Going to start collecting vintage consoles. How should I go about it Ebay?

[Locut0s]

I've wanted to collect vintage gaming hardware for some time now. Think what the Angry Nintendo Nerd shows off in his videos. NES, Atari2600, SNES, Sega Genesis etc.. and a library of games. I'm going to start off slow but I'm determined to build up a small collection. Question is what would be the best way to go about obtaining older consoles. Ebay, local pawn shops and flee markets or other?

Anyone have positive or negative experiences in this area?

 

[KaOTiK]

I've done the flea market and ebay as well as some personal game trading sites to get some of my consoles and games. I am extremely picky as I want everything that it came with when you bought it new, box and all and it good condition. Haven't had a bad experience. Everything I bought online I asked for lots of pictures of everything to make sure it was up to my standards.

 

[JPB]

In my local pawn shop browsing systems a few weeks back, they had a 3DO system for $40 and it looked new. And they also had a Sega Dreamcast for $35....and it was new in the box and sealed.

Though about picking them up, but haven't yet.

 

[Locut0s]

Originally posted by: JPB
In my local pawn shop browsing systems a few weeks back, they had a 3DO system for $40 and it looked new. And they also had a Sega Dreamcast for $35....and it was new in the box and sealed.

Though about picking them up, but haven't yet.

Wow if real those sound like really good deals. Especially the 3DO.

 

[JPB]

Yep, it was the 3DO. I remember it because it said Panasonic on the drive door.

It was this.

Probably cheap because we live in a really small town. Most people probably don't even know what these two items are

 

[Locut0s]

Originally posted by: JPB
Yep, it was the 3DO. I remember it because it said Panasonic on the drive door.

It was this.

Probably cheap because we live in a really small town. Most people probably don't even know what these two items are

That baby cost 700 bucks in 1993/94 dollars! And we complain that the PS3 is expensive!

 

[CasioTech]

the DC NIB for $35 was a sweet deal. They used to go for a lot on amazon but now they go for like $90

 

[Soundmanred]

There's a few people here on the FS/FT forums that are looking to unload. I've sold most of my good stuff, but have some things left if you're interested.

 

[Frodolives]

Flea markets, yard sales and thrift stores are great IF you have the time! Tons of old cartridges are to be found at bargain prices for less than the cost that you'd pay for the shipping alone on ebay. Our AT fs/ft forum would be a more likely place than ebay to get a nice multiple item bargain, and a wtb list would probably help.

I probably don't have to tell you that the majority of NES still around have bad cartidge slots by now, but you can either afford systems or part systems for $5 until you get a winner, or buy a replacement slot for something like $18 plus shipping. If N64 is on your list, be sure that the console has at least the jumper pack in the slot, and all the better if it has the delicious red candy center (4mb expansion memory)

A lot of controller problems can be solved by disassembly and cleaning or a bit of soldering, but for units that have an analog thumb stick such as the n64, pay attention to whether it has become loose and worn out. You can buy a replacement thumb stick for around $12 plus shipping if you really must

A trade show would be a fun solution if you could find a regional one, but prices would be higher overall. http://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/ (for instance)

My hat is off to our AT fs/ft traders who offer components, but I enjoy trading the hardware locally and there is plenty of interest in it, so I have no incentive to take on the stresses of long distance trades. I would check out a persons wtb list for games though.

Pardon me if I rambled beyond what you asked, but as this is a hobby of mine I do have a lot of experience, and can provide some links and reference material in some areas of interest to you if you like. Just shoot a pm sometime!

 

[Baked]

Don't forget the Neo Geo console. Man, that thing was uber expensive when it came out. TurboGrafx-16 as well. Use to go to the mall every weekend to play TurboGrafx-16 at the display stations. Good times.

 

[jman19]

Originally posted by: Baked
Don't forget the Neo Geo console. Man, that thing was uber expensive when it came out. TurboGrafx-16 as well. Use to go to the mall every weekend to play TurboGrafx-16 at the display stations. Good times.

I used to rent the Neo Geo and a few games sometimes with my cousins when I was younger... good times.

 

[ric0chet06]

In my experience, ebay is expensive. I looked around on craigslist and got a N64 w/ 8 games, 2 controllers for $50, and that would've gone for over $100 on ebay. But, if you want the boxes and everything else, i guess that's where you'll have to start.

 

[DannyLove]

I also recommend flea markets and computer tech shows. Here in So Cal, the Rose Bowl hosts a flea market the first or second Sunday of each month. You'll find so much crap there its amazing. I've seen old school toys and video games.

Also, Computer Fairs also have a selection of old games, normally used. Check your local newspapers / penny savers. I'm sure you can find something.

I think I have my nintendo and genesis back at my parents home

 

[tw1164]

I checkout gamesniped.com to see some the of more interesting collectible auctions on eBay.

 

[imported_Imp]

I have a SNES, Gameboy original, Gameboy Advance, Sega original, Sega Genesis and Sega CD somewhere in my house. That's half your collection... We may even have an Atari. No idea what the are worth.

Unfortunately you live 4 provinces away.

 

[Frodolives]

I have an open box/new and complete NES action pack system with all of the original packaging and documents intact. I'll probably save it for another 10 years and then take it to a trade show

That's not just gloating though. The thing is, I got it for a song by going to yard sales. I can't account for why the lady who had held onto it had never returned it when new, but apparently it hadn't worked because of a misaligned plastic catridge slot component that I easily recognized and replaced from my NES morgue. The slot itself was of course PERFECT as it had never worked for her before.

Just this weekend a girl at a yard sale tried to give me both an NES and a Gamecube console for FREE simply because of missing components. I paid her a bit for them anyway, but she even added all of the NES carts she had left into the bag. I had just traded my only copy of Super Mario Brothers 2, and one came back to me

Want more flea market stories? That same morning I had taken some classic gaming stuff to an impromptu flea market and a nice boy brought me an N64 system plus 2 games he wanted to trade for credit towards some stuff he wanted from me. I gave him what I thought was a generous credit with which he bought from me 4 games and a Steamboy (anime) dvd. The games I gave him were pretty good too, including a NIB/sealed original edition Starcraft, a retail boxed classics edition Alpha Centauri and so on.

The system I got from him had no controller, and the reset button had been scarred by his dad using a screwdriver on it (instead of just cleaning up the coke spill lol, not the first time I've seen that). But it did have a nice universal rf adaptor and the 2 game titles were good (Diddy Kong Racing and Vigilante 8), even if soiled and with imperfect labels. It wasn't until I got home that I realized it also included the memory expansion module. YAY!

Eh, I'm rambling, but I know that some of you folks appreciate how fun and nice it feels to piece together and redeem old hardware and give some respect to old games. It seems like no matter how generous you are, it keeps coming back to you more.