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I like to buy records anytime and anywhere when I want it.
Many audiophiles are also record collectors. There are many ways to add to your collection. Which one works for you?
Over the past several years I have had excellent luck finding good quality used LPs at Collectibles. This is a great shop with thousands of records always in stock. Collectibles is located on West Lee Street in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Record shows are also a good source. The key is to have an idea about how much you should pay for a particular album. A music shop may charge $8.00 for a used LP and you may be able to find the same LP for $3.00 at a show or the opposite may be the case.
While I do buy records, both new and pre-owned, from all the sources I can find, God help me, I feel more secure in knowing that ethically run mail-order businesses like those advertised in Goldmine (ethical from the buyer's point of view; who knows what they do to get these gems . . . ) exist. My absolute last stop for older, out-of-print LPs that are usually rated and often reasonably priced.
Used record shops are about the only place you're going to find bargain vinyl. Flea markets, garage sales, and thrift stores would be good places too, but nothing in playable condition ever ends up at those places---and if it is in playable condition it's not music worth listening to. Radio-station changeovers, library and estate sales are a moot point. Whoever runs across these things? Auctions, almost exclusively run through Goldmine, are the best places to find rare and specific releases in the conditions you're looking for. However, auctions, Goldmine, and mail-order sellers are usually a total rip, and about as far from a bargain as you possibly get. Specialty audio stores are a good place to get sealed, reissue vinyl (regular releases such as Odyssey and OJC, as well as recent audiophile re-releases)---and I'd say $3-$6 is a bargain for a sealed record (if the pressing's not awful).
Record Man in Durango, Colorado is currently featuring consignment sale from a large collection. I picked up a mint original copy of the Royal Guardsmen's Snoopy vs. the Red Baron . . . Many hundreds of excellent artists and titles still left! . . . :-)
Used-record stores have the best selection; the records are often cleaner and in some cases new or nearly new. Most of the vinyl I've bought at garage sales has been junk; and the chase from one to the other is tedious. Flea markets merely have a higher concentration of junk. There are four used-record stores within an hour of my house. One is outstanding, two are very good, and one is average. I've thus quit searching at garage sales. The only problem with the stores is that my family will not accompany me---I get enthralled and spend too much time digging through the bins.
I love to patronize the smaller local shops. In this age of the mall mentality, it is getting harder and harder for the small store to make it. That is why I go out of my way to find small local stores. Besides, what are the odds of finding a good used copy of (for example) Thelonious Monk's Straight No Chaser on vinyl in the local Sam Goody? I found one just yesterday, in mint condition, at the local store in my area.