have you ever pawned anything??

Went to a local place pretty much like the one on the show and sold some things. The key is to look the item up on e-bay or somewhere else. If it's something custom or sentimental they can't really offer much. For example recently I had a nice salt water fishing rod & reel, originally paid about $150 for each component in 1997. It got used a lot. They looked the reel up on e-bay and offered $60, which I thought was fine. They could re-sell for $95 or so I would think. They couldn't offer anything but $25 or so for the rod b/c it was custom and they couldn't look it up. Any local would know the rod maker's name; he was well known to fishermen. I didn't take it; all that would happen is they'd re-sell it for $60 and someone who knew what it was would get a steal.

I also sold an old camera lens I knew I would never use again, for an old film camera. I looked it up on e-bay and saw it still had value. I paid about $250 for it in 1980 and was able to get $80 for it.

in the area I use to live in was going down hill and pawn shops started sprouting like weeds.there was nothing in any of them I would by, and in fact a for a few dollars more you can buy the items brand new, no good deals at a pawn shop.
the stuff is just put on the shelf I doubt if its cleans of reconditioned or anything. examples $150 for a cheap made in china guitar. you can a buy a new one a little less , rows of tired old computers $100-$200. you can buy the same ones at a garage sale for$20 -$50, and you can get them for free in alleyways. the biggest problem is you dont know how many hours this stuff has, it could last you 10 years or 10 minutes.if it breaks you dont get your money back just store credit so your money is held hostage there.when they buy from you you get very little, now I realize its a store and they have many expense, but most are cheap and depend upon the fact that people need money fast.

My friend would drag me to a pawn shop in the next city, they had tables and counters with piles of junk... literally piled up where you couldn't even look at stuff. I think about 98% of that stuff should have been thrown in a dumpster. I hated going, I don't want to see that crap. I hate yard sales and I hate flea markets. If I want something, I'll save up and buy it when I can.


But back to our few visits... On my fourth or fifth visit, I bought a BC Rich Warlock Bass guitar. It was awesome and it was really heavy. It was a "real" one not the cheap garbage that they make now. Anyway, 10 years later, that was stolen.

Other than that, I went to Gold & Silver Pawn (Pawn Stars/Las Vegas) in 2009. It was basically a Hat & T-Shirt store with those guys' faces plastered all over the stuff. The very few items they had were extremely overpriced. THOUSANDS of dollars, like $9000, for an old rusty, broken rifle. TONS of tacky jewelry, a few bicycles and motorcycles in the back that were priced higher than new ones of the same model.

Last year, I went back to Gold & Silver Pawn to get an offer for them to buy some tools. A new $600 set of tools. New, unused, no engravings, etc... They offered me $35 :) I knew it would be low and I had no intention of selling it, I was just curious.


Will never visit a pawn shop again.

But, no I haven't pawned anything. :)