The thrill of the hunt is pretty great, but you know what’s even better? Gambling! Thrift shop gambling to be precise.
Shopping at thrift stores is a guilty pleasure of mine — like the good man says, it’s f*%king awesome. They’re basically year-round yard sales, and you know how I like a good yard sale! The items I find at thrift stores rarely make it into my personal collection, but you just never know what you’re going to find.
Lately, I’ve been on a bit of a lucky streak when it comes to the thrift stores. The other day, I came across a huge bag of toys. Nothing that I could see looked all that exciting, so why did I buy it? For the gamble, of course! Who knows what treasures lie packed within those clear vinyl walls? It clearly had the makings for an episode of “What’s in the Box?” and it was only five bucks, so what did I have to lose? Roll them bones!
Side note: my kids love this stuff! I can still justify buying these bulk lots because I have two boys who enjoy the toys that I’m not interested in keeping — that’s right, Dad gets first dibs. Honestly, this hasn’t been an issue yet, but now that my kids are “all-in” when it comes to Star Wars, we may be coming to a crossroads.
So, what was in the bag?
A whole lot of Bakugons and Rescue Heroes, which are still awesome toys for boys. I can see middle-aged men scrounging around for these 30 years from now in an effort to recapture their youth. Sure, go ahead and laugh now — my kids are going to have crates of these things in their attic, and will be happy to sell them to your kids.
The best item in the bag was a Godzilla figure, which had me shouting “dibs” as soon as the bag was opened. This guy is worth twice what I paid for the whole bag, so the rest is just cream on the top.
There were some wrestlers that I know nothing about. I haven’t followed wrestling since the days of Ricky the Dragon Steamboat and Rowdy Roddy Piper — before anything called the WWE even existed. There were also a few dinosaurs, and a really large arm from some massive figure.
You’ll ALWAYS find trash in these bags and boxes. This one had some feathers and a toy laptop that was leaking battery acid, but overall it wasn’t too bad. In total, I could probably resell the contents of the bag on eBay for around $60-70, which will cover the costs for what I really want.
Like I said earlier, I rarely find items for my own collection, but things were different this day.
This Warthog jeep from the Halo video game franchise was just sitting on the top of a display rack, drenched in a cool beam of blue fluorescent light, calling to me. The price: 99 cents.
I found a stack of unopened View-Master reels, including three that hit me squarely in my collecting gut. I (over)paid $5 each for these! In a few weeks, these will probably be marked down to 50 cents each, and that’s when I’ll go back and scoop up the other 20 reels that featured pop culture properties that didn’t interest me quite so much.
These 1981 PVC Garfield figures are so great. A collector obviously dropped off the whole set, and this collector was happy to scoop them up.
I also found a basket filled with these die cast figures. These things are barely worth their own weight, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave them behind. They’ll make for good freebies for people who buy stuff.
Here’s something I just keep shaking my head about — a matted sheet of Legends of Baseball postage stamps for $0.58. The last time I looked, postage stamps are legal tender, so basically I bought $6.60 for $0.58. It’s almost as if the government was running this thrift store! The stamps aren’t really collectible, so I’ll probably end up using these when I mail in my bills (yes, I still use the mail).
But wait, it gets even better…
Five vintage She-Ra figures in amazing condition, with most of their accessories. On a good day, some of these figures could sell for up to $35 each on eBay, so this lot was an absolute steal for $10 — totally worth the funny look the Asian lady gave me when I brought them up to the counter!
I wonder if there’s a gamblers anonymous for thrift store hunters? At least with thrift shop gambling, you usually come out ahead. Have you taken a chance on any thrift store goods lately?
Nice haul! That’s a Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes from the Sigma 6 line, right? Very cool!
I never find anything cool like that. I don’t know if it’s a geographical thing (kids around here tend to be more huntin’ and fishin’ and outdoorsy) or whether somebody else is beating me to the good stuff!
Yep, those are Sigma 6 figures above the wrestlers. I’m fortunate to live in an area with a lot of people moving in and moving out, so the thrift stores and yard sales tend to be pretty good.
Nice score! Those PVC Garfield toys are very cool, so jealous.
Some great finds. I love to see scores like these.
I think that loose arm might go to a PITT action figure….maybe. Great grab of stuff really to make the whole family happy.
Yeah, I think that is a PITT BAF arm from the Legendary Comic Book Heroes line from a few years ago.
Yep, that’s definitely Pitt’s arm from the Legendary Heroes line. I’d love to have the whole thing, he was such a cool character.
I’m intrigued by those Terminator Die-Cast figures, especially since they seem like they’re articulated. I’ve never seen them before.
I used to come across some good deals in my local thrift store, but things have dried up lately. I still go though, in the hopes I’ll come across a find like this.
I spoke too soon. The Terminator and Robocop figures aren’t die cast, they’re plastic with a little articulation.
Sweet! That arm seems to go for ten bucks. Let me know if you need it. 😉
Nice scores! Were there any Princess of Power or MOTU VIew-Master reels? Asking for a friend. (Ha!)
Those Princess of Power figures look like they’re in decent condition. Entrapta’s hair is still braided, which is a miracle. Glimmer’s vest is on backwards and she’s missing her tiara (she almost always is), but they look great. I’m curious–does Mermista (the mermaid) have a shell thing pegged into her back?
I don’t think thee were any Princess of power reels but I’ll check again the next time I go back.
There is a shell attached to Mermista’s back. All of those figures are in really great condition. Did you need any of these Stacey?
I could actually use the Mermista. I have one, but she is missing the shell, and her hair is salty from when the original owner took her to the beach as a kid.
I hate you guys that live in the states. I guess that means most bloggers…HAHA. Jeez…Those are scores I could only WISH I would find down here.
Ha! And I’m sitting here wishing I was able to go to the shops in Mexico to scoop up the cheap bootleg toys. 😉
wow cool finds id love those die casts nice haul
Fantastic scores all around.
I’m especially jealous of those View-Master reels, and knowing that you left a bunch behind..!
They were easy to leave behind at $5 each. I doubt there are many people looking for those at this particular store, so I’ll just wait and see if the price drops on the rest.
-“my kids are going to have crates of these things in their attic, and will be happy to sell them to your kids.” HILARIOUS and so true.
-I have very fond memories of those die-cast batman toys, very cool
-If you buy up the rest of those view master reels (and decide to unload some) I’d prob be interested! I love those things.
Nice scores! I gotta get in on this thrifting! By the way, been meaning to ask what you thought of Thrift Hunters.
I love Thrift Hunters! I’ve actually learned a lot from it — I bought six Harley Davidson t-shirts last week and flipped them for 10 times what I paid. I never even wandered into the clothing section before watching the show — not sure if this is a good direction to be heading but it’s fun! 😉
Why can’t I find stuff like this at any thrift store I go to? I would KILL for those View Masters and Batman die cast figures. Nice haul.
As a Yankees collector, the thought of you using those stamps for mailing is upsetting. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig alone would have made me yank that set off the shelf, but Roberto Clemente would be the icing on the cake for me.
Hi just wanted to know if u still have that larg right arm that u have on that picture with the wrestlers
I still have it. Make me an offer! I’m happy to ship to U.S. addresses.