visiting so cali , suggest tool stores /swap meets

[steveo3002]

im coming out from the uk to visit southern california , would love to pick up some tools while im there

can anyone suggest any big /cool stores or vintage swap meets where i might find something intresting

will be there july 18- aug 2

thanks

 

[ajchien]

Southern California is a fairly big place. You should probably be more specific regarding what city/locale you'll be at

 

[Zeke]

Unfortunately your visit doesn't coincide with the Pomona Swap Meet. That's the grand daddy of them all. Long Beach has a swap meet that is big but it's the day after you leave. AFA stores there are many specialty stores but the Net has bought most of these to our desks.

I'll check around because there are some vintage tool meets now and then.

 

[BHR4CE1]

Have heard great things about the Long Beach swap meet.

 

[larry_g]

Southern California is a fairly big place. You should probably be more specific regarding what city/locale you'll be at

I agree. Southern California is about the size of the whole of the UK.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[steveo3002]

as for region , i will be staying near disney , but we have plans to drive and do other stuff , i dont mind a drive out to see something good , chances are anywhere between oxnard and san diego would be fine

i see theres an antique thing on at longbeach , sounds like it be intresting i like all kinds of old /cool stuff

intrested in any cool guy stuff , airshows , cars , old stuff

 

[Tellingthem]

Kobey's Swap Meet if you make it to San Diego. Lots of random stuff usually. Sometimes I've hit it big there. There are a few others in the area like in East County. But Kobey's is easy to get to and it's every weekend.

 

[steveo3002]

Kobey's Swap Meet if you make it to San Diego. Lots of random stuff usually. Sometimes I've hit it big there. There are a few others in the area like in East County. But Kobey's is easy to get to and it's every weekend.

hmm how big is it ? worth the 100 mile drive ?

thanks

 

[Tellingthem]

hmm how big is it ? worth the 100 mile drive ?

thanks

Pretty big. It's held in a parking lot of an arena. I'd usually spend 3-4 hours walking around when I went there. I'm not sure I would say to make a trip just for it though. It can be quite random. People hawking everything from fruits and vegetables to infomercial products. Lots of storage locker sales (like the people from Storage Wars). You also get regular dealers more in antiques and vintage items. I dealt a lot in the area so I spent most of my time digging through boxes looking for stuff like that.

Honestly I probably wouldn't make the drive just for the swap meet. But there are plenty of things to see or check out if you want to make a day of it. Otherwise I'm sure you can find similar/better meets closer to where you'll be.

 

[mrborohachi]

check out the Pasadena Rose Bowl once a month flea market

http://www.rgcshows.com/

and if you look on the left you'll see there are other flea markets East of LA if your in the area

 

[steveo3002]

okay thanks ..i'll put that down as a maybe

something more local would be great

 

[Unmarked Bill]

Long Beach and Pomona are pretty much busted for tools, I went to both in the last couple weeks and came home empty handed. What are you looking for?

 

[steveo3002]

What are you looking for?

cool old hand tools , snap on , anything cool or differant , old tin signs , gas station stuff , car stuff , coke /soda crates

anything cool for a man cave

what about pawn shops..would they have anything to check out

 

[Unmarked Bill]

Pawn shops have stuff, but they like to start at an unreasonable price and let you chisel them down to the high end. But I've had some luck, and the fun is in the looking I guess. Yard sales are listed on Craigslist, if youre up to some early weekend hunting. Swap meets are good for signs and stuff to put on shelves, not so great for tools IMO.

 

[steveo3002]

i plan to go to harbour freight too , i see coupons mentioned on here often , where do i aquire some coupons to use in store

 

[jakemac]

Their website has a coupon section HERE. You can print them out and have them scanned at the register.

In theory, you are only allowed 1 coupon per transaction, but sometimes they will let you use more. It depends on the store and the person at the register.

 

[rooney00]

You can find a lot if harbor freight coupons on slickdeals. I go to the flea market in Huntington Beach when I'm near. Never leave without some tools.

 

[RalphInCA]

Change the dates of your trip go to the Pomona swap. Well worth it.

Almost worth a trip all by itself.


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[Zeke]

Long Beach and Pomona are pretty much busted for tools, I went to both in the last couple weeks and came home empty handed. What are you looking for?

I always see plenty of tools and signage. Must have been an off time.

We have lots of specialty swaps like this one:
http://www.andersonplywood.com/swapmeet.htm

Google anything you can think of. In this case I googled "vintage tool swap."

 

[ihateminimumwage]

...anything cool or differant , old tin signs , gas station stuff , car stuff , coke /soda crates

anything cool for a man cave

what about pawn shops..would they have anything to check out

I've been really wanting to stop in at Grump's next time I'm in SoCal...
http://www.grumps-garage.com/

 

[ajchien]

I would also suggest Pomona and the rose bowl. Others include Vineland in city of industry. medium to smaller ones ones ... San Fernando swap meet, bel air (in Fontana), and macklin market. I think Kobeys in San Diego in medium to smallish.


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[steveo3002]

Change the dates of your trip go to the Pomona swap. Well worth it.

Almost worth a trip all by itself.


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i did try my best , the g/f can only go certain dates so its that or nothing , i have been to pomona before

 

[WallyKowalski]

so on July 18th I have to get on a horse and ride through town screaming "the british are coming!"

There's actually a hidden gem of a swap meet about 25 minutes from Disneyland. Golden West College in Huntington Beach has a weekly weekend swap meet. If you can put up with the people and their 10 screaming out of hand kids that shop at that place, it's actually not that bad. I've found some vintage tools there. and there is no admission fees or parking fees it's all free. Bring cash I don't think any vendors take cards.

 

[RalphInCA]

i did try my best , the g/f can only go certain dates so its that or nothing , i have been to pomona before

Ditch the girlfriend. Go to Pomona. You'll have a better time. (JK)

 

[RalphInCA]

Not worth a special trip, but for the locals out there, the swap meet at citrus College between Azuza and Glendora each Sunday is pretty good for tools. Usually lots of hand tools and used power tools.

Some of them probably aren't even stolen!

 

[Tucko]

If you're into any Tiki or cool old stuff, Oceanic Arts is worth a visit. It's not too far from Anaheim. They did all the set work for Gilligans Island and were the forefront of the tiki craze in the 50's and 60's. I believe they did all the work for the Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland too.
http://www.oceanicarts.net/

 

[rooney00]

Have you been to Mooneyes? What about the Peterson museum?

 

[ddawg16]

The Rodeum in Gardena....Every Sat....

I'm guessing your going to be in the Los Angeles area....

If you want tools...check out the Craig's List adds

While your here....Peterson auto museum....if you like old stuff...there is a great little printing museum in Carson....

Santa Monica has a large Brit population....

My wife is English....from Preston.

And if you have time and I'm in town....I could always give you a tour of Compton....in my company car....It's been awhile since I was shot at so it should be safe.

 

[rsanter]

Do a search for California swap meet
A bunch will come up
Also how about you visit some members to get some stuff. I have a bunch of tools I'm looking to sell
I'm in Visalia ( central ca) if you want to stop by and see the shop and have a beer
If you order anything on the internet and have it shipped here to me and then pick it up when you are here feel free. I have an Australian friend that does that.
I have a really good snap on guy that makes me good deals if you need snap on stuff

Bob

 

[RalphInCA]

And if you have time and I'm in town....I could always give you a tour of Compton....in my company car....It's been awhile since I was shot at so it should be safe.

Sometimes when I am headed to Long Beach, I take the Blue Line train.

It goes through Compton. When I am passing through there I feel like I am on safari looking at the wildlife.

 

[Deskmechanic]

so on July 18th I have to get on a horse and ride through town screaming "the british are coming!"

There's actually a hidden gem of a swap meet about 25 minutes from Disneyland. Golden West College in Huntington Beach has a weekly weekend swap meet. If you can put up with the people and their 10 screaming out of hand kids that shop at that place, it's actually not that bad. I've found some vintage tools there. and there is no admission fees or parking fees it's all free. Bring cash I don't think any vendors take cards.

I was going to suggest Golden West swap meet. Skip over the **** and you will find one or two things.

I'm in Long Beach and always have a box full of old tools to sell. Send me a PM if you want to see my list.

There is a great antique mall in Long Beach on PCH that is worth a visit. Everything is full retail price, but it is all collected in one place. They have great signs/crates/collectibles like you are looking for.

And one more thing: NEVER say "CALI" while you are here. It makes people cringe.

 

[steveo3002]

I was going to suggest Golden West swap meet. Skip over the **** and you will find one or two things.

I'm in Long Beach and always have a box full of old tools to sell. Send me a PM if you want to see my list.

There is a great antique mall in Long Beach on PCH that is worth a visit. Everything is full retail price, but it is all collected in one place. They have great signs/crates/collectibles like you are looking for.

And one more thing: NEVER say "CALI" while you are here. It makes people cringe.

that mall sounds ok..do you have a name or location for it so i can look it up , trying to make a list of things to do

thanks

 

[RalphInCA]

And one more thing: NEVER say "CALI" while you are here. It makes people cringe.

Meh. Not really. SoCal, especially the LA region is such an extremely diverse area that almost anything goes.

There are so many different languages spoken out here and so many people from so many different places in the world that most times we are just happy to be able to understand each other.

That's one of the main things I like about this area.


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[Deskmechanic]

Here's the antique mall I was referring to:

http://www.longbeachantiquemall.com/

As for saying "Cali", people will cut you slack if you clearly aren't from here but for the most part it is not used except by people outside the region. "Socal" is an accepted shorthand. "Cal" refers to the University of California, Berkeley, not the state.

 

[steveo3002]

thanks ..and i'll try not to speak to anyone hehe

 

[Zeke]

Meh. Not really. SoCal, especially the LA region is such an extremely diverse area that almost anything goes.

There are so many different languages spoken out here and so many people from so many different places in the world that most times we are just happy to be able to understand each other.

That's one of the main things I like about this area.


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No, it really is something that sets us natives apart. Fine for the diversity, but some of us like the original cultures which have Spanish at the root with the Hollywood and sunshine image, surfing, hot rods and all that piled on top. I think a surfer's favorite food is a taco. That's SoCal.

To talk about CA in general you have to know we are the largest food producers in the world. Lumber, oil, mining and shipping round out the history of CA.

We are not 'cali,' that's Mexicali across the border from Calexico. Some people started that cali **** somewhere else and brought it here. It does make one cringe but that's OK because I know where I'm from, not where I am.

Now we just breed and attract people.

 

[RalphInCA]

Let's try this out:

Ahem... "Cali is my home.". "I live in Cali." "Come visit me in Cali."

Waiting for it... Waiting for it... Waiting for it...

Nope. No cringe!

 

[Plombob]

Steveo - When are you here? I might be able to take you to a swap or two.

 

[BHR4CE1]

Never realized how many of us are in Long Beach!

 

[steveo3002]

im there july 19 and leaving aug 2

keep the ideas coming , its a great help