I've had a good round of thrift store bargains of late. People must be doing some Spring cleaning :)

REI Saraha shirt, $6
Columbia Falmouth jacket, the poor man's soft shell, $10
Amphipod Trail fanny pack/water bottle holster $1.99 These are cool. If you haven't seen one, check http://www.amphipod.com
Ultimate Direction Solitaire fanny pack/bottle holster, $1.99
Stainless steel water bottle, $0.99
And today's bargain, a new pair of Montrail Namche boots for $24

Dale-
I have to ask, where do you live?!? I am amazed at the thrift store finds that some people have reported on both backpacking and cycling boards. I was making pretty regular stops at our local thrifts for a while, but after coming up dry I gave up. Central AL isn't exactly known as a hotbed of the outdoors, and that may play the biggest part.

Edited by bkelly on 05/04/2007 15:46:32 MDT.

I live in Seattle and the area *is* thrift store rich. I think here are several factors feeding the market: population (not too big, not too small), a wide range of outdoor sports, and a lot of manufacturers in the area. I can't tell you if some local tradition of donating to thrifts is a factor, but I wonder. Of course the economy, average income, and age must be factors too.

I have made a lot of Ebay sales to rural areas all over the US for no other reason than the lack of access for the rural residents. With all the high tech in the area, as well as being a regional hub, there are all kinds of what I call "corporate dandruff." At one point I was buying HP DeskJet 600 series power supplies/AC adapters for $0.99 and selling them for $10 on Ebay, etc, etc.

To be fair, this is a hobby for me. I might make 10 thrift store stops a week. Much of it is being in the right place at the right time, and time spent equals deals found. Several of the water bottle rigs were put out at Goodwill minutes before. I have developed a practiced eye too. I can go down a row of used clothing at a near walking pace and pick off the outdoor stuff. After a while you get used to the fabrics, colors, and details. It's weird but your go through this stage of dealing with all the abundance-- you want to buy every deal you see and after while, you find you have all this stuff and need to have a garage sale, Ebay it--- or end up donating it. My wife works a couple weeks each summer as a camp nurse and we send along a big bag of fleece and rain gear for the city kids who show up with inappropriate clothes for camping and kayaking.

At this point I don't even look at clothing unless it's better brands like Patagonia, North Face, Prana, Marmot, Ex Officio, etc. I don't find a lot of true ultralight gear-- I've found a few GoLite items. Most of what I get is basic synthetic outdoor clothing.

The garage sale season is about to start up. Can't wait!

I do take requests if you are looking for specifics :)

I found a Moonstone alpine-weight down jacket for something like $3 at a thrift store here in Columbus. It's not ultralight (maybe close to lightweight). I comb the thrift stores in the area here. I buy all my hiking pants at the thrift stores, I've found a few patagonia tops, tons of older gore-tex jackets and pants. Oh yeah, I found a Marmot precip jacket that was practically new for $6. That was a good one! I buy most of my cycling garments at thrift stores too.

My current Marmot pre-cip pants were $4. I spend WAY too much time in thrift stores.

Edited by ling_jd on 05/05/2007 15:31:55 MDT.

I just got 2 merino wool sweaters (6 oz ea) for $3 each.

Oh & new Merrill Long Trail gortex boots for $10.

Justin Ling bragged, "My current Marmot pre-cip pants were $4. I spend WAY too much time in thrift stores."

That's a BARGAIN-- and the kind of behavioral mod that keeps us going back. I swear they salt a few bargains like that in the racks just to keep people coming in :)

As to spending too much time, I tell my wife it beats hanging out in the bar and probably costs about the same-- and doesn't make me fat :) Then again, I do bring some presents home for the family. I got my wife a new JW Stannard wind chime for $6 and my daughter latched onto a Sierra Designs down sweater I got for $6.99.

I went out this morning to get a tire fixed and of course it is against the law to drive past the thrift store without stopping. I got a nice pair of RailRider hiking pants for $5. Never knew about RailRider-- looks like good stuff.

I gave a friend a ride home last night and dropped by a thrift store in the area to find a North Face Nupste 700 down jacket for $35. It got a quick hand wash and a run through the dryer to look like new. It makes me look like a Michelin Man in black :)

Dale, my experiences with thrift stores are a lot like yours. I rarely buy new clothes anymore, even for daily wear. Some stuff gets sold on ebay, some winds up in my closet, many times you go away empty handed and sometimes you find a Trek 520 (in my size) for $6.99 plus sales tax. My best score ever.

I found a TNF 650 nupste vest for $10! While I would never carry a hunk of vest that heavy onto the trail, it's super warm around the house in the winter. I also rocked a Sierra designs down jacket from the thrift store for $8. Sold it on ebay because it wouldn't fit.