Pawn Shop Finds

[jakester]

Do people still find old Tele's in pawn shops? I've been in and out of the pawn shops in the Richmond, Va area for years and never have found anything interesting.
Jim in Richmond, VA

[tpaul]

There used to be about half a dozen pawn shops in the vicinity of 1st and Broad St. in Richmond. When I was in high school I waited for a bus there every day, and I remember seeing all kinds of cool stuff through the big plate glass windows: vox teardrop type guitars, national steels... I didn't even know what a Tele was back then, so I only noticed the strange looking stuff.

Most of those shops are long gone (how old are you? Remember Astor's TV repair?) and the ones that remain are much slicker - not much chance of finding anything interesting that isn't way overpriced.

There's a music shop on Broad a couple blocks west of there, can't remember what it's called, but they have loads of used guitars... that's where I'd try.

[Caffeine Patrol]

Seems like pawn shops are where Peaveys and pointy guitars go to die (immortalized by the Drive-By Truckers song "Self Destructive Zone": ..."the pawn shops were packed like a backstage party,hanging full of pointy ugly cheap guitars.")
I did find a nice California Tele at a local pawnshop a couple of years ago. By and large, the one-two punch of vintage mania and The Internets have taken most of the allure out of pawn shop sleuthing. That being said, I do see the occasional silverface Fender amp amid the multitude of Peaveys. Even then, it seems that many of the people pricing these have, in regards to old music gear, a little knowledge, which as we all know is a dangerous thing

[RodeoTex]

Guitars in pawn shops seem to be mostly new foreign models and banged up pointy ones as mentioned above. Amps are usually either new junk or Crate or some other such nonsense, still I keep looking. I'm sure that somewhere in this country at this very minute is an old Fender that is way underpriced.
I keep looking...

[jwells393]

I found Fenders in pawn shops back in the '60s. I think what you find depends a lot on where you live. A couple of years ago when making a trip, I'd do an Internet search to find all the pawn shops along my route. All I ever found was overpriced crap. I'm thinking eBay and Craig's List have probably reduced the number of good guitars that are sold to Pawn shops.

Many pawn shop owners these days are selling their merchandise on eBay. A few of the guitars I've bought on eBay came from pawn shops including an MIJ Rosewood Telecaster.

I don't think you can necessarily expect to find a great deal. Pawn shop owners subscribe to a catalog that tells them what everything is worth. There's a pawn shop here in Albuquerque where I've seen some nice Fenders but the prices were outrageous.

[Newfie_J.]

Its rare but it can happen. My 62 reissue came from a pawn shop, so did my aerodyne. But that was a bout 5 years ago and things have changed dramatically since then.
I used to find great deals everywhere but a new owner bought up a few of the shops, used ebay as his price guide, overpriced everything, and the other shops followed suit.
They will overcharge but they will payout next to nothing.
If I was to bring my 85 Japanese 62 reissue which is priceless to me, they would offer me Max. $150 and sell it for $650.
But I keep going every weekend anyway. the ocasional deal does sneak though.

[Dennis68]

I've had my best finds at garage sales. Some highlights pertaining to here:
An all original '68 Champ for $10; 1983 Stratocaster for $125; Fender Rhodes Keyboard (complete) for $190. These finds were all over 5 years ago. With eBay and the like, Garage sale finds are less rewarding it seems anymore. It's easier for people to price their items more accurately and it seems they price at the highest they can find and priced for perfection, even if not perfect.

[e-merlin]

As with anything else in life, you really have to know who you're dealing with. Most of the bigger pawn shops these days have started dealing new guitars in addition to handling older stuff. The ones that you find lots of guitars in oftentimes have someone who knows their stuff. There's one here in town I deal with on a regular basis. They've given me a fair shake when I've sold and always give me a good deal when I buy. They sell a mix of new and used, and have a pretty good inventory of both.

I really don't go into pawnshops looking for stupid-cheap guitars any more unless I'm buying in quantity or buying something that's cool but needs work. I've never bought anything "vintage" at a pawn shop, but I have come across some cool stuff like a Heavy Metal Tele. I got it for something like $50 because A, I bought about 10 guitars, and B, the mounting holes for the Floyd were drilled in the wrong spot and it was crooked. Having a toolbox and knowing how to use it gets you some great stuff cheap.

If you go in looking for lowball priced vintage Fender or Gibson forget it. You'll be in for disappointment. If for no other reason than the Internet, pawn shops are better informed about pricing. Still you're more likely to find Gibsons and Fenders to be overpriced in them than anywhere else. Right now, there's a MIJ 69 Thinline RI in a shop here priced at near $700. OTOH, the place I deal with has my old MIJ Strat with a few upgrades priced a little over $450 and would probably let it go for $400 or so.

If you go in with an open mind, you can find some really cool guitars. If you're calling Peavey guitars crap and you've never played a Peavey guitar you don't know what you're talking about. Most of them are as good as or better than most Fenders and Gibsons, and because of that "Peavey prejudice" you can get 'em cheap. And don't pooh-pooh those pointies. Ibanezes especially are great guitars. They are what they are, but they aren't crap.

If you open your eyes and your mind, pawnshops are great places to shop. You just have to have an idea of what things are worth and be willing to walk out without that 83 Tele that looks like it was dropped out of a second floor window but the store owner won't back off the $1000 pricetag. Been there, done that.

[refin]

I,too,used to do alright in pawnshops.The best deals are when something has been stripped down,no decal,restorable.
There is still the chance that someone's kid stripped and repainted dad's/grandpa's Fender/Gibson,and "we have no idea what it is"........I've done good on those kinds of things.Also,renecked Fenders (aftermarket neck) with no decal.

[Moonrider]

Originally Posted by jakester

Do people still find old Tele's in pawn shops? I've been in and out of the pawn shops in the Richmond, Va area for years and never have found anything interesting.
Jim in Richmond, VA

I haven't really found anything in the downtown pawn shops for years. If you're a native, and remember Astor's (what a *glorious* cave that was! Complete with resident gnome.), Candyland Music on Cary Street has that same offbeat, musty vibe. Farther out Cary, Guitar Works is an excellent place to shop. Their "house brand" guitars are very well made and reasonably priced. They don't mind a spirited bargaining session either!

Farther out - try the Antique/Flea market in the Circle Shopping Center at Hull St. and Boulevard. There's a booth in there where you will find interesting stuff on occasion. Also, check out the Pawn shop/Flea market in the old Best store, and the "Giant" Flea market - both on Midlothian Turnpike. There's also the "American" pawn shop that is worth a peek. Finally, stop by Richmond Music Center. They've got some good stuff on consignment, plus some select used instruments as well as new. Again, they'll work with you on price when they can.

Don't forget about the Bellwood Flea market out on Jeff Davis Highway. It's a supersized yard sale, and you never know just what you'll run across.

Happy Hunting!

[DADGAD]

Originally Posted by jakester

Do people still find old Tele's in pawn shops? I've been in and out of the pawn shops in the Richmond, Va area for years and never have found anything interesting.
Jim in Richmond, VA

I'm of the opinion that with the current economy, more people are dumping their gear for cash at pawnshops. When you need a quick $50 to pay the water bill, you can always pawn or sell something at a local shop. I drive to pawnshops all over California, Nevada and Arizona and see long lines of people needing cash all the time. It's pretty sad. But, I digress...

"Old" Teles? Probably not. Most pawnbrokers have high price tags on musical gear but you can haggle with them. My rate of "success" at pawn shops is only 10%. But that 10% makes is worth it. Sort of like treasure hunting. Over the past two years, here is what I've found...

80's MIJ Squire Strat $140
Squire Pro Tone Tele $100
Fender Hot Rod Deluxe amp $250
2003 USA Strat w/hsc $299
1997 Les Paul Classic Honeyburst with 1 piece back $750
Seagul S6 acoustic $100
Boss MIJ SD-1 $25
Thomas Organ (Sepulveda) Cry Baby wah $30

If you are fortunate enough to not be in financial difficulty today, now is the time to employ that old saying, "Buy low, sell high."

IMHO, of course.

Gary

[Colt W. Knight]

I've never found anything worth a crap that wasn't way over priced in a pawn shop. I still can't figure how so many pawn shops stay in business. Who buys there stuff?

[casterway]

Originally Posted by RodeoTex

Guitars in pawn shops seem to be mostly new foreign models and banged up pointy ones as mentioned above. Amps are usually either new junk or Crate or some other such nonsense, still I keep looking. I'm sure that somewhere in this country at this very minute is an old Fender that is way underpriced.
I keep looking...

Don't give up hope...
http://www.tdpri.com/forum/bass-plac...2464-64-a.html

[BAW4742]

Originally Posted by casterway

Don't give up hope...

I just caught this thread too and ran over here to post a link. See you beat me to it Casterway.

I guess there's still a chance to find something out there.

[JDRNoPro]

I've been watching the pawn shops in my area for quite a while but never came across any old Teles or even what I considered a good deal on a more contemporary one. These guys all seem to use Ebay & the net to price whatever they have. A couple of years ago I did get a good pawn shop score though - a 2001 69 Time Machine NOS Custom Shop strat for $750. It was filthy and had some stupid stickers all over it but cleaned up great and is unmolested - had the COA too. It's an amazing player (for a Strat lol).

So...I keep looking for that elusive pawnshop prize Tele.

Jim

[Brick]

The last time I was in a pawnshop there was a late 60s Gretch Country Gentleman (Baldwin era) priced at what would be fair for an early 60s Gent. Owner was none too pleased when I pointed this out.

[CatfishStudios]

The last few years that I did go to pawn shops...all I noticed was overpriced low grade crap...not even the old American Peavey stuff anymore..Ebay and craigslist has taken that notch I think..or at least contributed to peoples awareness of value.

[mlp-mx6]

You folks take me back. I lived in Richmond for 10 years, up until 1999. Great town. I can picture nearly all of the places mentioned.

GREAT restaurants in Richmond. Robin Inn, Pasta Luna, Bottoms Up.

There was an old radio/electronics place on Broad Street, but I think it went out of business. It was OLD. Smelled old. Very cool for the tube enthusiast. Astor's may have been the name. This was in the early 90's that I began studying tube amps and discovered that place. Found some Sprague bumble-bee caps there, but did not know what a treasure they were.

Thanks for taking me back, folks!

[Tim Armstrong]

The pawnshops around here are pretty pathetic!

However, I've gotten great deals in the past in Colorado, Wyoming and North Carolina pawnshops. I think it's kinda like fishing, you might go a long time without a nibble, but when the stars line up just right, you can land the big one!

Cheers, Tim

[Ed Bickert]

Originally Posted by jwells393

I don't think you can necessarily expect to find a great deal. Pawn shop owners subscribe to a catalog that tells them what everything is worth. There's a pawn shop here in Albuquerque where I've seen some nice Fenders but the prices were outrageous.

Too true. I remember even fifteen years ago seeing pawn shops with cool stuff. But now with the internet these purveyors of crap try to get internet prices out of a mom and pop brick/mortar setup. What they fail to understand is that the ebay price has the entire world as an audience, not the 80 regulars that stop by once a week.

If a pawn shop isn't on ebay it's losing money like crazy. The pawn shops I like is when you see a knockoff Fender or Gibson with the original Fender/Gibson price on it. I sometimes think the pawn shop is trying to pull a fast one. That or they don't know the difference between a genuine Les Paul and a Kent. Either way, shame on them! lol

[psychotelepathic]

There are still some deals, but it's rare nowadays. Ebay killed the pawnshop prize because of 2 things:

1) Sellers of nicer instruments are more likely to seek out Ebay first, knowing that top dollar can be had. Thus less pawnshop inventory to start with.

2) Pawshop dealers know about Ebay and use it as a pricing tool. One my local shops attaches a signe "as seen on ebay for XXX dollars." That really chaps my arse.

The good news is, the pawnshop is typically more willing to deal on price and you get to try it out. I just picked up a Strat Plus in rare Blue Pearl Dust last week. Like new condition and all original. I paid about 250 less than Ebay price and felt pretty good. The days of getting things for 1/2 or less of what they're worth and all but gone, unfortunately.

[Newfie_J.]

Im hoping my local shops may change a little in the future. I go every week and I see the same cheap guitars and amps sitting there forever, not selling, not moving, not being played. Yet they keep overpricing almost everything.

Its only a matter of time before they have to stop taking instruments or they have to sell at a more realistic price. You cant quadruple your profit on everything you have paid out for.

Unfortunately no matter how overpriced, if the headstock says Gibson or Fender, it will eventually sell. The blind lust for those 2 brandnames is amazing.

All that negative stuff being said, pawn shops are one of the few places I can go to regularly see used gear and hope to see something I really want at a price I want to pay. That is the fun of it and that is why I keep going back every week. Its a game.

[casterway]

Sadly, a local antiques mall closed a few years ago. The reason they gave was they were done in by a combination of 'Antiques roadshow' and Ebay. How is this so? Simple. When someone brings in an item to sell, they want a fortune, because they saw an identical item on the 'Roadshow' for high dollar, but when they want to buy something, they want it for $5 because they saw one go for that price on EBay. They found they just couldn't win, and closed the doors.

[Tim Armstrong]

The trick to pawnshop buying is to make them an offer well below the price on the price tag. The pawnshops in Colorado used to use a code that a few of us cracked, that let the salesman know how much money they had in an item, and if you offered them $50-100 over that, and they were slow and wanted a little cash flow, you'd often walk away with a good deal.

Even if you don't know the code, you can bet they have less than half of the sticker price in a guitar, so a guitar with a price tag of $500 was probably pawned for $200 or so. Also, keep an eye on guitars that sit for several months. They aren't making them any money just sitting there!

Cheers, Tim