Joysticks that self center

[Joysticks that self center]

My vote goes for the Comp Pros, great stick. That or the Sega Genesis adapters that Prodos makes.

 

Also, the Trak-ball is a must have as well.

[The Official "Thrift finds" Thread]

I've asked this before and no one answered me, but can you get sticks OUT of the Stick Stands?

It's a snug fit, but gently tugging on the cable pops them out.

[Renting a case at a local re-seller store, Lansing, MI area]

Not sure if any AA'ers have been shopping my booth, but thank you if you have! Just wanted to let you guys know that I've up the discount to 25% off the listed prices now through October.

 

Some stuff has sold (like the Pokemon GBC, go figure!) but I've added some new stuff too.

[The Official "Thrift finds" Thread]

FINALLY found some decent Atari stuff this summer at a flea market. I can't believe how dry it's been really, and this was the last one of the year.

 

Atari light sixer, with 28 games, all with manuals, 4 joysticks, 2 sets of paddles, and a few nice extras! Actually, the Stick Stands and the Vid-Tari cover are what sold me since I didn't have them, although the whole set is in great condition. He was asking $75 for the lot, talked him down to $50, so a good deal all around!

 

From another vendor, a big bag of over 55 misc Nintendo manuals, some N64, a lot of GBA, a real mix. Was asking $15, got it for $10.

 

From the same guy, I also picked up the complete series of Babylon 5 + the 5 movie set on DVD. Great condition, 100% complete. Was asking $10 each set, got all 6 for $50. Pretty good seeing the lot would go for around $125 on ebay. I watched B5 on and off when it was on the air originally, I liked it, but never made an effort to keep up with it. Hasn't been any good sci-fi on TV in a while, so I thought I'd give it a go! I also picked up a bunch of CD's from him for $1 each.

 

I had a pretty cool Goodwill score last week too, not even sure how I came to pick them up but I'm glad I did. I found a pair of authentic Ray-ban sunglasses (model W1677) just sitting on a shelf. I know Ray-bans aren't cheap, so I figured they had to be worth the $2 they were asking! Yeah, turns out these are a $250 pair of shades new, and they are in used but very nice shape. I'll bet I can flip em for at least $50.

 

Not a bad ending to a pretty weak yard sale / flea market season I suppose.

[Rediscovered my Atari 2600]

I have two of the guns...they aren't LIS, but the same gun, minus the hood. Remco had a thing about recycling the same old molds as different properties.

Cool, I think yours is older. Love the compass! The LIS version doesn't have that.

[Rediscovered my Atari 2600]

The Remco B9 is my favorite toy robot ever, being the fan of LIS that I am. Here is a better shot of them.

 

I just picked up a headless Remco B9 a few weeks ago! He's in great shape otherwise (the lights and motor work), and he was only $10! Add a little upside down fishbowl, and he doesn't look half bad. Maybe I'll turn him into a lamp.

 

I also picked up a Remco LIS pistol at an antique market last month. It originally came with a helmet in a set. It's missing a clear plastic lens on the body, but for $4, I couldn't pass it up.

 

Those Roberts look original, aren't they? I have the repro from a couple of years back, and he's actually really nice, but I'd like to get an original.

 

Space toys are awesome, but the vintage ones are just crazy expensive. I'm really grateful for companies like Schylling and Rocket USA for putting a lot into great reproductions.

[The Official "Thrift finds" Thread]

Fortunately, the brighter screen also comes in a dark charcoal grey. My wife has the blue one though, she hated the pink one!

[Rediscovered my Atari 2600]

Here is one wall in my living room.

 

Wowee wowwow, that's some robot collection! I thought mine was impressive! That's a lot of Remco B9's you got there, and do I see two Ideal Roberts there? Very cool. With my budget, I'm generally stuck buying repros, but I have a few vintage as well.

[The Official "Thrift finds" Thread]

Been too lazy to post every week, so here are my meager finds for the past month or two:

 

Tomy brand Pac-Man Magnetic Maze game. Completely mechanical game where the stick tilts the board around and the little guys are on rollers. It's not 100% complete, but it was free!

 

Original model PSP with 10 games, 3 movies, 4GB stick, backpack case, ect. In excellent condition, only $25 for the set at a yard sale.

 

Wipeout Pure for PSP, CIB - $2 thrift store

 

Spindizzy Worlds with manual and weird NES Quickshot controller $3.00 for both at a yard sale. At same sale I also picked up a Star Trek Enterprise pizza cutter with box for only $1! It's normally $20 at Thinkgeek.

 

Sears Telegames Pong Sports II with manual - $8.00 at an antique store, really nice too.

 

Fairchild Channel F System II with very rough box - $25.00 at an antique store. System looks to be in good shape, powers on to boot screen, but wont load the built in games. No carts to test further, yet.......

 

Oh, this was a nice find: at yet another antique store, I see a big box for Lethal Enforcers for the Sega Genesis. Now, I know this comes with the blue gun for player one, but I already have that. So, as I'm opening the box and slide out the tray, I'm chanting "pink gun, pink gun, pink gun..." and lo and behold, it's the player two PINK GUN! I literally changed it from the blue gun to the pink gun WITH THE POWER OF MY MIND. Oh, and it was $15 for the set.

 

Let see, at a Goodwill, I found a bunch of GB and GBA Pokemon games - GB, Red, Blue and Silver, and GBC Crystal, as well as GBA Ruby, Sapphire, 2 copies of LeafGreen. Amazingly, they were only $1.99 each (at a Goodwill?!) and they weren't locked up, just on a shelf. These should net me a nice little profit!

 

That's all the game stuff for now. I've found some cool non-game stuff I'll post later.

[The Official "Thrift finds" Thread]

Not a game, buy a toy. It's a Tomy Crackbot from 1985, still with its original box. I made a video last night when I just got it.

 

That's sweet, I love the Tomy robots and have quite a few too. I also have Crackbot, but just the bot, not the box.

 

Where did you find him?

[Starpath awesomeness]

Hold on there partner, I think it depends on what revision of the 7800 you have. Some have compatibility issues similar to how some 7800's have trouble with some Activision games, like Decathlon and Robot Tank.

 

 

Ah, beat me to it!

[Most young retro gamers I know dismiss anything before NES]

Good, more for us without the inflated prices.

[What do you guys store your games in?]

I use a bunch of these:

• 5 Drawers
  
• Cherry Wood Top
  
• Includes 4 casters for mobility
  
• Dimensions: 40.75" H x 21.75" W x 16.125" D
  

[Renting a case at a local re-seller store, Lansing, MI area]

Heeeyyy, how have you been? Nah, my stuff is twice as nice at half the price! Seriously, it's no wonder that guy went out of business.

[How to organize my game?]

ALL my games are A-Z, I'm not concerned who published them. For games without end labels, I use a Brother P-Touch label maker.

[Renting a case at a local re-seller store, Lansing, MI area]

Well, I'm not sure if raising prices will work out. To be honest, I've been in there for over a month, and sales have been a little slow. Good thing I don't have to make a living at this!

[Renting a case at a local re-seller store, Lansing, MI area]

Yeah, usually I sell system bundles, but I thought I'd give this a try. I think the prices are fair, but I'd be interested in opinions on the subject! The rent isn't too bad, but still I do want to make some money.

[Renting a case at a local re-seller store, Lansing, MI area]

Any remember, the prices you see are before the 20% discount, thanks!

[Renting a case at a local re-seller store, Lansing, MI area]

Like most of you, I end up with a lot of extra stuff that I need to resell. Normally I sell stuff on Craigslist, but there is a local antique/collectibles mall that rents out booths and showcases and I thought I'd give that a try. For those outside of the Lansing, MI area, please understand that the main reason I sell local is to I hate ship stuff. Plus, I prefer local in case there are any issues, it's much easier to resolve.

 

Any questions, please ask!

 

I've got this posted on CL, so I'll just copy/paste here:

 

Atari, Vectrex, Sega, Nintendo, PS1 RPG's and More at the Mega Mall (Mega Mall Showcase 33- Lansing)

 

Come and check out our new case at the Mega Mall! We are collectors with too much, so we need to unload so we can get more.

 

Just added:

Sega Saturn stuff, including a 100% complete in box Model 1 Sega Saturn System. Just like it came from the store, with all the inserts, paperwork, even the little sticker sheets!

 

Also available, a very nice copy of the very rare Saturn Bomberman in excellent condition!

 

Original Playstation RPG games, too much to list!

 

Nintendo Gameboy Color Pokemon Edition with Pokemon Red and Pokemon Crystal games, both with manuals.

 

And don't forget:

TONS of Atari 2600 games! We have over 150 2600 games with manuals most of them $3.00 or less, over 50 loose games, many $1.50 or less!

 

Rare items like an original Atari 2600 Indy 500 in gatefold box with the Atari logo driving controllers, plus boxed games, both sealed and not.

 

Vectrex games, Sega 32x games, and even a Nintendo Virtual Boy..

 

Also, a Vintage Coleco Donkey Kong table top arcade game, and a vintage Pocket Simon as well as vintage View-masters and reels and other toys!

 

We'll but putting more in all the time, but don't miss out! To celebrate our grand opening, EVERYTHING IS 20% OFF THE MARKED PRICES!

 

We are in Showcase #33 in the front row in Lansing's Largest antique and collectible mall, The Mega Mall.

 

Mega Mall

15487 Old US 27

Lansing, MI 48906

Open 7 days, 11am - 6pm

 

Thanks for looking!

[Something I noticed about the VCS system box art......]

Ok, besides the fact that it's a weird franken-system with a heavy bottom and four switch top, something caught my eye after 30 years of owning this box.

 

 

Give up? Not one picture shows someone holding an actual 2600 controller of ANY kind. In ALL of the pics, they are holding Pong controllers, specifically Sears Tele-games Pong paddles. Weird huh?

 

Anyone see that before? I can't be the first!

[Fake Craigslist yard sale postings: or, "sumguy" hits a new low.]

I'd say the worse I'll stoop to is if the ad for a sale is several days in advance, I'll email them and ask if they would let me take a look before the sale. The only reason I do that is because I have a Monday-Friday job, and a LOT of sales start on Fridays. I rarely ever get a response, but the one time someone said yes, I picked up my sealed "Promotional Use Only" 2600 from them, plus a ton of other stuff. I'm sure some would think that was a sneaky thing to do, but the seller got their money just the same, so they were happy, and I was happy.

[How many people...]

^{Facing the cold hard facts, my gaming items are just a collection at this point. I used to be a gamer. It was a significant part of my life. With age and more responsibilites (work, married life, etc.) my time to play anything in my collection is pretty much gone. I will still find a little time every few weeks or so for newer games on the xbox or Wii, but sadly, all my vintage items are just showpieces.}

 

I hear you man, but there is nothing wrong with collecting for the sake of it. I collect a lot of other stuff besides videogames, like old robots and space toys, but I don't "play" with them exactly! I just think they are cool.

[Fake Craigslist yard sale postings: or, "sumguy" hits a new low.]

I'm on the fence for most of this. It's hard to say that a dealer is ripping someone off if the customer willingly make a purchase. It's not like we are talking about the last loaf of bread in town. I feel most people get ripped off on just about everything compared to myself, but that's because I consider myself a smart shopper. I don't blame the store though, I blame the customer.

 

If a dealer is charging more than I want to pay for a game, and they aren't willing to haggle, I don't buy it, simple. Maybe they will find a customer that wants it more than I did, or one that doesn't have the patience I do. More power to 'em I say.

 

As far as messing with dealers, I don't see the point either. Many of us are pickers because we want to build our collection cheaply, or there are those who do it simply to make a living. I personally am on the collecting side, but have to sell extras to make room and pay expenses of being a collector (gas, whatnot.) On the other hand, I know another guy in town who is a 100% re-seller, and that's how he makes his living. He knows games (mostly Nintendo and later) as well as 80's toys, so that's what he focuses a lot of his time on. He's beat me to a lot of sales over the years, and I him. Sure it's annoying, but that's part of the game too. I know I wouldn't want to do that for a living myself as I'm sure it's crazy work for not a ton of money.

[What's your most valuable cart?]

I imagine some of you have some pretty valuable carts, and I want to see what your most valuable is.

 

Yeah, and your address and work hours too.....yeah...........

 

I don't know, I guess Smurfs Save the Day with the Kid Vid is probably the most valuable thing I own personally or at least the rarest off hand.

 

Forgot about this thread, and can update it to my CIB copy of Rescue Terra I from VentureVision.

[The Official "Thrift finds" Thread]

 

For me... it is just worth going to a few on-line sources that I know won't rake me over the coals to get what I really want. I may end up paying more in the short term, but in the long term, I am not wasting gas and time. Those count for something.

 

I understand what you mean to a point, but the hunt is part of the fun for me. I think of it in terms of what fishing was to my dad. He went all the time, whenever he could anyway. He even goes ICE FISHING in the UP of Michigan, so you know he's hard core. More often than not, he would catch fish, bring it home, and we'd eat it for dinner. It's not like we couldn't just buy it, but that wasn't the point to him.

 

It also depends on if you resell or not. Hunting in the wild, you can find all kinds of crazy stuff, not just game stuff, that you can resell and more than make up for what ever gas you spent. If you keep everything you buy, then it could end up being a pretty expensive hobby.

 

Usually I can pick up a lot cheap, cherry pick what I want, clean it up, test it and sell what's left for more than I paid. And I know I'm not the only one around here that does that.

 

For the most part, in spite of having a pretty extensive collection, I'd say at worst I'm at the break even point. So in a way, my collection hasn't really cost me anything!