cobra Strike Down]

Can finally play my Naomi now! Got a 31khz capable monitor today. Light gun games await!
 

Edited September 9, 2023 by Cobra Strike Down

[Tanooki]

Alright well I was lazy and now it's a cobbled mess of the last week or two and cobbled with images of other mentionables from last time I put an image a month ago, and I'm sure some got skipped.

 

Here it is and I'll break it up some.

1) Manga & Anime - I rarely buy this anymore, time thing, so I tend to get the anime.  But I've had my eye out for that Toriyama book locally, and at the same chain (HPB) other store less than a week apart wow the collected Devil Man manga both volumes they did too.  Both were nice scores, about a 1/3 off the usual online rate.  I'm saving DM for horror month (Oct) when I do stuff like that and anime of the sort, working on Manga Theater now and it's solid good fun.

 

The anime you see it was all local except the Shirow DVD.  Tenchi was around $10-15, Sky Crawlers was like $3, and Nadia was $25, and Love Hina was $15 all from half price, the Poppy I found at a flea for a dollar, and Shirow was $15 on ebay because F scalpers wanting over $100 for Black Magic and Gundress.

 

2) Toys - The mini arcades I found at goodwill, about two weeks apart, same one too, bigger was $10 smaller was $5 a win to me, smaller was still in the little box.  The Star Wars trio there, 20 year old toy was still sealed in an utterly battered box and paid $4 a few day sago, and the kaboodle was sealed for $5 a nice portable puzzle game.

 

3) GAMES -  The two NES games in corner, member here, THANKS!  WoF was $5 at a goodwill, it's for boring moments for now.  Rescue was at Decades for $5 it's so amazing, one of my very first DOS games in 1991 and it's so faithful on here, you must try it.  Now I know I mentioned Gaming Alexandria most of those are in the pic, forgot the Wedding Bells for Lum though. Also forgot a Balloon Kid Hello Kitty reskin (which went with a cheap ebay pick with AB and Sqoon) 😕 8bit Music Power got that off yes-asia for less than 1/2 the ebay scalper rate and new.  Gyrodine and Gegege no Kitarou were flea finds at $5/ea.

 

also not pictured. I did get Nintendo Fun Club 6 the zelda2 issue for just $2 in great shape. 

 

The GBA games were also local, Lunar was yesterday for $30(avg, don't care, been hunting it), Fire Pro was a $5 pick up and Baseball Advance was a little less ($3?)  Blades of Steel was a few dollars a week back at the flea.  Weeks ago $5/ea on Catrap(a $35-40 game now stupidly) and Lock N Chase for the other. 

 

Paid up at $40 three weeks ago, tried to find this lcal for a couple years, finally got back Hydro Thunder in my hands, amazing port, fast, plays and looks awesome.  My old Midway was great in those years.

 

Today though, today yay...at the flea.  That little GB Centipede was a dollar!  I got Fighting Force 64(and forgot to snap it, Sonic Spinball GEN) for $22.  But the win of the day $5 for that Final Fantasy II and my hands HURT.  I did rental sticker decimation which I love to do!  This took nearly an hour to decimate 4 stickers, the care to go into not ruining the intended labels took some time, and this stuff was sticky and insidious, BB was the worst by far for it.  I looked up this partial BB list some crazies keep, seems this one came out of a Texas store.

 

Edited September 11, 2023 by Tanooki