Ever smell stuff before you buy?

[xertcev]

I do.
I'm freaked out about mold and ???stuff. I don't want that crap taking over my house on some warm breezy day.
Yes, I probably look like a freak in a thrift store , but I usually look around before giving it the "sniff"
I throw it back if I smell anything funky or questionable.

[punkoffgirl]

Are you talking about used games, or used underwear?
I don't think I've ever SNIFFED a game/console/etc... Unless it had a funky odor that was strong enough to smell without putting my nose next to it.
I'm really quite interested to see if anyone else does this!

[Arqueologia_Digital]

Sometimes i smell the stuff, but then i put an spray on it and...clean!!!

[CrazyImpmon]

Small something? At Thirft stores? Dude, you're brave. I've smelled things that would kill a herd of elephant if someone smelled too closely. I just go by visual inspection and if nothing looks strange (like chaulky white stuff) then it's probably OK.

[digitalpress]

Smelly collectibles bother me too but it doesn't usually stop me from buying. I have an entire laundry room shelf dedicated to the removal of filth, stickers, AND odor from my games.

The one smell that seems impossible to get rid of is SMOKE. I once bought a lot of NES games on eBay and it smelled like the games escaped from a blazing fire.

[Starcade]

I bought 2 NES games once, they flat out smelled like cat piss, literally.

[Mr-E_MaN]

I never smell anything I buy. If I want it, I buy it. If it turns out it stinks I'll hang an air freshener on it. (I never had anything that stunk that much before.)

:yipes:

[maxlords]

I sniff games for smoke....drives me NUTS when a game reeks of smoke, especially cause it's so hard to get rid of! I bought a collection of Genesis and Sega CD once...had to air all the cases in the garage for two months to get rid of the smell!

[den68]

the only thing I've ever noticed is that nasty smoke stench. I've opened up a few packages from ebay auctions and nearly passed out. haven't noticed it too much at thrift stores. although most thrift stores seem to have a strong smell all their own.

it's not too hard to get rid of smoke smell on carts and consoles. some airing out and 409 usually do the trick. one exception I had was a Gameboy Pocket I once found, it came with a carrying case that REEKED of smoke. i feel bad for the kid who had to live in thathouse. anyway I had that thing hanging on the clothesline and soaked it in Febreeze for a week straight before the stench started to fade.

If you don't know what Febreeze is it's a spray deodorizer. supposed to work on pet smells, smoke, mildew etc.

[Tempest]

I haven't found any stuff that had strange odors other than smoke (which unless its a rare item I dont take) except for one Leisurevision unit that I swear smelled like BO! I mean this thing smelled like an unwashed cab driver! I soaked it in Fabreeze and let it air out, but if you still got really close you smell it. I ended up selling it off because the funk was just so bad.

Tempest

[dreamcaster]

Just open the box to my Dreamcast and you'll be guaranteed to get lung cancer. The cigarette smoke in there is ridiculous!!!!!! And that's after over four months!!

The Dreamcast itself initially smelt badly too, but I completely stripped it down and steralised every single component. The console's like new now.

[Scoots]

Weird, I just bought a 2600 cart the other day that REEKS of cigar smoke...first time it's happened to me. What you can do is fill a paper bag with baking soda and then stick the smelly item in there with it and seal it up (keeping the cart or whatever elevated above the baking soda of course). Leave it for a day or two or three and that oughta do the trick.

[IntvGene]

I just hate the whole thrift store odor itself. It feels so contaminated. I feel like wearing rubber gloves when I sift through stuff. I always definitely wash my hands after leaving a thrift store.

You know it's bad when you're cleaning and your sponge turns brown. But, I would agree that Febreeze is a great deodorizer. It's potent alirght.

[omnedon]

No sniffing. Too dangerous! :-D

Once a new acquisition is home, I test. If it passes tests (hardware), I disassemble and DETAIL clean it, inside and out. That always removes all residue, and is sometimes surprising how good the plastic looks under the gunk. If it fails the test, I try to fix it. If the fix takes, then I detail clean. If I can't fix it, into parts bin it goes.

It's a ritual now. Only the working ones get the love. Just did it to a newly acquired Lynx with case and ten games. Once I got it apart and got behind the screen lens, I blew ALL of the dust out of the screen. VOILA! Beauty! :D

Rescuer of cool hardware is I! I should get some tights and a cape....

[scooterb23]

I've never had the smoke proble, I have gotten a couple of packages though that smell like cat. I hate that smell, and my mom is allergic to it... :/

[Bratwurst]

Take what potshots you will, but it bothers me when I get something that smells of Febreeze. I've got a particularly potent sense of smell you see.

[bargora]

oh, no! not the smoke!

pussies.

Whoah. It's like a corn-dog just took over my fruit or something.

*stubs out cigarette on Air Raid*

What gets me is the mysterious brown stuff that you usually find in the crevices of used stuff. I don't even want to think about WTF it is.

[Bratwurst]

I've found bread crumbs in various controllers and video game systems upon opening them. Oh yeah, they smelled like bread.. right.. smell thread.

[chadtower]

I do.
I'm freaked out about mold and ???stuff. I don't want that crap taking over my house on some warm breezy day.
Yes, I probably look like a freak in a thrift store , but I usually look around before giving it the "sniff"
I throw it back if I smell anything funky or questionable.

Only in a strip club... :puke: