so my fello crate diggers, whats your outlook on craiglist?

as some may remember me saying, I'm not so much a digger as a buyer on the run....mainly because I don't exactly know what i'm looking for so it's easier for me to buy in bulk and have hours of fun in the lab at a later date going through them all....

my question is sometimes I jump on craiglist for local used gear and what not but there is also always people selling records wether it be a small collection for a couple bucks or some huge huge collection for hundreds of dollars...( a couple times i was just given a few stacks ) but on the norm...

Whats a a price that you really cant go wrong with.....?

Like say some one is selling a lot of 50 records or a whole lot of 500 or 1000 records what would be a good price to offer or whats a price you should expect or want to pay....

we will say they are all in good condition and all have covers etc.

but most obviously are just selling the whole lots, a pot luck kind of thing they wont really let you sit there and sift through, so what do you do when you come across these deals??

like i said, 50 or 500 or say even 1000 records....what would be a great deal price where you really cant go wrong....say a dollar each? 50 cent? a quarter??

I have been meaning to ask this for a while and get your guys thoughts on it....

Please and as always any and every word of input is appreciated...

It depends on whether they have been dug through or not. If it's somebody whose elderly and have had them in their basement for years just make an offer i like to get them cheap usually a dollar apiece but I never buy with out seeing them first. because i have had people tell me the have hundreds of records but when you go see them they have been raped by every e-bayer and beat digger in the state so eventhough there are still hundreds of records they are worthless. I prefer rare ass records with beats on them for $1.00

I never got records from craigslist. They don't let you look what's in the collection?

Offer them 25 cents to a dollar per record. If they don't agree tell them you want to look what's in the collection so you know what you're paying for. If you see some good shit then maybe offer more.

$25 per 100 records. Some time I get them cheaper because they just want to get rid of them. I don't look through em either. I don't want to stumble up on a gem while their watching. Just don't buy anything just because. If you need Funk/soul records, buy exactly that. I got stacks of crap just because it was cheap in the beginning.

roxstar wrote:$25 per 100 records. Some time I get them cheaper because they just want to get rid of them. I don't look through em either. I don't want to stumble up on a gem while their watching. Just don't buy anything just because. If you need Funk/soul records, buy exactly that. I got stacks of **** just because it was cheap in the beginning.

good words.... BULK ^" ...................the cash phrase " ^

thanks for the input fellas all bring up some VERY good points!!

I guess Im a bit stuck because I couldnt really tell you if a stack had been dug through or not, thats why I try and buy from older folks or people that seem like they have had them for years and just want to get rid of em even if they have to pay you to take em lol....

basically it's tuff because I don't really know a gem when I see it, my digging knowledge is limited the way I tell if its a gem TO ME is by playing the damn thing front to back and seeing if I find anything sick or not...

I normally dont judge by cover, name, etc. I would love to be able to do that but I guess its something that comes with time....so until then I have just been collecting, listening, then seperating.

I have found tho I mainly search for loops or instrumentation I can chop all to hell and go to war....versus breaks, one shots etc. I love strings, orchestra symphony type ish, heavy violins, horns, the raw stuff....

problem is I cant pinpoint years or types of vinyl to find exactly that....

guess It will come, just wondered what some of the seasond diggers do when they come across those random lots that people are selling and what good prices are.....so thanks fellas yall always drop some insightful ish....much appreciated....

anything could happen on craigslist

u can find gems

and sometimes u can get shit for free!

for 100 records one time i paid 10 bucks. but it depends on the situation..i mean the more records there are the less each record cost.

i bought 10 crates one time for 125 bucks. each crate had like at least 50 records.

alot of good stuff. alot of gems..it was an old white dudes collection that he left to his son..

from 4 records i sold in 2 days i made 200 bucks. and i still need to look through everything.

usual i get a good feelings just by looking at a couple records to see what the persons taste is..

i tend to pass anyone who has barbra striesan and kenny loggins records.
or those crappy white people christmas records.


i always pick up rock....80's or not...i always doo..

i always pick up jazz..if there are a couple of common herbie manns or handcocks or a few coltranes that person has at least one good gem.

Just use your intuition.
Talk to them.
Just like buying anything else outside the chains of retail.

Judge first the person, then their' knowledge of what they're selling, scrutinize and watch reactions, all while keeping it smooth monitoring the first two when appropriate.

When they show impatience/frustration/etc., make the lowest offer you choose.
You'd be surprised what you can grab 100's of records for.
Sometimes you might do nothing w/ impatient folks.
You show disinterest, and they immediately make great offers.
God bless P2P transactions.

Back in January i missed out on 550 free jazz records on craigslist. Free dog! that almost triggered depression.