My favorite record stores are Hymies Vintage Records and Vintage Music Company.

Hymies sells all types of records. Im my opinion it is the best place to buy first pressing 45's. They were also featured in Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the top 25 record stores as I recall

Vintage Music Company sells ONLY 78's. If it was pressed on shellac they have it! If you look them up on flickr or Facebook you will understand what I mean. They also repair any type of record playing device and radios that is not transistorized. Mike and Scotts knowledge on this stuff is purely amazing!

If you are ever in the Minneapolis area be sure to check these places out!!

Those places charge to much . I get all mine at garage and estate sales . I find huge boxes full for 5 an 10$ and pick out stuff i like , mostly 45 & 78's . I have found brand new records in some of the stuff . Last haul was some 1000 records 78rpm , 40$ for the lot .

Unfortunately, I've reached the point in my collection where pretty much all the common/cheap stuff I want, I've already found. The city I live in (San Francisco) has several good record stores, and there are even a couple of thrift stores that get 78s in periodically, but I'm mostly down to the point where the records I want tend to sell for prices that aren't worth paying. I do try to hit up garage sales and Craigslist ads when they pop up, but usually there's either nothing of interest, or only items I already have. I have had a couple of lucky scores in the past that way, though.

What I don't typically do is shop online, particularly for 78s. I've had too many arrive warped or broken, so I'll only risk buying online if it's a low-dollar item. Most dedicated record shops charge too much for this to be worth it. Occasionally there will be something good at a reasonable price on eBay, but usually the prices are inflated and often the seller doesn't know how to pack safely (though there are some definite pros on there as well, including our own ChrisH664).

I guess my answer is that there isn't really any good answer if you're looking for something specific, especially on 78. Just keep checking around (even antique stores can occasionally yield treasures), and eventually you'll come across at least some of what you're looking for.

Then again, the hunt is part of the fun.

O
The hunt is difinitely part of the fun. I was in a record store once and a guy brought in about 6 or 7 boxes of lps. The owner turned him down and told him there wasnt anything he could sell after looking through a box and a half. I helped the guy carry the boxes back to his truck and asked if I could look through them. He said if I didn't buy any he would just bring them to goodwill. As I was flipping through the usual Rod Stewarts and Kenny Rogers, a near mint Beatles butcher cover caught my eye! I offered him $25 and he was shocked that I would pay that much for a record! Whenever people ask why I collect records, that is a prime example!

I call BS on that story...those record shop guys make their living from this stuff. Ever seen how fast they can go through six boxes of albums...in no time flat. They would not be in business if they just looked at 1 box and turned folks away, I call BS.

It did end up as a fake

The flea market is where I get most of my records. There are a couple vendors there who price albums in the $1-$3 range; however, there are other vendors who put too much stock in the Goldmine book and their records rarely sell.

The Starvation Army used to be a good place to find records when they were selling them for fifty cents and had a good selection. Now, they charge $1.50 and they tape the covers shut so that you can't pull out the record for inspection. And, the selection is terrible. Most of what they have are Christmas records and off-the-wall budget label instrumental records.

Another thrift store gets $1 for their records; but, it's the same type of garbage that's at the SA and most of it is in such poor condition that it needs to be dumped.

Another thrift store has a few records in poor condition; but, they are all priced as if the owner had looked at a price guide.

I can't remember the last time I saw a record at a garage sale. 20 years ago, there were cheap good records at yard sales. Then, it got so that everyone had the "they don't make these anymore" attitude and they thought they had gold.

A few weeks ago, I asked a guy at a yard sale about records and he said that he had a box in the house; but, they were highly collectible. I saw that we were not going to be on the same page regarding price; so, I didn't push it any further.

There are a lot of records on ebay that I'd like to have; but, I'm not paying those kinds of prices. A lot of what I want is fairly common; but, decnet copies have not turned up at the flea market. Before I pay $10+ for such a record, I'll take my chances that a decent copy will show up at the flea market. What ticks me off is the number of ebay sellers who try to get $5-$10+ for common '70's and '80's 45's that they should be happy to get fifty cents for.

I get mine from many different sources. Flea markets, garage sales, op shops, antique & secondhand shops, record dealers, other collectors & ebay. I occasionally get given a pile of records by friends on facebook as well.
While it's always nice to pick up 200 or 300 records for $10, I dont mind paying over $100 for a single record if it's something I really want either, & I have done so on several occasions.

Craigslist, auctions, garage sales and flea markets. Good hauls in the past year: 80 diamond discs at a farm auction for $25. 1300 78's for $50. 1000 45's for free with over half being radio station stock. Last week 400 78's in 40 binders from an inheritance for $80 on CL/early bird to a garage sale. No disc less than EXC condition. I can more than triple my money just on the empty binders. Have you checked recently what those sell for on Ebay?

Going to check this weekend on 400 more 78's all in original sleeves for $100. On the high side yeah but seller insists they are nearly all perfect so we'll see.

Search tip on CL: Search using "records" then search with "record" as in "record collection". Goofy CL search engine recognizes those as two seperate words. You will get different results. Also don't forget "albums" and "album". You get the idea.

Don't be shy about posting a "want to buy" on CL. I do maybe once every two months and get at least one hit. Be sure to mention the genres you're looking for and the price you're willing to pay. I didn't post the price willing to pay the first time and chased two sellers wanting to sell common 78's for $2-$5 each. Waaay toooo much.

I stop in the goodwill, salvation army, or ARC at least once a week. Sometimes on weekends I hit estate sales, yard sales, the antique mall and second hand shops. the ARC thrift store prices their record higher than other thrift stores, and they put a price sticker on it!! I don't like that because they leave residue or rip a piece of the album cover off.
I have this thing for John Travolta and Saturday Night Fever so any time I find a copy of the soundtrack I buy it. lol. I have about ten copies and the 8-track. I am "The Keeper of the Fever"...I refuse to see that album thrown out if unsold. Weird...I know! lol

I live in the St Louis are so Im spoiled and can go into the store but this place has some decent online auctions or buy it nows if you have a specific album you are looking for. http://www.recordexchangestl.com/

Shoot Mary if you have ten copies of the same 8-track of Travolta I'd be tempted to send one off to his contact address with a self addressed stamped envelope inside for return to see if he'd sign it. If you never see it again you still have nine left.

duplicate

LOL!!! I only have ONE copy of the 8-track. That was a hard one for me to find. I have about ten copies of the actual double lp.

Why would you need 10 copies of the same LP?

LoL....it's a very strange obsession I have with John Travolta and Saturday Night Fever!

I guess you could give them for Christmas gifts... but wait, the recipients don't have record players!!!

My requirements are different from those of most folks. As a professional musician, I buy very little simply for my own entertainment. Instead, I buy for study purposes. I completed my basic reference library collection many years ago, and I've been in a casual supplements phase ever since.

Since we have a few good used book and record shops here, I keep a more or less regular eye on those. If I must find a particular item for a particular reason, and find it quickly, then I'll check around online, but never otherwise.

Larry

Continuing on from the original question: what (if any) good places are there for cylinder records? I have never once seen them at any physical stores (excepting the rare encounter in an antique shop), and most online sellers seem to charge through the nose for them, even when condition is poor or the recording is not particularly desirable.

Try emailing Scott at vintage music company. They probably have some and I think he will ship them to you as well. Scott: vmc78@qwestoffice.net