I found some good stuff before ... G1 Slag Cybertron Optimus Prime Armada Super Optimus Prime Powerlinx Jetfire Unicron (main body) G2 Megatron (Green and Purple Tank) TFTM Leader Brawl ROTF Ravage (not the greatest, but still nice to find for $2.99)
Happy kid, though, I'm sure. If the roles had been reversed, that kid would have been pisssseeedd that an adult walked out with a toy he wanted. I've never gotten upset that some kid found a TF in a thrift store before me. Toys are made for kids, after all.
My mother found and picked up a box of G1 figures for me a few years ago including a nearly complete Jetfire (only missing one booster) and he was priced at 49 cents! LOL! She wasn't entirely sure what she was buying, when she brought them all home and asked me if she got a good deal, I almost fainted! I can't remember all that was in there, but it filled in a good bit of my G1 collection in that one haul!
Not exactly a Thrift store find, but close enough...... A TF collecting buddy of mine in Indianapolis found this at a yard sale this morning for $20- Not the world's greatest find, but still a solid find for the price. Looks like the yard sale finds are still out there.
I found a complete Classics Megs in a bag with about 12 Power Rangers toys for $20. Didn't get it because I don't want to go through the hassle of trying to sell the PRs
A yard sale on a Thursday? That makes such a find even more incredible. I've had some great finds at yard sales. But on the flipside, you cannot make crap off selling TFs yourself at a yardsale or flea market. Well, you can make crap, because that's basically what the buyers are offering. I had one lady get really mad with me when I had a table at a flea market because I refused to sell her a MISB Energon Ironhide for $3. She even tried to use her kid to get sympathy from me so I'd sell it. Granted, it's a bit of a derp of a toy, but it's extremely rare that I sell anything for less than I paid for it. And one time I did a garage sale and a guy who was way too obviously a dealer tried to offer me $20 for a whole box of MISB TF toys. I just gave him a "do you think I'm stupid?" look and laughed. I said, "No, but I'll sell you the whole box for half off the original retail prices." I think that was more than generous for MISB toys that are worth 3x that much on ebay. He scowled at me and walked away.
Not a great find?!? I would have shit all over myself! Me? I found a bag with about 10 ARAH Joes for $4 at a America's Thrift Store back in Georgia. Can't remember who ALL was in there, but I do remember it having a Night Force Outback in mint condition, as well as Taurus and Firefly. When I saw Outback, I couldn't snatch that bag up fast enough. I've found some G1 stuff from time to time, but it's always in horrible and broken condition. Honestly, some of that stuff they get in just needs to be thrown away.
I’m going to revive this thread because thrift stores can be amazing! A few days ago I found a Human Alliance Roadbuster in near mint condition without his weapons (thruster with flame effect, buzz saw), mini-figure (green race car driver) and right race car door for only $3!!!
A few years ago I saw a Movie Leader Brawl and a Beast Wars Transmetal 2 Dinobot, both incomplete, at a thrift store while on a family road trip. I didn't buy either because Dinobot was missing his tail and maybe a leg, and Brawl was just above what I had to spend.
I never hunted for transformers at a thrift store but back in the day when I wasn't making a lot of money I use to go to goodwills on the half off days and look for popular brands of cloths to buy and then sell them on ebay to make money so I could to buy transformers.
My two best finds aren't TFs but still robots. The Power Ranger Crawzord, complete in a baggy for 4$. Came across a mixed bag of various figures and stuff, and one small figure I noticed and bought the bag for was a small Iron Giant for a few dollars. I wasn't sure what it was from, and turned out it was a special collectable that came part of a VHS cassette set. Off eBay, found that it was selling at a fairly high price. TFs find have been fairly rare and a few interesting ones, but nothing comes to mind aside Beast Machine Buzzsaw.
I got a aoe deluxe drift a few years ago incomplete but better than the one i have where i had to use a screw driver to transform it A few months ago i got dotm bumblebee incomplete and foc jazz only missing his gun for $3
At two separate Goodwills (years back), I was able to pick up a couple of junker ROTF Leader Megatrons and piece them together (one was missing the arms, the other was missing the kneecaps, etc) to make a complete one for about $10. Two days ago, I saw a Leader class Ironhide. I would have picked it up, but it was too movie accurate (and I'm not good at cleaning that much rust off of toys).
I found this CW Leader Megatron at a thrift store a few months ago. I think they might've priced it higher, but it was so mis-transformed when I found it that I imagine they thought it was broken. Arms twisted around, head not showing.. it looked pretty mangled. Turns out it was only missing the extra guns, the projectile and a side skirt piece. Another time I thought I had found a MP Sideswipe in a baggie. I forget the price, but I think it was under $10. It ended up being a knock-off with missing doors... but I don't regret taking the chance.
Thrift stores are VERY sporadic. I actually do much better with Yard sales. Some of my best finds though are a G1 Predaking, only missing weapons and 1 fist (unfortunately he stills on my self in that condition) Combiner wars megatron still in the box, A complete Pretender Catilla, The first wave of Combiner wars deluxes still on the card, a WFC (first series) deluxe Optimus Prime still on the card, a G1 Metroplex (missing everything of course) and then of course random junkers from pretty much every series.
Flea markets are the jam in NY I got a classics prime (no accessories) for $10. I'm pissed because the family in front of me grabbed CW Devy (sans scrapper)
I went to a random shop and ended up finding Takara Legends Hot Rod (complete) Takara Legends Kup (complete) Movie 1 Leader Prime (missing gun) Movie 1 Voyager Ratchet (complete) Movie 1 Wreckage (missing swords) Animated Leader Magnus (missing kneepad) Animated Sentinel (missing a roof section) Animated Jazz (missing weapons) Animated Blurr (Missing hood and a heel) Animated Voyager Bulkhead (complete) Generations Sandstorm (complete) A real gear robot (complete) All for 60 dollars