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08/11/2007: What’s the deal?

Busy working on a ToyFare article tonight, so this may be a good time for a patented SNT survey.

What’s the best deal you’ve ever gotten?  Garage sales, store clearance sales, eBay hiccups — they all apply.  I have some great stories, but I’ll save them for the comments thread.  See you in a bit.

Posted by Matt. E-mail me!


Discussion Thread: 201 comments

OMG! I Get first comments! My best deal ever would have to be a trip to the goodwill store in my area that got me a brown suit with blue pin-stripes just like the one worny By David Tennant on Doctor Who. It was just my size and only 5.00! Made my day

Ghosted by Ryan @ 08/11/2007 9:21 PM EDT

I used to have crazy luck with coupons at grocery stores somehow they forgot to put do not combine with any other offer on them.  I can remember quite a few times where they wouldn’t accept them because they would have ended up owing me money.  That was long ago when I had some allowance and a sweet tooth.

Ghosted by Danny J @ 08/11/2007 9:29 PM EDT

When Body Count’s self-titled debut was raking in about $50.00 a pop in specialty record stores, I found it at a local record store used for $5.00. I plopped it into the CD player in the store to make sure Cop Killer was on it, and whaddayouknow? Score! That’s all I got… pathetic.

Ghosted by Bludge @ 08/11/2007 9:30 PM EDT

Everything I bought while in India.  Going out to a movie and a snack?  Grand total of like four dollars.

Ghosted by Jeff Mack @ 08/11/2007 9:31 PM EDT

When I lived in Seattle I worked very near to a thrift store that was unlike most.  It was in a nice(er) neighborhood and had more upscale items.  There was pleanty of crap as well.  Nothing in the store is ever marked over 5 bucks, and all the procedes go to some charity or whatnot.  Anyhow, I on three different occasions found a brand new pair of docs, loafer style, mary janes, sandels, for 2.50 a pair.  That and I still consider VHS amazing and I think getting movies for 50 cents is wonderful and then I can drop them and not ruin them either.  Oh, AND my hail damaged golf ball looking car just passed 200,000 and has no signs of being an oldish car and I paid very little for it.

Ghosted by kb @ 08/11/2007 9:36 PM EDT

The best deal I’ve ever gotten?  Well, I guess it would have to be the best deal my father ever got, from back when he was still responsible for spending money on me.

My Dad and I, in what must have been 1987, discovered a Ben Franklin General Store that was going out of business and had boxes of clearance items set up outside in a “sidewalk sale” sort of fashion.

Most of the boxes were filled with junk so forgettable that I have now, not so surprisingly, forgotten it.  As a nine-year old there weren’t many things sold at a Ben Franklin thrift store that I cared about.

Thankfully one of the last boxes was filled with Halloween goodies.  I purchased three or four cheap latex masks and around a dozen glow-sticks.  I don’t know why I love glow-sticks as much as I do, but I cannot deny the fact… I LOVE GLOW-STICKS.  There, I said it.

The entire price for this haul was no more than two bucks.  The masks were around a quarter each and the glow-sticks were 10 cents.

My friends and I ended up using the cheap masks in a horrible skit we put on when I was in the 4th grade.  For whatever reason the school decided to let groups of kids who wanted to write/act in their own productions act them out in front of the entire school.  Sure we were only given ten minutes or so, but how much time did we really need?  My best friends and I constructed a space ship made of an old refrigerator box, a couple boxes of aluminum foil, construction paper, and a few wires and keyboards from a computer.

In my mind this was going to be the movie Aliens acted out on-stage, in front of an audience of children, whether they were ready for it or not.  This of course meant special effects. 

Gore.

The best we could come up with was the aliens (wearing my cheap masks) flailing backwards violently after being shot by our toy guns.  This meant they would fling green slime in to the air (into the crowd hopefully) and also use little plastic containers of green food coloring to squirt the “blood” all over their white t-shirts… therefore maximizing how many people would be able to see the “blood” spreading out over their previously clean shirts.

Yeah.  We didn’t realize how badly non-diluted food coloring would stain clothing and especially human skin.

We tried and tried but couldn’t wash it off of the hands, necks, and chests of our “aliens” - my classmates.  We were given a warning about that sort of thing not happening again in the future.  Oh well.  At least I am the kid responsible for staining the school stage that also hosts the Christmas pageant with green alien blood.

Ghosted by Magic Toy @ 08/11/2007 9:45 PM EDT

I bought a copy of MST3K: The Movie on DVD when it was first released, brand new for $8. It’s been out of print for 7 years now, and used copies usually go for over $100 on eBay or Amazon.

Ghosted by GloriousKyle @ 08/11/2007 9:45 PM EDT

No actual objects come to mind but recently I purchased a $1 scratch off lottery ticket.

It stated I had won $5. When I cashed it in the code said $50 instead. SO an extra 45 for a mistake. Woot!

Ghosted by Jess @ 08/11/2007 9:47 PM EDT

I used to love buying vinyl records from my local op shops and markets (prices ranged from 50 cents to $2.50) that I’d seen second hand at music shops in worse condition sometimes costing up to $50. Not that I ever sold them on, I just loved knowing I got a better deal.

Ghosted by Jasmine @ 08/11/2007 9:49 PM EDT

In high school I got a hairy wookie head statue for like ten bucks instead of over fifty beacuse I knew the girl at Spencers Gifts and she gave me three or four discounts.

Another young lady made me a free “Legalize Marijuana” shirt beacuse she thought it would be funny for me to wear to school.

Ghosted by mrjayberry @ 08/11/2007 9:49 PM EDT

My best deal was an almost brand new (worn perhaps once or twice) pair of snowboarding boots that I found in a thrift store in the city (away from the mountains). New these things would have run a few hundred bucks each. I brought them up to the counter and asked the clerk how much they were as there was no price tag. She looked at them for a moment and then causally said:

“Four dollars”

I was in a daze. It was perfect timing too as my previous pair of boots had just become unusable after a season of snowboard instructing.

Ghosted by Ryle @ 08/11/2007 9:49 PM EDT

Ryan - that suit is awesome. Good on you for recognising that suits such as those should be worn more often (and I rather like the sneakers with it too) :).

My best deals were probably getting a brand-new hardcover book for $1, and getting about 10 horror movies - VHS and DVD - for somewhere in the vicinity of $20. This included the original ‘The Omen’, ‘Freddy vs. Jason’, ‘Halloween’, and the first two ‘Hellraiser’s. God, I can’t wait ’till October. Oooh, and I just recently got the first ‘Evil Dead’. Nothing like tree rape to make it feel like Halloween!

Ghosted by Frakkyfire @ 08/11/2007 9:51 PM EDT

Bludge
I was going to say I did not have any great deals, but I actually one-upped you - when Body Count came out, I was working at a college radio station, I got the promotional copy of the Body Count promo CD that was sent to the station - somehow the record company “didn’t get the memo” that an alternative-rock, college station probably wouldn’t play this type of music - anyway, they practically paid me to take the CD (No, not really - they probably would have just thrown it out if I hadn’t taken it…)

Ghosted by Old Jim @ 08/11/2007 9:51 PM EDT

I think I need to read my posts before submitting. Boots that cost “a few hundred bucks each” would be really expensive! I think I meant “each pair”.

Ghosted by Ryle @ 08/11/2007 9:51 PM EDT

Its not really a deal per sem, but sort of like one.

There was this old barn by my house that was getting demolished, and the family that owned it had moved out and left apsolutlly everything in there. Im talking a whole giant room filled with old stuff.
We talked to the construction company that was going to demolish it, and since they said that everything in there would be thrown out anyway, we could take what we want.
Wwe got a pretty impressive haul or furniture, records, and other assorted stuff.

Ghosted by Chris @ 08/11/2007 9:54 PM EDT

What a coinkydink… A nearby video store had a clearance sale on all of their VHS (99 cents each), so I swooped a bunch of those up today.  Among others, I got Gremlins, an Animaniacs Halloween video, the first episode of the Street Sharks cartoon.

That would be my most recent good deal.

Ghosted by Hey I'm Jeff @ 08/11/2007 9:56 PM EDT

My best deal? Well, I’m a burgeoning collector of gas masks (stop sniggering). I picked up a particular one online two or three years ago, but it was too small for me - face-distortingly cramped. But I hung onto it for a while, waiting for someone who could use it, or the guy who sells ‘em online stopped.

I later found myself in downtown Toronto at the AAA Army Surplus Store in Kensington Market. I asked the guy if they accept trade-ins - he said yes, and offered a few to try on. I found one I didn’t have - an uncommon one, too - and in my size. He accepted my previous mask as a one-for-one deal, and I left.

The price of the first mask on eBay? $8 Canadian + shipping.
The list price of the second mask from the store owner? $39.

That made me glad.

But the best deal I’ve heard of recently was when someone messed up the Lenovo.com website, and people were getting ThinkPad R61s for $500, when they normally retail for double that. Fun.

Ghosted by GLerman @ 08/11/2007 9:56 PM EDT

Speaking of that Body Count album, didn’t they sample the Psycho soundtrack for a track on that disc?  If so, then my friend I used that as background music for our, still incomplete, horror movie we began filming in 1993.

I swear we’ll finish it when he gets out of prison.

Or maybe not.  I guess we each went our separate ways after high school.

Ghosted by Magic Toy @ 08/11/2007 9:57 PM EDT

I can’t think of the best deal I’ve ever gotten on anything, but the WORST springs right to mind; I spent $100 on homemade (read: bootleg) Power Rangers DVDs on eBay. That works out to $25 per disk. Bear in mind, Disney (who owns Power Rangers now) is really unlikely to release whole season sets of Power Rangers DVDs. These disks contain the entire 1996 season, which was the last time I watched with any regularity, so I thought it would be really cool to get them. Maybe I’m just trying to justify spending that much money for four DVDs.

That said, if Matt doesn’t mind, I wonder if people would mind also including the worst deals they’ve ever gotten. I’ve already told you mine.

Ghosted by Thomas @ 08/11/2007 9:58 PM EDT

That would be recently when I got the first season of “Saturday Night Live” at FYE for $30.  Granted, it was used, but considering that it normally retails for about $60-$70 new and that my DVD collection is mostly used DVDs from places like FYE, Gamestop, etc that was a bargain.  Those places rule for stuff like that.

I also like rummaging through the comic book quarter bins.  You can find ALOT of gems in those things.

Ghosted by JLAJRC @ 08/11/2007 10:01 PM EDT

amd 64 3800 processor/motherboard, 2 gig of ram, 200 gig hard drive, surround sound speakers, dvd burner, tower case: $835. after instant rebates, $19.

went back the next day and bought a similar setup for the wife, $28. (she wanted a different case)

Ghosted by cuddles @ 08/11/2007 10:01 PM EDT

cuddles how the hell?  thats some yoda stuff right there how did you do that?

Ghosted by Danny J @ 08/11/2007 10:04 PM EDT

Ninja Turtles 2 on the NES. For a buck.

=D HAPPY DAY

Ghosted by FreezingInferno @ 08/11/2007 10:06 PM EDT

On second thought, the song that sampled the Psycho soundtrack might have been on the follow-up album, Born Dead.

Ghosted by Magic Toy @ 08/11/2007 10:09 PM EDT

Totally off topic but some virtual console news.  Metroid and Super Metroid are coming to the VC the 13th and 20th respectively.  Pretty sure someone mentioned that they wanted these titles and well here they are.  Dates courtesy of gameinformer.com

Ghosted by Danny J @ 08/11/2007 10:11 PM EDT

Since the first X-Box is pretty much a dead system, stores have been pushing their last-gen games out for as little money as possible.  I scored Chronicles of Riddick for $5.  And a shitload of other games like Demon Stone and Beyond Good & Evil.

Ghosted by blackrob @ 08/11/2007 10:13 PM EDT

For $20, I got a big box full of Beast Wars figures, like first series. Bat Primal and Alligator Megatron, Cheetor, Waspinator, Terrorsaur, and Razorbeast complete. Plus a complete G2 Laserrod Prime.

Ghosted by Black Zarak @ 08/11/2007 10:13 PM EDT

Old Jim- Free Ice-T metal = Good

Magic Toy- I don’t know if they sampled Psycho or not. I haven’t heard it in about a year.

Thomas- Worst deal ever? I don’t think anyone on this blog can beat poor, poor Nathan Bitner for worst deal ever. (Sorry to reference yesterday’s posts).

Ghosted by Bludge @ 08/11/2007 10:14 PM EDT

My best friend sold me a Nintendo DS for $35 back in May. Then I bought Pokémon Diamond for about two bucks more than that the next day.

Not bad at all, if I do say so myself.

Ghosted by Tommy @ 08/11/2007 10:15 PM EDT

The best thing I can think of is a couple of years ago when I found a working Speak & Read at the thrift store for $1.96, and they were having a sale that day of 50% off toys. I’ve actually played with it a couple of times for nostalgia’s sake. Considering what you’ll pay on eBay, I think $.83 is an awesome deal!

The worst deal was probably a couple of years before I found eBay. I was at an antique mall and found a 1976 JCPenney catalog. I collect catalogs and pretty much never found old catalogs anywhere, so I was ecstatic. I think I paid $30 for it. Even with shipping, I could easily get one for half that now.

Oh, this might also count for the worse. There was the time that the grocery store was selling turkey breasts for $8 and I didn’t realize until I had already eaten it that they had charged me $8 a pound and I paid over $30 for it. The bar code hadn’t rung up, so she sent the bagger to find out the price. When he told her $8, she just rung up misc. meat for $8/lb. (So there wasn’t even a UPC on the receipt so I could plead my case once I noticed it.) I had bought a month’s worth of groceries that day, so the final total didn’t raise any red flags. I just happened to glance at the receipt a few days later and noticed that. I could almost feel the blood leave my body.

Ghosted by Lori @ 08/11/2007 10:20 PM EDT

Bludge, that is so true. Bitner got a raw deal from Mattel certainly.

Ghosted by Thomas @ 08/11/2007 10:21 PM EDT

at the local flea market i found an original NES system that came with a box full of games (all crappy)which the lady sold to me for $6. the system works perfectly, too

Ghosted by gdrop79 @ 08/11/2007 10:30 PM EDT

todya i get some “spagehtii” for two dollar
after eat i maybe just go asleep

Ghosted by chuckyhacks @ 08/11/2007 10:34 PM EDT

I got the Boba Fett UNLEASHED brand new at TARGET for 1.75 last year. Then I got a good deal on those GREMLINS and PREDATOR figures awhile back (there was also a V for VENDETTA, ROBOCOP, and PRINCE OF DARKNESS from LEGEND but I sold them for the same amount I paid for the whole lot!!). I think I have posted these before but they are still the best deals ever.

Ghosted by The Manimal @ 08/11/2007 10:38 PM EDT

I volunteer in a thrift shop just to get great deals on cheap stuff made even cheaper by my volunteer’s discount.

“42nd Street” on DVD costs $12 or more at FYE. I got it for a dollar at the thrift shop.

I bought five collectible dolls in Victorian gowns for $1.50. They’re part of seasonal displays on my bookcase in my bedroom. One doll for each season and one for Christmas.

Like Jasmine, I love collecting records. Got a huge stack from a secondhand music shop for less than $20. The 20 or so records I’ve bought from the thrift shop have probably cost me less than $10.

Can get hardback books at the thrift shop for as little as fifty cents…or even less during “all the books you can fit into a bag” sales. A mint-condition 70s-era copy of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” was a dime.

I found an awesome collection of mint-condition 80s kids’ picture books for less than $5 at a church bazaar last November, including a He-Man book with a 33 1/3-inch record in perfect shape and a Pac-Man maze-themed book that was never drawn in.

Yard sales have yielded everything from a 50s-era teapot for two dollars to seven James Bond videos for five dollars and an adorable original Nala (from “The Lion King”) stuffed toy for a dollar (she “purrs” when you squeeze her rear). Picked up some elaborate 80s/early 90s-era Barbie gowns for my Sailor Moon dolls to wear in my Christmas displays for quarters.

JLAJRC isn’t the only one who’s had great luck with FYE’s used sales. I picked up the Disney “Beauty and the Beast” for $20 and “Sleeping Beauty” for $15 there. Both have been out-of print for years and can cost up to $40 or more at Amazon.com and elsewhere online. Got the recent releases of “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Superman: The Movie” used for about $12 each, and “Galaxy Quest” used was $6 (and technically free, thanks to a buy three, get one free sale).

Ghosted by starwenn @ 08/11/2007 10:50 PM EDT

The best deal I’ve ever gotten? Last year I bought an NES cartridge at a flea market. It was weird looking, so I looked it up online and found out it was really rare. It was called Myriad 6-in-1. When my car needed work, I put it up on eBay, and ended up selling it for $660. Not bad for a $3 investment.

Ghosted by Steve W @ 08/11/2007 10:52 PM EDT

It was Christmas, 2001.  I bought some baseball thing for my brother in one of those sports memorabilia stores, and I saw it in the corner of my eye:  a metal box with Yoda and the Millenium Falcon on it.  I looked it over, it was a l.e. box of metallic cards featuring the Empire Strikes Back, my favorite Star Wars movie.  It didn’t have a price sticker on it, but a similar Coca cola box next to it said $20.  By that time I was broke, so I begged the money off my mom, and went back to the store.  When I took it up to the register, the guy told me it would be $80.  I think my face melted onto the floor, I was so disappointed.  God bless him, he asked me how much I thought it was (I should mention, I looked and sounded like I was about 12 at the time, so I think he felt sorry for me).  So I told him about the other box.  He gave this big sigh, like “Man, I’m such a git,” and he let me buy it for $20. 

In a related note, I also consider getting the original prequel (not special eds) on DVD for $20 each an awesome deal.  But that’s only because I was convinced George Lucas would never release them on DVD in their original gloriousness.  I’m serious, I was prepared to break a few hundred federal laws in copyrighting and piracy just to have them.  And I wasn’t gonna stop there, either.  I wanted to put bootlegs in the hands of anybody who wanted them, imagining myself as some kind of 21st century girl Han Solo, sticking it to the man.  So it was kind of a relief when George just caved and released them.  I’m not cool enough to be Han Solo.

Ghosted by FyarlGirl @ 08/11/2007 10:54 PM EDT

A 30 gig ipod that I found on campus.

Ghosted by Eddie Lightning Frog @ 08/11/2007 11:20 PM EDT

Any time a dollar store is selling slime or noise putty in a container that has more than 2 oz. in it, I consider that a good deal.
I’d buy that for a dollar.

Ghosted by Somethin' Funny @ 08/11/2007 11:22 PM EDT

I was surfing eBay for Weezer’s Lion and the Witch EP and saw several for 100 bucks a pop. Then I found one for 15 bucks.

SCORE!!!

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/11/2007 11:26 PM EDT

I’d say the best deal that I’ve ever had was an eBay auction. This woman was getting rid of a ton of here kid’s stuff and she had no clue what most of it was. For around fifty dollars I received two large, and I’m talking three by three boxes, filled with mostly G.I. Joe, A Real American Hero vehicles, big and small, along with some vintage Star Wars figures and MASK toys. If she had listed it right, the G.I. Joe vehicles alone would have cost me around a hundred bucks. : )

Ghosted by Darth Poop @ 08/11/2007 11:28 PM EDT

Oh, and FyarlGirl I think that you mean original trilogy, not prequel trilogy. The prequel trilogy are the new films, ep 1,2 and 3.

Ghosted by Darth Poop @ 08/11/2007 11:37 PM EDT

I’m normally just a lurker….but about 15 years ago I bought an original Star Wars: A New Hope movie poster for just $2.50!!

Ghosted by Ruddie @ 08/11/2007 11:44 PM EDT

danny j

i just caught the right time during a sale at compusa. :)

Ghosted by cuddles @ 08/11/2007 11:49 PM EDT

I recently came across a garage sale that was selling a box of old action figures.

I noticed a couple of G.I. Joes in there, including Snake-Eyes and Cobra Commander. I naturally assumed that these were the recent re-releases of the toys and bought the whole box for a mere $5.

You can predict what happened. Turns out all the toys were old ones and many were quite valuable. I got over 30 figures, at least 20 of which were from the 1980s. I did an eBay check and guesstimated that I got about $250 worth of toys for my $5.

In retrospect I feel kind of low about it, because the middle-aged lady selling the stuff was probably liquidated her son’s collection while he was off at college or something, and I bet he hit the roof when he found out.

On the plus side, my mantelpiece looks great.

Ghosted by Doctor Who @ 08/11/2007 11:50 PM EDT

I bought a GameBoy Color with batteries and a Donkey Kong Land 3 cartridge still inside for one dollar. The fellow just wanted rid of it after buying a PSP.

Ghosted by Der Super @ 08/11/2007 11:51 PM EDT

All I can think of right now is when I was younger and got all the snailiens/ticks for 25 bucks

Ghosted by SerialPsychosis @ 08/11/2007 11:58 PM EDT

A Sailor Moon purse for $1 it’s a licensed one from Japan. They were at a dollar store. I got 2 different designs. I’ve seen the kind I got go for like $5-10 in the mall and on ebay.

Ghosted by pikachulover @ 08/11/2007 11:58 PM EDT

Since I stated my best deal above, I might as well do my worst, too.

Wal-Mart had a bin that had a bunch of N64 games for $20 a piece.  I grabbed the infamous Superman 64, which many consider basically the second worst video game ever made next to the ET Atari game, because I love comics. 

Yes, even at that discounted price, I felt ripped off.  Sometimes something that looks like a deal isn’t.

Ghosted by JLAJRC @ 08/12/2007 12:01 AM EDT

I’m a diehard wrestling fan, and as a kid, one of my most prized WWF tapes was the Piledriver music video tape. Sadly, I left it at a babysitters’ house I never went back to, meaning it was gone forever, and it pretty much scarred me for life. I’d lost a prized piece of my childhood. As young as I was, I knew how the WWF VHS market worked, they’d release tapes that would quickly vanish to make room for the next series, so my chances to simply pick up another copy at the store were long gone. My only other option to at least witness the glory again was a video store carrying it as a rental, thus, every video store I went to for nearly 15 years had me search the wrestling section for that holy image of Hulk Hogan in a hardhat on it. Even when all the old tapes began to fade away from most places, I looked out of habit. When I was about 18, I actually found it at a mom and pop place to rent, and I couldn’t believe it. I instantly registered there so I could rent it, along with a treasure trove of other VERY old WWF tapes. This place had the original 1985 Hulkamania tape in PRISTINE condition, one of the first tapes they’d ever released, the tape itself still brand new, the sticker as bold as the day it was made, playing perfect, not a single tracking line.

Anyways, while I got to see the storied tape, I still felt a void. I needed to OWN it again. I’d seen it go for $40+ on Ebay, but I didn’t even have an account then. When I finally got an Ebay account, about a year after being able to rent it again, I had low expectations to find the tape, let alone at a reasonable price. Finally, after months of searching, I found it. The starting price was 9$, which included shipping, and it was too good to be true, surely, someone would jack up the price before it sold. They didn’t, and I swooped in at the end of the auction to claim the precious tape. Until I actually got it in the mail, I was skeptical it was be in any kind of playing condition. Sure enough, it was in near mint condition, the box perfectly preserved. When I popped that in the old VCR, once again owning the tape, it was the glorious end of a mission a decade plus in the making. And all it cost was 9$.

In a related story, my favorite WWF LJN figure as a kid was JYD, he served as my most played with figure. Even though I’m as hardcore a Hulkamaniac as there is, in playtime, JYD got the main event slot, mainly because I refused to let Hogan lose, thus, I saved him for big time special appearances he could always win, so I didn’t paint myself into a corner by having him be a regular. Anyways, like the Piledriver tape, he too was lost, quite early on into my childhood, along with most of my other LJN figures due to moving. Over the years I’d managed to collect all the major players back, except JYD, only to happen into a vintage toy shop a few years back, where prime condition LJN figures are sold, some in the upwards of $60. They kept them in a glass case, but in looking around to a random assortment of toys, I found a mint JYD mixed in. Expecting him to be worth what the ones in the case were, since they had other JYDs in there in far worse shape for $8-$10 I was shocked to see a price tag of $2 on him. I know it was probably a mixup on their part, but I ended up claiming him for cheap anyways, and I probably hummed Grab Them Cakes all the way home whether I realized it or not.

Ghosted by Rob @ 08/12/2007 12:01 AM EDT

My favorite Disney movie is Hercules. It came out when I was around eighteen, and led to my first introduction to a fandom, role playing, and fan art. I was new to the internets, y’see.

Naturally, every Hercules related item my best friend and I could find was a serious score, since for some reason Herc is the red headed step child as far as Disney seems to be concerned.

My friend ended up getting this AWESOME art of Hercules book at a book store over in Seattle. I was so jealous I couldn’t see straight. But I was living on my own, and dirt poor, so obtaining my own copy was highly, highly unlikely. That book was our bible for a long time; had lots of art, perfect for obtaining the drawing style which is very personalized to the original character designer for the movie, Gerald Scarfe.

A few years later I’m over in Yakima, at the B. Dalton. To my shock they have the book! I was stunned! I was even MORE stunned when I got it for 14.99!

I STILL gloat to my friend over that one!

Ghosted by LemonWitch @ 08/12/2007 12:04 AM EDT

A Playstation with a bunch of sports games, Jurassic Park: The Lost World game, Descent, and strategy guides for Jade Cocoon, Shadow Madness, and Gran Turismo for a broken car.

Ghosted by mezzanine @ 08/12/2007 12:05 AM EDT

I’m a big collector of the McFarlane toy lines (the most recent ones I’ve bought were for The Simpsons Movie). A few months ago, I was able to get a bunch of unopened Sportspicks in the $3 range at various stores. Not bad stuff nobody wants, but good stuff like Carlos Beltran, Tom Glavine, and Cal Ripken Jr..

Ghosted by Dr. Acula @ 08/12/2007 12:13 AM EDT

When I was asbout 12 or so I had a horrible job delivering the Pennysaver with my brother.  I probably made about 10 bucks total (this was way back in the 80’s) when i was allowed to go to the mall alone.  I found this really cheesy lavender “pleather” jacket for about 3 bucks and with my mature fashion savvy, just HAD to have it!  And a week later, a bird crapped on me while I was wearing it (it’s not just you, Matt!)

Ghosted by jennyb7 @ 08/12/2007 12:34 AM EDT

I got a giant stuffed Blastoise for two bucks at a swap meet. That made me happy.

Ghosted by Anonymous @ 08/12/2007 12:39 AM EDT

Like most things in my life, my best exploits are virtual.

in Warcraft, one time I bought a Tigerstrike Cloak for 1 gold 20 silver, resold it for 109 gold. This was a level 20 character, I barely had 3g in my pocket, so it was a risk, but that started me down the path to learn how to play the AH - I now have a rotating business of several thousand gold a month.

In real life, just today we found a chair for my dorm room at Staples for 45$, originally 170$, and they shipped it free.

Ghosted by Saint Stryfe @ 08/12/2007 12:40 AM EDT

Hello everyone.  I have a couple of good deals to speak of.  I think it was the summer of 2002.  I bought an NES, in its original box, and 3 games(SMB 2, Metroid, and Rad Racer) for around $25 or so altogether.  I later sold it for more than I paid for it, although I probably still should’ve held onto it.  This is why the Virtual Console comes in so handy.

Ghosted by hoverbored @ 08/12/2007 12:44 AM EDT

I know that there are some deals out there that I’ve forgotten about, but I have a recent one. I’ve been collecting Mary Stewart books (in the “original” hardcover with dust jacket- usually book club editions, which are fine), and there are only two that I have left to get- they’re quite rare. So, even though I blew it big time on one (Nine Coaches Waiting) on ebay (I forgot to bid and missed it for $2.50- they usually go for $20-$50), I did find a paperback copy for 17 cents to read in the meantime. It was a better deal than any new edition ($8-$15) or one at the used bookstore.

I walked out of the used bookstore with about five books one time- they cost nothing because I had a coupon.

Ghosted by Rainbowfeet @ 08/12/2007 12:48 AM EDT

in Warcraft, one time I bought a Tigerstrike Cloak for 1 gold 20 silver, resold it for 109 gold. This was a level 20 character, I barely had 3g in my pocket, so it was a risk, but that started me down the path to learn how to play the AH - I now have a rotating business of several thousand gold a month.

Reminds me of my stint in FF XI. I used to farm Quadav Backplates and sell them to support my armor habit. I was the Kojo of XI. I had to make sure my armor matched, because let’s face it there weren’t complete sets for Thieves, like there are for the other melee classes (at least at low levels).

I would sell them to the AH, and eventually I started seeing this guy coming to the AH and then synthesizing items with backplates. If I had been able to stick around longer, I would have probably worked out a direct deal with the guy :D

You wanted to know that, yes you did.

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/12/2007 12:49 AM EDT

Years ago I got on eBay and started looking for a Nintendo 64.  With poor typing skills I accidently typed in mmtemdo.  And found a mmtemdo 64 that came with three games (none very awesome) and had a starting bid of $5 with no reserve.  Apparently I was the only person who bid on it and won!

Ghosted by Johnny V. @ 08/12/2007 12:50 AM EDT

Oh, i am so embarassed.  Thanks, Darth Poop!  Yes, i meant original trilogy.  allergy meds make my head all sloshy.

Ghosted by FyarlGirl @ 08/12/2007 12:59 AM EDT

Believe you me FyarlGirl , I can relate!

Ghosted by Darth Poop @ 08/12/2007 1:02 AM EDT

I have a lot of Yard Sale finds as well. Firstly, I found 4 bags of M.U.S.C.L.Es earlier this year for about a dollar total. I once found some earlier for about 25 cents or so which went on eBay for $60-70. But my favorite finds are video-game related. I found an Atari 2600 with 2 controllers, 2 paddle controllers, all the stuff to hook it up, and 40 games for $28. Secondly, I found a Famicom Disk System and 2 big trays of disks. I asked how much, the guy said to make an offer. I paid $10, and the guy said he would’ve taken 5. He was selling it for some other poor sap who was liquidating his collection. Unfortunately, I have yet to get the thing to work.

Ghosted by DocDragon @ 08/12/2007 1:07 AM EDT

I have a friend who works for McFarlane toys in the legal department and she gets me signed figures all the time for free so I tend to think that is a good deal.  I also have been able to get tons of my husbands comic books signed for him as well.

I won a complete set of the original SW Trilogy on DVD at a baby shower once.  They were from Japan and it was several years before they were released here.

The cool paintball gun I mentioned before was a steal of a deal as well.

I got an awesomely rad printer last year that retailed for $700 for $10 out of pocket after gift cards and rebates.  The gift cards totaled $75.

I don’t have any bad deals coming to mind at the moment but give me some time and I am sure I will come up with something.  I am usually a pretty saavy shopper so it doesn’t happen often.

Ghosted by Cricket @ 08/12/2007 1:08 AM EDT

I scored two ceramic pumpkins wearing cowboy hats, from my girlfriend’s mom.  They are a piece of Halloween glory.

Ghosted by Steven @ 08/12/2007 1:16 AM EDT

Sorry, but I forgot to mention that they were FREE!

Ghosted by Steven @ 08/12/2007 1:17 AM EDT

I won a complete set of the original SW Trilogy on DVD at a baby shower once.

Most awesome. Baby Shower. Ever.

Ghosted by Lori @ 08/12/2007 1:33 AM EDT

Once, my sister was aggressively being hit on my a perfect stranger.  he offered her a drink and paid for it.  When the bartender brought the beer he set it down with the change (from a twenty) next to it.  She picked up both and walked away.  It wasn’t me, but it may have been the greatest deal ever.  The guy just sat there dumbfounded not saying a word.

Ghosted by kb @ 08/12/2007 1:55 AM EDT

Uhhhh this one time I got a box set of new TMNT cartoon DVDs for the price of a single DVD. That was nice. My brain is so fried. I’m really longing for one of those nice lazy days where you know you don’t have to do anything so you don’t even bother taking a shower. Someone try to get me a deal on that.

Ghosted by Mystie @ 08/12/2007 2:07 AM EDT

Mystie,

funny you should mention that.  I’m in pretty much that situation right now.  One of the disks in my back slipped out and is pinching one of my spinal nerves, causing pain in my leg, knee, hip, and back.  I’m not complaining, cause I get to stay home from work and I have a lot of free time.  I’m also on pain medication, and I’m going to physical therapy and doing exercises at home to put the disk back in place.  Lately I’ve been writing up a story based on an idea that’s been rattling in my head for a while.  BTW, are you the same Mystie who has that Darkwing Duck fansite?

Ghosted by Hoverbored @ 08/12/2007 2:15 AM EDT

I’ve had the best luck with magazines…every time I’m interested in getting all issues of a magazine, someone always says “I have them, and I don’t want them, so here you go.” I recently scored a near-complete set of 1980’s TV Guides. They’re hilarious.

As far as things NORMAL people would find valuable…I got Chrono Trigger mint in box for $70 in 2002; sure, it’s a lot, but it’s usually a lot MORE.

Ghosted by Mars @ 08/12/2007 2:20 AM EDT

Mars, I totally get the magazine collecting!  My cousin told me the other day she had cleaned out her dad’s garage and threw away a bunch of old magazines from when she was a teen, stuff like Sassy and Tiger Beat, etc.  I was so bummed!

Ghosted by FyarlGirl @ 08/12/2007 2:27 AM EDT

I’ve been fortunate in finding a lot of good deals.  When I was in tenth grade, I bought a couple of Beach Boys LPs at a yard sale at this mansion-like place.  One of them, a reprint of “Beach Boys’ Concert!” had the wrong disc, but it didn’t matter because the covers are more valuable anyway. The other was a fairly rare “Live in London”, released in 1976.  Coincidently, those two albums were released as one CD as part of a series of “twofer” CD reissues of the Beach Boys’ original albums.  Strange coincidence that I bought those two albums as separate LPs at the same yard sale.

Ghosted by hoverbored @ 08/12/2007 2:33 AM EDT

Eddie Lightning Frog, that ipod belonged to someone. You are a horrible person. Seriously, kids, if you find something that valuable, you turn it into lost and found. Didn’t your parents teach you that?

Anyway, I’ve been prowling ebay as a buyer/seller for 7 years now, so I’ve gotten some amazing deals. One that comes to mind is a poster I got for 50 cents selling for over $200.

Does the amount of times I’ve been ripped off as both a buyer and seller qualify for worst deal ever?

Ghosted by Ariel @ 08/12/2007 2:34 AM EDT

Probably a brand-spanking new copy of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for PS1 back in 2004. It was unopened and only cost $20. Granted I have no idea how much that would cost on eBay and the like, but it still felt like a great buy.

Ghosted by Ben @ 08/12/2007 2:44 AM EDT

I’m really tired and can’t invest a lot of mental effort into thinking up some juicy ones, but here are a couple I thought were pretty cool:

McDonald’s drive-thru, at the speaker, I asked for a large order of fries and a medium sprite.  The total was two and a half bucks or so and I drove up to the first window.  Handed the girl a $5 and she gave me back like $17 and some change.

I said thank you and instead of risking getting caught at the second window, I waited until the car in front of me moved and I drove off and went to another McDonald’s and ordered the same thing.

Appx $15 profit plus food, can’t argue.

A few years back I was traveling a lot which caused extremely high cell phone bills (within 3 months I paid T-Mobile (possibly Voicestream then) about $3,000 in cell phone charges.  My fourth extremely high bill came in and I decided I couldn’t keep doing this anymore so I called customer service to change my plan.

Well the lady told me they just came out with a plan that’s not even advertised yet and she will set me up on it if I’d like.  The plan was $10 more a month than what I was paying for a buttload of anytime minutes.  $50 for 3000 “whenever” minutes.  I told her I’ll accept that plan.  Well, for whatever reason, when she put me on that plan, she said she’ll credit it for that following month as well, which dropped my bill down from $800 something to $50.  I have been a T-Mobile customer since.

Ghosted by fistpittingnork @ 08/12/2007 2:49 AM EDT

Right now its a toss-up between MST3K vol. 2 DVD set for $9.99 at a clueless GameStop, or the Donkey Kong Jr. table top arcade game for 5 bucks at a garage sale…

Ghosted by Jerrod @ 08/12/2007 2:50 AM EDT

I found a copy of Into The Void by Nine Inch Nails for 12.99 in an FYE three years ago. At the time it was going for about 60 bucks elsewhere, now it goes for 120. certain websites list it at way higher. I’m a huge collector so I’m not selling it, but holy shite.

Ghosted by Justin @ 08/12/2007 2:57 AM EDT

I would have to say the best deal I ever got was the purchase of my first color ink-jet printer. 
Where I was working at the time my company scored a great deal on rebates for them.  A $50 rebate on each printer, a great deal all by itself.  But..  Me and another guy I worked with received two rebate checks from Lexmark. Score!!

Original price $75 received $100 back.  Net result Lexmark paid us $25 to take there printers.

Ghosted by Wenthral @ 08/12/2007 3:15 AM EDT

I got a wicked huge box of star wars toys and vehicles at a garage sale like…maybe 10 years ago, for about $10. It had everything! The Falcon, 2 At-At’s, an at-st, the ewok village, a star destroyer, figures, the wompa playset, ewok battle ram, the list goes on.  10 friggin bucks. Plus the box had other random toys and a stretch armstrong. It was like opening pandora’s box.

Ghosted by Nickelodeon @ 08/12/2007 3:15 AM EDT

fistpittingnork:
      Shame on you, you should have told the person they gave the wrong change.  You noticed that it was wrong and drove off, that is stealing in my book. 
  I have on several occasions noticed wrong change back and asked are they sure they got that correct.  Pointing out that they gave the wrong change and correcting there mistakes.

I’ve also given wallets back with money still in them, one with over $400 cash.

Damn parents and there stupid morals…

Ghosted by Wenthral @ 08/12/2007 3:25 AM EDT

A TRU in Brooklyn recently went out of business, and I managed to score the exclusive and over-priced Bantha and Dagobah X-Wing for 50% off. I also only payed a dollar for my SNES in box with all accessories a few years back.

My worst deal was the $250 I just payed for an limited edition Star Wars watch with the Imperial insignia on the face. I love it, but I need to have it resized on top of the 150% markup.

Ghosted by GadgetMouse @ 08/12/2007 3:36 AM EDT

I actually just got a terrific deal this evening.  Our local Target had the exclusive Spider-man 3 box set (Spider-man Vs. Sandman) on sale for $0.86.  That’s down from $14.99.  I was elated.  That’s part of the fun of collecting.  Anyone can drop major coin and have a great collection of something.  The idea is to have a great collection without paying much for it.  =)

Ghosted by CrazinBran @ 08/12/2007 3:58 AM EDT

4 slices of french toast, 6 strips of bacon, two servings of hashbrowns and an orange juice. 2 bucks on weekends.

Ghosted by dohopoki @ 08/12/2007 4:07 AM EDT

Right now I’m using iTunes to make my own summer jukebox from the music I have saved from my family’s CD collection.  I have a working draft of 58 songs, and I’m going to add more from CD I haven’t saved on my computer yet.

Ghosted by hoverbored @ 08/12/2007 4:13 AM EDT

I got an NES for free from my sisters ass kissing boyfriend.
I lost one of the cords to plug it in.
I played it…. maybe twice?
Friend of mine brags about his old star wars guys from 1977, lent em to me, still hasnt and isnt, getting em back.
Most of the spiffy stuff I get is from friends who lend me crap and forget. Suckers.
Anyone else wanna buy that soundwave mp3 player that can transform? I do. but I wanna know how much space it has.

Ghosted by Richard @ 08/12/2007 5:48 AM EDT

Haha, I’d have to say the best deal I ever managed to get was my completely intact, unscratched, and out of print copy of Oingo Boingo’s Good For Your Soul CD.  I was lucky enough to snag it for only a quarter (which is amazing to me, since it’s selling for around fifty bucks on ebay and the like). 

I also managed to grab up three well worn Boingo shirts for around six dollars at that very same yard sale.

Ghosted by Formaldehyde Fayth @ 08/12/2007 5:52 AM EDT

For my birthday my friend gave me a huge stack of Law and Order Special Victims Unit and Criminal Intent DVDs. He ran into somebody outside a store trying to trade them in and snagged them all for a C note. I haven’t even finished the first season of SVU yet. For some reason I can’t think of any other great deals I’ve gotten. Oh, I picked up a PSP with a memory card and a couple of games for Christmas gifts for way cheap last year. And at the Quiksilver factory outlet store I got this awesome shirt with a ranchero dude on it and a snake and an eagle for like 2 bucks. I love it.

Ghosted by squee4242 @ 08/12/2007 6:08 AM EDT

Back when I used to collect Beanie Babies, I found a store that was selling unopened boxes of the trading cards for like $2. That in itself was a great deal since the single packs were usually at least that, but inside one of the boxes I found a gold Canyon birthday card, one of a hundred made, which I put on eBay and netted a tidy profit from.

Ghosted by Candice @ 08/12/2007 8:28 AM EDT

Heh, the best virtual deal I ever got {World of Warcraft} just occurred. Found the jewelcrafting pattern for Bright Living Ruby on the AH for 6g. Bitch is usually at least 400g.

Ghosted by Candice @ 08/12/2007 8:32 AM EDT

I was at a local toys & collectibles fair about a year or so ago and found a guy selling seriously discounted old DVDs out of his booth. There’s nothing remarkable about the dilapidated copy of “Crimes & Misdemeanors” I snagged for a buck, but what is remarkable is the fact that the fella also had a brand-new copy of the 1st season of the British comedy series “Spaced” on his rack for $10. I can only assume that the guy had no earthly idea of what the show was and that you can’t even find new copies of that damn show on Amazon, but I chose not to ask questions and joyously profitted from his ignorance.

Ghosted by Sassafrasquatch @ 08/12/2007 8:37 AM EDT

I was at Target the other day, looking at Lego sets. They had this big 50 dollar one that was marked down to 34.98. It was one where you could build a house, and I wanted to get it for my mom cause she LOVES building lego houses. Anyhow, I thought I’d get it for her, since it was marked down and she wouldn’t have such a cow over the price. I paid for it, got home and looked at the receipt - it rang up 12 dollars and something. I couldn’t believe it.

I’m always finding deals at work (TRU) though. Sometimes we will find stuff marked down to 1 cent, and occassionally they just let us have it. Today I found some Magnetics marked down to 2.48 from 9.99, plus all clearance stuff is now 20% off.

A long time ago, my mom went to TRU and got me this Sleeping Beauty Barbie doll with her wedding dress on. I don’t know how much it was supposed to be, but I know she was expensive since she was the kind you had to take the ticket up to the register for. Well, she only ended up paying 10 bucks for her. :) That was awesome.

Ghosted by Ryane @ 08/12/2007 9:08 AM EDT

Most of my best deals are probably book-related.  We have a “Friends of the Library Booksale” every year that is HUGE, and I always get lots of cool crap.  Like about 50 old Nintendo Powers for 2 bucks, things like that.

I got Final Fantasy IV Advance for 15 bucks at a lonely Kmart in Sweetwater.  I’ve never seen it (New) for less that 19.99.

I’ve gotten several good deals from a local used record store that prices NES games at 4 bucks–even if they have the box and manual.  Kirby’s Adventure, complete and mint (looked like it had never been used), $4.00

I like to collect old computer stuff, and a friend of mine GAVE me an Apple Powerbook 1400cs (circa 1996) for free.  It had no OS on it, but another friend gave me a copy of OS 8 for free, so I have a working Mac laptop that I spent zero bucks on.

I’m sure I’ll think of more later!  :)

Ghosted by Cameron T. @ 08/12/2007 9:16 AM EDT

i got an h.r. giger life sized 3-d relief of the “alien” hanging on my wall.  it weighs about 40 pounds.  it’s number 524 of 9,500.  it retailed in catalogs 10 years ago for around 900 dollars.  i found a broken one at a thrift store in alabama for 18 dollars.  i fixed it with home made paper mache and spray paint.

Ghosted by nick @ 08/12/2007 9:19 AM EDT

Longtime lurker here… best deal recently… This weekend at Wizard Con in Chciago my wife was asked this trivia question:  “What was Baltar’s title on the original BSG”  She replied “Count”, spun a wheel and hit MEGA PRIZE! She got a crap load of stuff including a tenth anniversary megatron and optimus primal transformers beast wars two pack and a code 3 ROTJ sculpted movie poster… not exactly a “deal” but cool nonetheless!!

Ghosted by Michael @ 08/12/2007 10:06 AM EDT

Yeah, Hoverboard, I’m that Mystie. Ah, to be free to spend my nights making Darkwing Duck galleries and not being torn this way and that by everyone I know. I figure if I play my cards right I might have a couple hours before someone calls me up and tries to drag me away from all the stuff I need to do.

Ghosted by Mystie @ 08/12/2007 10:32 AM EDT

K-Mart, I bought Metroid(classic) for gameboy advance for $2.00, sure it was marked 9.99 so it wasn’t best deal ever but I love you anyway K-Mart.

Ghosted by mrjayberry @ 08/12/2007 10:34 AM EDT

GENUINE Luis Vuitton bag for ten dollars! I had it authenticated.  Some insanely rich woman had a yardsale.

and I used eat fruit yogurt snacks and pudding rollups.  and yes, one rollup brand had seeds.

Ghosted by mandy_reeves @ 08/12/2007 11:10 AM EDT

D20 Modern Core Rulebook, 2.50 because it was “damaged” - there were two small ink spots on the spine

Ghosted by Justin @ 08/12/2007 11:16 AM EDT

I got my first game system when I was six from an older cousin in exchange for my dad to take him out for a round of golf.

his Sega Genesis was minty, the larger version with the headphone plug-in too. came with its box and manuals and all. plus about twelve games. I still have it to this day and can’t think of a better deal I’ve come across yet :)

Ghosted by Dee @ 08/12/2007 11:23 AM EDT

Richard damn, you are one hardcore motherfucker…

Ghosted by Darth Poop @ 08/12/2007 11:23 AM EDT

Damn, I keep double posting, but I have to point out that the figures were actually released in 1978. The early bird special was the only “action figure” product that came out in ’77.

Ghosted by Darth Poop @ 08/12/2007 11:25 AM EDT

Several times I’ve gotten things free because the register was not working right and the clerk just gives up: several times at drive-thru’s, twice for $50 ITunes gift cards, and a few other times for the same reason: broken register system + lazy sales clerk = free for me….

And hey everyone, I miss having not be around much lately.  My internet was down most of last week plus school started back up….

Ghosted by Shuanfu @ 08/12/2007 11:37 AM EDT

I got my Xbox 360 for around $21 from one of those “You’ve won a free _____” banner ads.  Took about 4 months total.  Not a bad deal.

Ghosted by Cid Rain @ 08/12/2007 11:44 AM EDT

My epicly boring tale:

The computer I’m typing this from was the best deal of my life.  I saved my money throughout college to buy a top-of-the-line PC for myself when I graduated.  I drove to the new Gateway store in my town, picked out the nicest machine I could find, and paid with my credit card.  I took it home and plugged it in - but nothing happened.  I got a dud system.  Totally fried out of the box.

So I drove back to the store to swap boxes.  They had JUST closed, but somebody inside saw me with the new box and opened the door for me.  I told them the problem and they went to get another of the same PC to switch me.  They came back and just handed me the computer, no bar code matching or register activity.  Satisfied nonetheless, I took it home and it worked fine.

Months later I realized my credit card was never billed.  I triple-checked my old statements and sure enough, no $1500 charge.  I figured it’d show up a month or two later. 

When that didn’t happen, I tried to hold my excitement about the ordeal.  But one afternoon, my phone rang.  The caller ID said, “GATEWAY PC SERV.”  Oh crap, they busted me.  Oh well, I thought.  I answered the phone and the woman said,

GATEWAY:  “Hi, I’m from the local Gateway Technical Service Desk.  Your PC is fixed and ready to be picked up.”

ME:  “Uhhhhhh, what?”

GATEWAY:  “Your computer.  You can come get it anytime before 5 PM today.  There is no charge, due to the extended warranty you purchased previously.”

ME:  “Okay . . .”

Obviously there was some sort of mistake - I never brought my computer back there.  But after scoring the first freebie, I figured I’d at least go down to the store to see what they THOUGHT was mine. 

I got to the Tech Desk at the store and presented myself.  They went back and got “my” computer along with a receipt.  I looked the machine up and down - it was scratched up, fairly old and used, with Smurfs stickers along the sides of the case.  Ahhhh, this was truly somebody else’s computer.  And it looked loved.  I couldn’t swindle the common man out of a PC. 

“Uhhh, that’s not my computer,” I said.  And I turned and briskly walked out of the store.  As I left I heard the rep calling after me with a very puzzled tone. 

That was 3 years ago.  My computer is still chugging along, but it’s time is sadly almost up.

Ghosted by evil robot ted @ 08/12/2007 12:01 PM EDT

See, Gateway is the site of my WORST deal. I didn’t know anything about computers and I got raped by them. I had that for about 2 years, and the battery went after like 6 months. So, I had a giant clunky desktop of a laptop that was absolutely worthless. Since then I’ve only had one computer (a mac :D) and it’s still running strong. It was less than half the price of that Gateway turd, to boot.

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/12/2007 12:24 PM EDT

I got a $3000 50″ TV for $1600 because it was an open box.  I don’t know if it was a display model or if it was returned, but it works just fine.

Ghosted by spaz307 @ 08/12/2007 12:25 PM EDT

yesterday while doing my 4 mile walk i stopped at a yard sale and picked up mario tennis for gameboy for 1.00 and arcade classics for gameboy advance for 1.00! frogger is the best game on it!

Ghosted by Cathie @ 08/12/2007 1:05 PM EDT

Once in Tokyo I picked up the Sailor Moon Infinity artbook for $40 - it sells on eBay for $500 !

Ghosted by EddyShergar @ 08/12/2007 1:26 PM EDT

about 15 years ago someone had a big screen projection tv on a radio call-in trading post type show.  they didn’t know if it worked but only wanted 20 bucks for it.  i called and went right to their house and bought it, took it home, plugged it in and it worked great.  one of those old ones with the wood cabinet and big curved screen on top.  i used it for a couple of years, finally saved money to buy a new big screen tv, and sold the old one for $350.  best deal ever!

Ghosted by plcary @ 08/12/2007 1:47 PM EDT

At an anime convention I got a DVD of Urusei Yatsura (a great older series popular in the early ’80s; if X-E were based in Japan, it would probably get mentioned a lot) for about $10 or so.  Maybe more.  I just remember it was a pretty decent deal for a DVD.

Ghosted by Andrew @ 08/12/2007 1:49 PM EDT

When I was in 6th grade “Magic: The Gathering” Cards were the shiznit.  Me along with all of my classmates and more than half of the kids I knew were rabid for them.  In my school, the fabled card that was supposedly super rare and special (as told by the upperclassman) was the “Wall of Shadows”. 
This is back around ‘94-’95 when comics were really popular again due to events like the Death of Superman.  So my father would take me to conventions in NYC (still living in Jersey).  It was at one of these conventions that I was digging around in a card bin and found not one but 4 Wall of Shadows cards!!  I couldn’t believe my luck.  What’s more is that the bin was marked “All cards 25 cents” 
I figured that it must be a huge mistake on the venders part.  And I quickly and excitedly bought all four cards. 
When I went back to school on Monday I proudly showed all the 7th and 8th graders my treasure and they all looked on in disbelief and envy that a lowly 6th grader had not one but four copies of what was considered to be the Jimmy Hoffa of all cards.
Later I learned that they were not as rare and valuable as everyone thought, but isn’t value in the eye of beholder anyway?

That’s the best anecdote I can think of.

Ghosted by Joker @ 08/12/2007 1:59 PM EDT

Is it just me, or is anyone else getting a “403 Forbidden” page anytime they tried to comment? That’s why I haven’t been able to comment last night (or very late into the last thread)

Here’s my post:

To say it again:

G1 Jetfire

Flea Market

Guy didn’t know what it was.

Got it for $3.

Threw in Perceptor for another dollar.

Done. Yay. My best deal.

Also got a box full of g1 transformers for $50 at same flea market (just another time) and it had Galvatron, Astrotrain, Dreadwing, Shockwave, and 2 Perceptors, one complete. There was also a GoBot and a diecast yellow Voltron Lion.

Ghosted by Invader Norbert @ 08/12/2007 2:10 PM EDT

I actually have a couple, the first being the Total Justice Hawkman and Superman figures that I picked up for 35 cents a piece at the BXPX in Los Angeles.  Amazingly enough, they were brand new figures at the height of the Total Justice line.  As a big comic collector I’ve often stumbled across killer deals for comics - especially in the quarter bins (as I seem to like the characters no one else even wants to see again - the Scarlet Spider, Prime, electric blue Superman, etc).

The most recent deal came at a yard sale though where I picked up my two and a half year old nephew over 20 rescue heroes, the oil rig/sea port and the aircraft carrier for $20.  It took up almost the entire backseat of my vehicle but it made him extremely happy.

Ghosted by jjwspider @ 08/12/2007 2:31 PM EDT

Ariel-
On a campus of 50k students, the probability of getting back /anything/ you lose is minuscule. No name on it, and I’m not about to hand it over to some other college kid in charge of a lost and found department. How many people go there every day saying “um.. I lost an ipod. Do you guys have one?” So don’t judge me. Anyway, I was doing the ipod a favor. What was on there before was garbage.

Ghosted by Eddie Lightning Frog @ 08/12/2007 3:14 PM EDT

I have an actual standup arcade cabinet which plays Energhiz (A fighting game where you can play as Tifa and Cloud) for 100 bucks at auction … that seemed like a good deal … then again damn thing is HUUUUGE

Ghosted by The Zombie @ 08/12/2007 3:16 PM EDT

The Zombie– Can you play as Sephiroth in that game as well?

Ghosted by Joker @ 08/12/2007 3:19 PM EDT

Red Jack Daniels replica I Dream of Jeannie bottle… $2.

WWII army trunk, complete with 1940’s era airline stickers, the name of the soldier who owned it still stenciled on the top and, inside, his itenerary for September of 1942… $15 at a church garage sale.  I use it as a coffee table and conversation piece… and I keep my board games in it.

I was at an estate sale, looking at some glasses and something fell against my hip.  It was a framed print of a Richard Franklin painting, Antigone… $15. 

A few months later I was at Michael’s and they had a HUGE framed print of another Richard Frankling painting, Flora, $400.  I love pre-Raphaelite art, so I was absolutely drooling over it for almost two years.  One day my parents went in and found they’d marked it down to $200.  The manager just happened to be standing there and overheard my mom remark to my dad that that was the painting I’d been wanting so badly.  He told her they’d been wanting to sell it so they could bring out more pieces to fill the space so he offered to sell it to her for $100.  My mom told him to bring his guys to get it down and that’s how Flora came to be mine.  A $400 for $100.  Not too shabby.

Ghosted by Special K @ 08/12/2007 3:24 PM EDT

I was doing the ipod a favor. What was on there before was garbage.

Hahahaha. ULTRA WIN.

I’m really of two minds on issues like this. On the one hand, I am the kind of guy who will be honest if I’m given too much money in return from a cashier. Mainly because they are usually made to make up the difference themselves. At least, the Colonel had to when he was working at a movie theatre. Same goes, in spirit, for finding a wallet full of money. On the other hand, the iPod incident almost falls into natural selection territory. You lose it, you lose it. Someone loses something, someone finds something. All evens out eventually, I suppose. If this was a perfect world and lost and found agencies were 100% honest and effective, well this would be a perfect world :(:P

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/12/2007 3:25 PM EDT

Hmm…lots of dishonesty coming out on XE! Most distressing.

I am king of deals. Seriously, too many to list. Snagged a HiComplete Valkyrie (Veritech) at a comic shop for $30 when they went for $400 and up…

Got my wife $150 off retail on a KitchenAid Mixer…

Numerous $98 sweaters and clothes for $4 (thanks Dillards!)

Just bought an incomplete Robotech Cyclone I have the pieces to that Im gonna turn on eBay for 200… It goes on and on…

Ghosted by Terror Claws Cole @ 08/12/2007 3:36 PM EDT

BTW - Eddie,

Apple has a database that maintains who iPods belong to based on their serial number. Dollars to doughnuts that that iPod has a serial number you can  look up on Apple.com. It’s really easy to find out whose it is…if you want to.

Just think of ol TCC as the angel on your shoulder.

Ghosted by Terror Claws Cole @ 08/12/2007 3:40 PM EDT

When I was younger - this is pre-NES young, and I’m almost 26 - I used to go garage sale-ing with my grandma on weekends.

Well, one time we found this box - a literal BOX - of Atari 2600 games. I got the lot for -a- buck. There must’ve been two dozen carts in there. Most of them sucked, as it WAS the 2600, but shit, buddy. That’s a score, there. Hell, I’d probably still be happy to score that. Shame my 2600 is missing half its wires and half dead now…

Ghosted by ChibiSoma @ 08/12/2007 3:44 PM EDT

I have a few that spring to mind:

Back in 2004, I got a complete Cobra Terrordrome for only 30 dollars from the local collectible toy store just because the guy knew I was looking for it and he had a few others. I can’t tell you how many times I went in there telling him to keep an eye out for it. It pracitcly became desperation and one day he let me know he had it and it was mine for 30.

Later that year me and my girlfriend at the time went to a flea market in Timonium, MD and found 60 GI Joes for 25 dollars. Including the Gold Headed Brigade Trooper. Yes!

And this past June, I found a mint in open box non-complete and a little yellowed Empire Strikes Back Millenium Falcon for 30 dollars at the Goodwill.

Ooh…and I got a leather jacket in my size (3xlt, I’m 6′6 ya know) at the goodwill for 25 after switching price tags, although that’s cheating. lolz.

Yes.

Ghosted by Rixliss @ 08/12/2007 3:58 PM EDT

Got a Tickle-Me-Elmo for $30 some buck @ Kohl’s that I promptly sold on eBay for $85.

Ghosted by Joe in OH @ 08/12/2007 3:59 PM EDT

My brother and I do a lot of yard sale searching, thrifting, etc., and we’ve turned up more than a few good deals. Here’s just a few I can think of:

-Atari 800 XL system with disk drive, hook-ups, and a TON of games: $20, and one game is worth $22, the other, $18.

-Countless NES/Genesis consoles set-ups. I suppose some could be considered “bad deals” because while we can do without the 50th Sega Genesis, we absolutely must buy every NES we come across.

-A Socrates Edutainment Console from 1988: $4

-A Commodore 64 with disk drive, printer, and some hook-ups: $6 or so I believe. Definitely under $10.

-Atari 5200 original four port version (working), with controllers, hook-ups, and original catalogues: $20.

-Sega Nomad w/carrying case and battery pack: $2 (I talked them down from $5 :-))

-Atari Jaguar in box with controller, but no hook-ups: $6 (and I accidentally fried the system later on :-()

-Atari 7800 system with two controllers, rare original power supply, and one 2600 game worth at least $15: $3.

-An absolute ton of 2600 games, three 2600 systems, one 7800 system, hook-ups, just a huge haul all around: FREE.

Ghosted by Larry @ 08/12/2007 4:12 PM EDT

Urusei Yatsura FTW!!!!!
I got a Magnavox Odessey2 boxed and complete for 10 bucks at a thrift,and my sister just got the Castle Greyskull,Battle Cat,He-Man,Skeletor,and a vehicle from the Four Horsemen He-Man relaunch line for $1.75! Sure,the castle is missing pieces,but battle cat alone is worth that price!

Ghosted by Kid Nicky @ 08/12/2007 4:17 PM EDT

I’ve been getting the 403 error for months

Ghosted by mandy_reeves @ 08/12/2007 4:47 PM EDT

403 errors?

Ghosted by Bill @ 08/12/2007 5:11 PM EDT

I have been getting those for a couple of days and I thought I said something to get myself banned. I didn’t think I did but you never know.

Ghosted by Bill @ 08/12/2007 5:13 PM EDT

Giant Robo VHS for $1.
Atari 7800 with three games $30.

“I’d gladly give up all I got
To catch you I’m gonna run and never stop

I’d pay any price just to win you
Surrender my good life for bad
To find you I’m gonna drown an unsung man

I’d call that a bargain
The best I ever had
The best I ever had”

Ghosted by kingklash @ 08/12/2007 5:38 PM EDT

A few years ago, I snagged a Marvel Legends X-Men box set for £10 from my local comic shop, as the owner had about 2 dozen piling up. I took the exclusive Rogue figure and traded the other 4 to a friend for his NES with 4 controllers, zapper, Advantage, multitap, Game Genie and about 20 games, including the gold cartridge version of Zelda II.
Sold the NES earlier this year - got £40 for it. Sold the Zelda cartridge seperately - £120…

Ghosted by D. Highmore @ 08/12/2007 6:01 PM EDT

got legends ultra magnus and skywarp at target for $9.99 clearance. one went on my shelf, the 2nd on my buddy’s, and the 3rd on e-bay. came out $15 in the blue.

Ghosted by douchebag @ 08/12/2007 7:01 PM EDT

D. Highmore

Is the gold cart version really rare in Europe or something?  $240 bucks is ridiculous for Gold Zelda II.  I paid about 5 for mine.  The gray cart version is supposedly rarer.  Not saying you shouldn’t have aksed for that much, just surprised…

Ghosted by Cameron T. @ 08/12/2007 7:18 PM EDT

The Hastings I go to usually has used VHS tapes for sale for 1 or 2 dollars, and I’ve gotten a bunch of cool tapes there. I’ve bought Shrek, Evolution, The Mask, Roger Rabbit, The Grinch Cartoon, a Rude Dog video, The first Simpsons Christmas special, and a couple of Ren and Stimpy videos there (but not all at once.)

Ghosted by Jake @ 08/12/2007 7:38 PM EDT

Click my name! Do it.  They are going to do Voltron, which probably means that the secret movie is not Voltron.

Ghosted by kb @ 08/12/2007 7:40 PM EDT

Yes, kb, the Colonel told me, and I am so there.

Voltron pwns ALL.

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/12/2007 8:22 PM EDT

I always thought, growing up, that Journey’s song “Oh Sherry” was a song about Voltron. Instead of “Holds On” I thought it was “Voltron.”

Oh Sherry, our love
Voltron, Voltron!
Oh Sherry, our love
Voltron, Voltron!

Ghosted by Bill @ 08/12/2007 8:30 PM EDT

Steve Perry associated with something awesome?!?!?

IT CANNOT BE!!!!!!!

Ghosted by Knegative dedicates this slam to the Colonel @ 08/12/2007 8:38 PM EDT

Best deal ever: backpacking through Hungary in 1991, (their economy was bad so close to the Soviet breakdown), got 5 shirts, a Soviet officer dress hat, 2 fully roasted chickens, a dozen postcards and 2 2-liters of local soda all for $1 US. Which was good as I was broke.
Worst deal: got drunk and Ebayed the full run of the Smurfs Travel Through Time on VCD, thinking I was getting the real show. YAAAY.

Off topic: has anyone seen those Molly-Coolz generic Dippin’ Dots they sell at store ice cream coolers now? We just got them in Florida and they are a very good imitation of the real thing because they use an auxiliary ice pack in the packaging to keep them WAY coldert han ice cream, for $4 for 4 cups! I’m happy. No more waiting for amusement park trips for a Dippin’ Dots fix.

Ghosted by Another Matt @ 08/12/2007 9:12 PM EDT

Same Justin who got the rare NIN cd here,

Actually I also got a free 60 gig video iPod, though in my case it was because it was left in the lost and found for 3 months and the doofus who had it, named it with a bunch of numbers instead of his name or a screenname, so we couldn’t find him. The only thing that would have made it recognizeably not-everyone-else-in-the-worlds’ was how abused the surface was, and the fact that the videos on it were ‘Thriller’, and scrawny ugly white guy on obese ugly black chick; ass licking porn. Screw it, Mr. 6532o9 or whatever didn’t deserve to get the damn thing back. Now it’s dead though. It got fried.

Ghosted by Justin B @ 08/12/2007 10:35 PM EDT

I think I should assure everyone that I thoroughly cleaned that iPod before handling it too much upon viewing it’s contents…

Ghosted by Justin B @ 08/12/2007 10:39 PM EDT

So I’m joining yet another discussion a day late, but I was at a Joan Jett concert last night and I must say she’s still got it.

The best deal I ever got was low-top Chuck Taylor’s for 4 dollars, brand new at JC Penney about 10 years ago. I wore them until they fell apart and was saddened when I had to get another pair and shell out 40 bucks. *sigh*

Ghosted by iAMYou @ 08/12/2007 10:39 PM EDT

I once went through the drive through at a Steak n Shake and got my shake for free since the wait was long. :D

Ghosted by aaa @ 08/12/2007 10:44 PM EDT

When I was in college I bought a pack of Dragonball Z ccg cards ($3) and pulled an ultra rare card which I then turned around and sold on ebay for $165.  That it all happened right before Christmas made it even better for a cash strapped student.

Ghosted by kingartie @ 08/12/2007 11:38 PM EDT

One time, about 3 years ago, my fiancee and I were going to meet some friends at a local restaurant, and when I got out of the car, I kicked a pack of Newports that were laying in the parking lot, and as the pack flipped over, i saw a five dollar bill tucked into the cellophane. Picking up the pack, I opened it to find, not damp Newports, but $2,160, rolled and rubberbanded, along with a small bag of some mysterious powder.  Of course, being an upstanding citizen, I promptly reported it to the police, and forgot about it.
Ok, I gave each of our friends $150 each, paid off some bills, and dropped like $800 on the guitar I had coveted for a decade plus.
Normally, I would feel terribly guilty about something like this, but if you can’t rip off drug dealers with a clean conscience, then who can you?  maybe the government, on unreported taxes…  It’s a good thing that I turned it in to the proper authorities, then, right?  Right?

Ghosted by p@rick @ 08/12/2007 11:43 PM EDT

P@rick, I would have done the exact same thing. Good for you.

Ghosted by Bill @ 08/12/2007 11:46 PM EDT

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is on ABC Family right now.  Turtles 2 is up next.  Thought y’all might like to know.

The musical score is so ridiculously corny.  Mostly it sounds like a Top Gun ripoff.  According to the DVR, the movie was released in 1990.  I was just a little old for it (12 or 13, depending on the month).  However, it still is a totally funny nostalgia kick.

Ghosted by spaz307 @ 08/13/2007 12:17 AM EDT

Damn, mine can’t match p@rick’s, but…

I ended up returning some books on CD I recieved as gifts to a Borders and ended up getting enough store credit to get a 30GB  video iPod.

As far as actual bargains, Staples are always good for computer stuff. A few weeks ago my new 19″ widescreen LCD monitor cost $130 marked down from $240, and a scanner I got from the same store was $50 marked down from $150.

Ghosted by Shawn @ 08/13/2007 12:20 AM EDT

A couple years back some guy (who obviously lost his job afterwards) from the IBM website marked a $2500 laptop onsale for $204.
Me and some friends got wind of it and bought as many as we could thinking ‘Crazy!?!’

Anyways, IBM issued a statement later apologising for the mistake - it was supposed to be ‘Marked’ down $204, not for sale for that price. Anyways, this statement was sent to everyone’s email account.

Unfortunately for IBM - whoever sent the email out (to the 80 ppl that managed to buy it before it was pulled) sent it with everyone’s email details visible to everyone else on the mailing list. This is obviously HIGHLY against privacy policies so some smarty made a complaint to the consumer group and got the article in the newspaper so to avoid the big fuss IBM ended up honouring their mistake and providing us all with $2500 laptops for $200!!

The irony that made me giggle my bottom off:
As I sat there unwrapping my brand new shiny laptop (mind you I had no money for a couch or anything but a laptop I was willing to splash money out for)I switched it on for the first time and a lovely intro message pops up

‘IBM - committed to protecting your privacy’

oh yes IBM, you sure are.. that’s why I got this thing so cheap!

That’s about it for me really

Ghosted by TP @ 08/13/2007 12:40 AM EDT

Once I pulled into an AM PM and bought five bucks worth of gas (just enough to make it seem like I didn’t go as far as I did so my parents would continue to believe a *little* lie I told them. Shh.) But then the guy accidentally gives me twenty bucks premium. He felt terrible, and payed for the 15 I didn’t mean to spend.
So I got 15 bucks worth of free gas, which filled my tank. The downside was that then I had to explain why the tank was full to my parents… :(

Ghosted by Zud @ 08/13/2007 12:49 AM EDT

Okay, I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen TMNT 2 before, but I’m watching the beginning before bed.  I saw a one-liner that I feel like I somehow need to work into my conversation tomorrow.  At some point, I will need to scream “Combat coldcuts!”

Ghosted by spaz307 @ 08/13/2007 1:12 AM EDT

When I was about eight, I literally stumbled across 80 bucks in cash in an underground parking lot! Wind blew a 20 my way, then another, then another, then ANOTHER! I looked around for a possible owner and waited a while, but when no-one claimed it, I went into the mall and bought myself some shiny new figurines. I can’t remember what they were now (possibly Transformers), but who cares? They were bought with free parking lot money!

Ghosted by Kamuke @ 08/13/2007 3:48 AM EDT

Oh crap, french toast and bacon? What the hell is wrong with me? I got loads and loads of Intellevision games, the system and Intellivoice add-on. In the selection of games was Congo Bongo, complete. Two auctions on ebay right now have it going for $150.00 and $175.00. Lots of other rarities, along with some being two copies, one sealed . I’m pretty sure I bought some sorry kids collection from his stupid attic space conscious mom.

Ghosted by dohopoki @ 08/13/2007 5:45 AM EDT

A professor of mine saw a few of my tiny Star Trek models on my desk one day, and he said he had some Star Trek stuff he wouldn’t mind getting rid of, as they were just taking up space in his garage.  So I went to his house and he pulls out 4 large boxes of various Star Trek collectibles.  I really wanted it all, but was scared as to how much it would cost me.  My professor looks at his wife and says “What price do you think is fair?  $20?”  I nearly fainted.  I went from having 6 miniature ships to over 80 figures (20 MOC!) among other items, instantly making my Star Trek collection almost as large as my Star Wars collection which I’ve been collecting my entire life!

Ghosted by doubleofive @ 08/13/2007 8:58 AM EDT

You know when you’re checking out at Wal-Mart, that big bin of terrible DVDs for $1?  Well, they’re almost universally overpriced pieces of crap, even at $1.  But one magical day, my eyes scanned over the DVDs and I saw - Night of the Living Dead!  The original classic movie, on DVD, for a dollar!  I was jazzed about that one.

Ghosted by tanta07 @ 08/13/2007 9:21 AM EDT

I forgot to say how much that stuff cost me, it was a dime.

Ghosted by dohopoki @ 08/13/2007 9:50 AM EDT

Oh man, Patton Oswald made the greatest Star Wars joke about Chyna (sp?) on the Flavor Flav roast. Too funny.

Ghosted by squee4242 @ 08/13/2007 11:01 AM EDT

Flavor Flav needs more than a roast. He needs Chuck D’s boot up his ass.

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/13/2007 11:17 AM EDT

So, Some SSBB news: There’ll be a Pokemon trainer character who switches between Ivysaur, Squirtle, and Charizard.

Why not Ash? Why not May? Why not Dawn? What is with these no-name trainers anyway. There is no reason to give anyone the choice of playing a no-name guy if the girl is the real one who’s going to be featured in the anime anyway.

Stupid gender ideas and masculinity. Anyone who uses Lucas is an idiot :P Hikari, ftw.

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/13/2007 11:47 AM EDT

I got a stack of OLD Sesame Street 45 RPM records at a garage sale for like 50 cents each….I mean these were old, when Oscar was still orange before the green we know now.

Ghosted by Melissa Y. @ 08/13/2007 12:41 PM EDT

I thought of another great deal.  I was drooling over a pair of $300 RayBans for months but just could not bring myself to spend the money on them since I was just a teenager and my job was not the highest paying.  One night after work I was walking to my car and I spotted a bag under my driver side, kinda under my tire but not quite so I looked around to make sure there was no one in the area waiting to attack me (safety first) and then picked up the bag (jumped in my car and locked the doors…again safety first).  It turned out to be the same pair I had wanted!  Someone had bought them, paid cash according to the receipt, and promptly dropped the bag on the way to their car.  I had that pair for years and I would like to thank my anonymous donor.  They looked good on me!  Few things can trump a pair of RayBans from the Gods!

Ghosted by Cricket @ 08/13/2007 12:47 PM EDT

Time to check some of your local stores, fellow posters!  It’s nearing the end of the Quarter, and the shelves at my Wal-Mart are getting re-arranged.  Clearance racks are popping up, and that means that Hallowe’en isn’t that far away from getting an all-too-short section in the store.  Support your local All Hallows’, it shows we do have power over the Dark!

Ghosted by kingklash @ 08/13/2007 1:11 PM EDT

magic toy - i dunno if body count sampled psycho or not but i know busta rhymes had a pretty big hit that was just a loop of the psycho theme with some drums, this would’ve been a bit later than 93 though (probably 95-97)

Ghosted by worldofbong @ 08/13/2007 4:13 PM EDT

Cricket - Your story doesn’t so much sound like a “great deal” as “taking property that’s not yours.”  Although in the grand scheme of things, taking something for free might be the best deal of all.