There was one dealer I was able to work with. I bought most of my items from him. The first thing I found in his box of parts was two Gibson pickups. He had them marked for $5 and $1. He said they were both Classic 57's, and that neither was working.
I checked the $5 on my multi-meter, and I managed to get a reading on it. The other one was broken on the top (upper right pickup in the photo,) and I could see the wire coming out of it. I didn't bother to test it because it was obvious it was broken. I tested it later, and yes, it was broken. But the magnet itself was worth at least $1.
The other pickups he had were out of a Big Apple/Double Fat Strat. They were a pair of Seymour Duncan pickups, a reverse polarity 59', and a Pearly Gates Plus. If you notice they are not white, but they are not cream colored either. Since Dimarzio owns the patient on double cream bobbins, Seymour Duncan made these pickups in "Parchment" color.
I had wanted a Pearly Gates pickup so I was more than happy to pick this one up. I couldn't bypass picking up the 59' neck pickup. I know this set blends well, so I was glad to buy both.
About a month ago I bought a Coffin Case guitar case that was missing a handle. This seller happened to have a lot of case handles so I picked up three. I also saw a fancy tailpiece that I could put on one of my archtop guitars. So I ended up paying $100 for the four pickups, three handles, and a gold tailpiece.
I also purchased a chrome pickup cover for $5 from the same seller, and I bought a Seymour Duncan pickup cover from another dealer, also for $5.
There was one dealer who had all sorts of pickguards. Since I am always working on Stratocasters I thought I should pick one up. I managed to find an All-Parts pickguard in pearloid for $10.
As I was looking through another dealer's bin I found a Rio Grande pickup. It was marked for $15 so I asked him the price since that had to have been wrong. He said, "$15." I tested the pickup and it worked. I was more than happy to pay $15 for a pickup that normally runs $78 new. I bought it just for the sake of reselling it.
Another great thing I managed to snag was three $10 Guitar Center gift cards. I kept walking by the booth, and different salesmen kept handing me cards. After a while they started to recognize the guy in the black Gambler style cowboy hat (me.) But I was glad to snag three gift cards.
To show my sincerity I bought three sets of acoustic strings for $12 from the Guitar Center salesmen. I also happened to need acoustic strings since I was out, but it was the right time/right place.
So that was my trip. I only played about five guitars while I was there. Everything was completely overpriced. I could go on Reverb.com right now, and buy any of the guitars there for less. I will say they had a lot of vintage guitars that aren't readily available. And you could actually inspect and play them if you wanted.
In all fairness the guys who bought their own gear to sell or trade were also completely ridiculous on price. I saw one guy going booth to booth, and was turned down by everyone. He was insanely overpriced on what he had. Him and another guy were trying to sell guitars for more than what a dealer could sell them for.
90% of the dealers there only wanted to deal with Fender or Gibson. Anything else they didn't want to buy or trade for. That's one reason I tended to look at the Gretsch Guitars. Although, anything that had the words, "Gretsch" on it sure wasn't cheap either.
But there are a few important things I have to remember. I had fun. It was an easy drive this time. I managed to buy a number of items that I can resell to make up the cost of the trip. I also left the show with money still in my wallet... a first! So I'm happy with the trip, and am looking forward to next year's guitar expo.
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