I am always looking to find chase/money commons/uncommons to trade on Puca Trade. Lately, my luck has run out for swap meets and garage sales.
Is there any luck online to find bulk commons/uncommons that have not been picked through that is not overpriced (MOSTLY LOOKING FOR A BULK DEAL)?
My old boss, the owner of a comic & Magic shop would occasionally buy the blind bulk packages from Goodwill, but would rarely get anything exciting. In fact, he would barely break even if he were to sell most of what he got.
So, what options are there? Ebay I am sure is not worth it because I imagine most of what is sold in bulk is picked through. Craigslist is a virtual desert for Magic nowadays.
Nobody who has any sense will tell you where to get something for nothing, or else they would be doing it already.
I know, that may may be true. BUT, I am in Southern California & someone may have a tip, advice, etc... from another area/state. Tell me their strategy will not hinder them if they are hundreds or thousands of miles away from me.
Oftentimes the best way to get ahold of bulk lots of commons and uncommons that haven't been searched through as far as that goes, are to buy people's entire collections. Many times when people are selling their collections, they will tend to put more emphasis on the value of the rares/mythics and more often than not, will largely ignore the commons/uncommons, which can leave you room to make a profit on that part of the collection more so when buying an entire collection. Now obviously this isn't always feasible, but at least is one way to acquire such cards when other avenues to be able to get them at a reasonable cost to be able to potentially make a profit from them have seemingly exhausted themselves.
These days in general though, magic players often will tend to be a lot more savvy when dealing with their cards, with so many sites available to check prices of cards, there aren't often that many particularly good commons/uncommons that will fall through the cracks and be available in your typical cheap bulk lot of cards.
From what I saw w/ the Goodwill bids-won bundles, that is what I had noticed. I was the one that went through all of the commons/uncommons & saw that a lot was actual junk. I hardly found any diamonds in the rough.
Guess swap meets & garage sales are the best options.
I just was checking to see if there were any options that I may have missed?
So you're looking for tips on how to be a better shark?
If you're not sharking other players, but instead finding the best means to increase a collection, a trade binder, or cards for Puca Trade, it isn't sharking. It's smart investing and bargain hunting.
Do not confuse the two- unless you're just trolling to add spice for kicks & giggles.
People will usually give a pretty hefty discount already if you are buying their whole collection at once. You get cards on the cheap, they get to liquidate everything quick. Both parties walk away happy, can't that be enough? Looking to buy collections that "haven't been picked through" is just blatantly trying to take advantage of people who don't know what they have. That's sharking.
Seriously, half your posts on these forums are about seeing what you can get out of people and it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. You even still have the Pucatrade gift link in your sig. Give it a rest, dude.
First off: you guys are reacting with too much hostility. There's a big difference between someone who is looking to make a profit and someone who is looking to rip people off. The OP is looking to find a way to connect with people whose motivation is to dump their cards and do not want to take the time to pick through it for the old commons that are now worth $5.00. There's nothing wrong with that. Particularly when we're talking thousands of cards, the task of going through them and updating prices if you've been out of the game for even a few years can be very daunting.
There's no good way to ensure you're getting unpicked stuff. The best way, as people have mentioned, is to look for people selling whole collections and are doing it in the least sophisticated way possible. Garage sales, swap meets, etc are all the kind of thing someone who doesn't particularly value their cards might go.
Craig's List is also easy, but it is also used by people who know very well what they're doing or are trying to scam you (passing off picked bulk as unpicked), so it's riskier. Heck, in my area there I believe there is a dude who consistently posts a bunch of picked crap every week. I assume it's his draft chaff that rotates on a regular basis, and he always comes up with some new (probably false) story about where they came from.
At the end of the day, I urge you to use discretion and be kind to your fellow man. I have a story about this that reads like a "Dear Playboy" letter, but it's actually true. I bought a collection for $20.00, sight unseen, on Craig's list. He had been playing since Unlimited so I figured I'd get some Unlimited basic lands out of the deal. Lo and behold, I hit the jackpot - (inked) Unlimited Mox Jet, two Bazaars, bunch of Strip Mines, tons of Arabian Nights cards, etc, etc. Massive value. This was FAR beyond just picking some chaff to turn my effort into more value. So, I contacted the guy and told him what was going on. I proposed that I go find a buyer for the two biggest ticket items (the Mox and a Candelabra) and give him that cash. I ran around and took care of that for him, and we both went away happy - my Vintage collection got stronger, and he got vastly more than he expected from the transaction.
The point is: go after unpicked lots, by all means, but don't be a jackass if you find something amazingly valuable.
I have struck gold many years ago at the swapmeet (if anyone is interested in what I found at a dollar a piece, PM me, not going to list because it can be viewed a a brag). But that was many years ago. Since then, there have been more and more folk scouring swapmeets.
A friend of a friend posted on a college Magic group page on Facebook that he was at a local (to me) second hand store (think Goodwill, Salvation Army) where he bought a half inch stack of cards. In the stack was 3 Force of Wills, among other gems. I have asked each time I go if they have any Magic when I am in a thrift store, but nothing yet.
Craigslist is barren of good finds. I see there shops advertising, students who jump into the game & then need $$$ in a pinch, so they try to get tcg mid on CL, or con artists claiming to have P9 & other vintage staples.
Has anyone ever tried the Penny Saver (pre-Craigslist free mailer "want ads"), or anything else not mentioned.
MaximumC - thank you for the kind words at the start of your post.
I agree with broadening your search to buy entire collections. Oftentimes, I've found, is that you'll essentially "pay" for the cards worth X amount or more, and everything below that threshold is essentially your profit, and there can be a lot of hidden gems found that way. Other than that, I have had decent luck buying bulk lots off ebay. Common sense is important there, but it is still possible to get good deals if you read in between the lines.
Buy bulk scg common and uncommon lots. Although these cards where clearly screened for value once I get the idea they where screened for value years ago which leads to there being some diamonds in the rough. Especially if you get a lot with lots of modern stuff.
You are not going to get rich of it and I doubt you will get your money back but if you live in the US and are willing to put in some time to sift through the cards and do some research you may find it worth it.
In my area, we have a chain used book store chain, Half-Price Books, that also periodically sells used board and card game bundles. I've had periodic good luck just asking if I can check out their boxes of used, unsorted cards, and making an offer in the neighborhood of $100 for the whole thing (if it looks good on first blush). They seem to appreciate someone saving them the trouble of shrink wrapping and selling the $10 bundles individually. I can guarantee you that crotchety used bookstore vendors do not give two s***s about magic cards or whether you're getting a primo deal off a $100 investment.
In my area, we have a chain used book store chain, Half-Price Books, that also periodically sells used board and card game bundles. I've had periodic good luck just asking if I can check out their boxes of used, unsorted cards, and making an offer in the neighborhood of $100 for the whole thing (if it looks good on first blush). They seem to appreciate someone saving them the trouble of shrink wrapping and selling the $10 bundles individually. I can guarantee you that crotchety used bookstore vendors do not give two s***s about magic cards or whether you're getting a primo deal off a $100 investment.
Not asking you to brag, but curious what you found that was note worthy?
In 2013 I found a HUGE box of old ravnica stuff (with some extra kamigawa thrown in). It was picked clean of cards that at the time of old rav's release were a big deal (Bobs, shocks, glimpes the unthinkable, etc). But when I grabbed it, the box contained quite a few remands (~$10), lots and lots of ranvica foils, and a few glimpse of nature ($15 or $20 at the time). I was easily able to sell off various chucks of the box to finance an old rav draft sim. So, for about the $150 I spent on it, and drafts I was able to later run, it was worth the time.
Other boxes I've had luck with contained lots of $1 - $10 edh stables like woodfall primus and the like. I definitely don't buy a box from that bookstore unless I've had a chance to rifle through it before hand, but you can usually get a good sense of whether it's worth jumping on with just a cursory examination (lots of foils, workhorse uncommons, modern staple commons/uncommons, edh and casual favorites, older sets).
(In general though, I'd agree with the sentiments that the era of amazing mtgs finds are long gone. The number of players out there, the efficiency of the internet informing folks about chase cards and prices, and all of the garage sale/thrift store pickers out there, have pretty much ensured that it's extremely rare to really catch a store or garage sale with its pants down on fabulous card collections)
I wouldn't call it sharking to dig through boxes upon boxes of chaff to find a single Serum Visions. There's a lot of work that goes into it: you have to find the cards, negotiate a price, spend hours digging through them, you probably have to unbend them because the massive unsorted card piles tend to warp over time, etc.
You will probably make less than minimum wage after it's all over.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
These days, some wizards are finding they have a little too much deck left at the end of their $$$.
MTG finance guy- follow me on Twitter@RichArschmann or RichardArschmann on Reddit
1) Garage/rummage sales are a best bet because you can probably pick through the stuff yourself
2) Craigslist for bulk cards (seems very miss, since savvy sellers can sell real bulk)
3) Bring up your magic interest to people who might have played in the past. If you know of such people kindly ask if they will sell their old stuff.
4) Thrift stores/goodwill/etc
1) Garage/rummage sales are a best bet because you can probably pick through the stuff yourself
2) Craigslist for bulk cards (seems very miss, since savvy sellers can sell real bulk)
3) Bring up your magic interest to people who might have played in the past. If you know of such people kindly ask if they will sell their old stuff.
4) Thrift stores/goodwill/etc
Finding friends or others who have old magic collections that may simply be collecting dust can often be a great way to be able to pick up decent bulk on the cheap (in addition to some decent old cards at a reasonable price at the same time). I know when I was still at the shop that people would come in all the time with old collections and would be astounded at how much I would offer (and I was offering 50% cash value, so you can probably imagine...). Funniest thing I think I ran into was a couple of friends, or brothers, or something coming in with collections of old alpha/beta/unlimited/revised commons/uncommons/basic lands that both freaked out (in a good/happy way) when I told them what I could offer them for their collections after going through them (a few decent uncommons from alpha/beta were in the mix at the time, but mostly it was the alpha/beta basic lands that made up the bulk of the value). Obviously with shops, collections come to you, buy you can get your name out there as a local buyer through friends and otherwise to be able to get in on some opportunities when they arise to grab up old collections or people's old bulk extras that they don't need, which can still have some great stuff in them if they are simply trying to downside their collection and make space.
I haven't seen much personally on the garage/rummage sale side of things in a while, same for thrift stores/goodwill, and craigslist I've heard tends to be a bit of a crapshoot as far as anything decent goes (bulk tends to mean actual bulk 99% of the time (kind of like on ebay these days).
Anyhow, good luck and just remember that the more honest you are with people about the value of what you are picking up (while still leaving a reasonable amount of room to make a profit) the easier of a time you will have in being able to find such collections from others in the future, simply by good word of mouth from those you have previously dealt with) :).
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Is there any luck online to find bulk commons/uncommons that have not been picked through that is not overpriced (MOSTLY LOOKING FOR A BULK DEAL)?
My old boss, the owner of a comic & Magic shop would occasionally buy the blind bulk packages from Goodwill, but would rarely get anything exciting. In fact, he would barely break even if he were to sell most of what he got.
So, what options are there? Ebay I am sure is not worth it because I imagine most of what is sold in bulk is picked through. Craigslist is a virtual desert for Magic nowadays.
Any other options I have missed?
Local craigslist, garage sales, or partnering with your LGS to move bulk is probably your best bet.
I know, that may may be true. BUT, I am in Southern California & someone may have a tip, advice, etc... from another area/state. Tell me their strategy will not hinder them if they are hundreds or thousands of miles away from me.
These days in general though, magic players often will tend to be a lot more savvy when dealing with their cards, with so many sites available to check prices of cards, there aren't often that many particularly good commons/uncommons that will fall through the cracks and be available in your typical cheap bulk lot of cards.
Guess swap meets & garage sales are the best options.
I just was checking to see if there were any options that I may have missed?
If you're not sharking other players, but instead finding the best means to increase a collection, a trade binder, or cards for Puca Trade, it isn't sharking. It's smart investing and bargain hunting.
Do not confuse the two- unless you're just trolling to add spice for kicks & giggles.
Seriously, half your posts on these forums are about seeing what you can get out of people and it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. You even still have the Pucatrade gift link in your sig. Give it a rest, dude.
There's no good way to ensure you're getting unpicked stuff. The best way, as people have mentioned, is to look for people selling whole collections and are doing it in the least sophisticated way possible. Garage sales, swap meets, etc are all the kind of thing someone who doesn't particularly value their cards might go.
Craig's List is also easy, but it is also used by people who know very well what they're doing or are trying to scam you (passing off picked bulk as unpicked), so it's riskier. Heck, in my area there I believe there is a dude who consistently posts a bunch of picked crap every week. I assume it's his draft chaff that rotates on a regular basis, and he always comes up with some new (probably false) story about where they came from.
At the end of the day, I urge you to use discretion and be kind to your fellow man. I have a story about this that reads like a "Dear Playboy" letter, but it's actually true. I bought a collection for $20.00, sight unseen, on Craig's list. He had been playing since Unlimited so I figured I'd get some Unlimited basic lands out of the deal. Lo and behold, I hit the jackpot - (inked) Unlimited Mox Jet, two Bazaars, bunch of Strip Mines, tons of Arabian Nights cards, etc, etc. Massive value. This was FAR beyond just picking some chaff to turn my effort into more value. So, I contacted the guy and told him what was going on. I proposed that I go find a buyer for the two biggest ticket items (the Mox and a Candelabra) and give him that cash. I ran around and took care of that for him, and we both went away happy - my Vintage collection got stronger, and he got vastly more than he expected from the transaction.
The point is: go after unpicked lots, by all means, but don't be a jackass if you find something amazingly valuable.
A friend of a friend posted on a college Magic group page on Facebook that he was at a local (to me) second hand store (think Goodwill, Salvation Army) where he bought a half inch stack of cards. In the stack was 3 Force of Wills, among other gems. I have asked each time I go if they have any Magic when I am in a thrift store, but nothing yet.
Craigslist is barren of good finds. I see there shops advertising, students who jump into the game & then need $$$ in a pinch, so they try to get tcg mid on CL, or con artists claiming to have P9 & other vintage staples.
Has anyone ever tried the Penny Saver (pre-Craigslist free mailer "want ads"), or anything else not mentioned.
MaximumC - thank you for the kind words at the start of your post.
You are not going to get rich of it and I doubt you will get your money back but if you live in the US and are willing to put in some time to sift through the cards and do some research you may find it worth it.
There are apps for Android (I'm sure for Iphone too) that are used for posting items for sale w/ an option to negotiate a price.
I have found 3 and so far that look promising. They are: Offer Up, Wallapop, and Letgo.
"Personally I love high-riak, low-reqars gambles. Life's best with a decent amount of riak. And f*** reqars."
Not asking you to brag, but curious what you found that was note worthy?
Other boxes I've had luck with contained lots of $1 - $10 edh stables like woodfall primus and the like. I definitely don't buy a box from that bookstore unless I've had a chance to rifle through it before hand, but you can usually get a good sense of whether it's worth jumping on with just a cursory examination (lots of foils, workhorse uncommons, modern staple commons/uncommons, edh and casual favorites, older sets).
(In general though, I'd agree with the sentiments that the era of amazing mtgs finds are long gone. The number of players out there, the efficiency of the internet informing folks about chase cards and prices, and all of the garage sale/thrift store pickers out there, have pretty much ensured that it's extremely rare to really catch a store or garage sale with its pants down on fabulous card collections)
"Personally I love high-riak, low-reqars gambles. Life's best with a decent amount of riak. And f*** reqars."
You will probably make less than minimum wage after it's all over.
MTG finance guy- follow me on Twitter@RichArschmann or RichardArschmann on Reddit
2) Craigslist for bulk cards (seems very miss, since savvy sellers can sell real bulk)
3) Bring up your magic interest to people who might have played in the past. If you know of such people kindly ask if they will sell their old stuff.
4) Thrift stores/goodwill/etc
Finding friends or others who have old magic collections that may simply be collecting dust can often be a great way to be able to pick up decent bulk on the cheap (in addition to some decent old cards at a reasonable price at the same time). I know when I was still at the shop that people would come in all the time with old collections and would be astounded at how much I would offer (and I was offering 50% cash value, so you can probably imagine...). Funniest thing I think I ran into was a couple of friends, or brothers, or something coming in with collections of old alpha/beta/unlimited/revised commons/uncommons/basic lands that both freaked out (in a good/happy way) when I told them what I could offer them for their collections after going through them (a few decent uncommons from alpha/beta were in the mix at the time, but mostly it was the alpha/beta basic lands that made up the bulk of the value). Obviously with shops, collections come to you, buy you can get your name out there as a local buyer through friends and otherwise to be able to get in on some opportunities when they arise to grab up old collections or people's old bulk extras that they don't need, which can still have some great stuff in them if they are simply trying to downside their collection and make space.
I haven't seen much personally on the garage/rummage sale side of things in a while, same for thrift stores/goodwill, and craigslist I've heard tends to be a bit of a crapshoot as far as anything decent goes (bulk tends to mean actual bulk 99% of the time (kind of like on ebay these days).
Anyhow, good luck and just remember that the more honest you are with people about the value of what you are picking up (while still leaving a reasonable amount of room to make a profit) the easier of a time you will have in being able to find such collections from others in the future, simply by good word of mouth from those you have previously dealt with) :).