A record seller spent no more than four minutes looking through a stack at a flea market, then made his move. He opened at $100 for about 100 records priced at $3 each, settled at $150, and then sat down to dig in and see exactly what he bought.

The seller behind Neat Junk says most of the stack is for resale on eBay, with some going to his antique booth and a few to his own collection. “I made an offer that he couldn’t refuse and I couldn’t refuse,” he says.

He Opened At $100 When The Seller Wanted $3 A Record

The seller was an older gentleman and an obvious collector. He pulled up just as the buyer arrived, and he was bringing the records out. He was asking $3 a record.

There were about 100 records, though the seller was guessing at the count. The buyer did not want to pay $300. “I started at $100.”

The seller’s reaction suggested it was a lowball. Still, the buyer’s thinking was simple: “got to start low. Got to start somewhere.” They settled at $150.

Four Minutes Of Spot Checks Showed Near Perfect Records

He says he looked at the stack for no more than four minutes before making his offer. In that time he spot-checked a lot of the records and thought they were all in great, very listable eBay condition.

As he digs in, the first impression holds up. “I’m not seeing any scratches.”

He thinks the seller brought records he did not have much attachment to. Many look like they came “right out of the shrink,” and he guesses the seller took them straight from the sleeves to the flea market for $3 each.

Steely Dan, Ringo Starr And A Pile Of Dave Mason

The first record he shows is Steely Dan’s Can’t Buy a Thrill. “A lot of the times these are like $20 records all day long.” It may go in his antique booth if the condition holds up.

Ringo Starr is next. Then come Jackson Browne and Dave Mason. He saw at least two or three Dave Mason records, so he may build a Dave Mason lot. Lower value artists sell well in lots, he says, as long as the records are in perfect condition.

A very clean Crosby, Stills and Nash is a standout. Copies like that are commonly “shot to junk,” he says, but this one still has its inner sleeve.

Also in the stack are Kenny Loggins, Eric Clapton, Orleans, Bread, Christopher Cross and a Hooters LP he figures is a $6 record. He holds up a Best of Van Morrison that he sees less often than Moondance, and a promo copy by The New Seekers that he has never seen before.

A Nearly Life-Size Bob Dylan Poster Almost Got Wrecked

One record has a poster that is unusually big for an LP. He unfolds it for the camera, and there is a nearly life-size Bob Dylan.

Putting it back goes badly. “I am just totally failing at putting this back,” he says, and the middle gets creased. He jokes that viewers can scold him in the comments if a buyer finds the creases.

He handles records quickly. Earlier comments teased him about it, and his answer is that time is of the essence.

The One Record That Gave Him Chills

As he was loading the truck, he spotted a local Connecticut band, The Wild Weeds, whose LP he did not own. “I got chills looking at this.” He knew it had to go in his personal collection.

The seller said he had thousands more records at home. They talked about psychedelic music and a sealed Strawberry Alarm Clock LP the seller owns. The buyer already has one, and says he would rather play records than keep them sealed.

Then there are the 45s. He bought a box from another vendor and says he paid about $20 for all of them. They include Grateful Dead, rockabilly and a Strawberry Alarm Clock “Incense and Peppermint” with its original sleeve. Garage and psychedelic 45s can climb in value, he notes.

Why He Says He Already Made His Money Back

He says he got a good deal and invites viewers to tell him how he did. By the end of the stack he says he has “already made my money back and then some.”

He also picked up more LPs that day, including a few from a second vendor who had records at $3 each and a double LP from a vendor selling boxes of records at $5 each. He figures he spent no more than $200 on the whole day, and he plans to list a bunch on eBay.

How He Grades Records On eBay

He explains his listing style. If a record is VG Plus in his head, he lists it as VG. If it is excellent, he lists VG Plus. “I’m always underselling and overdelivering.”

His reason is that nobody wants an upset buyer, least of all when it is the seller’s fault. He also uses keywords such as promo and club edition to help very common titles sell.

Tips For Buying A Big Stack Of Records At A Flea Market

• Spot-check a handful from different parts of the stack. If they are clean, the rest are likely to be clean too.
• Start your offer low. The seller can always counter.
• Look for collectors. Their records are usually kept in good shape.
• Put out a want ad. He says he has gotten many deals from a Craigslist want ad.
• Describe condition conservatively when you resell.

The lesson from this flea market run is simple. Start low, look closely, and get there before somebody else does.

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