Op Shops-Books

[peteepie]

Best Op Shops for books by location

Please post here any op shops that have a good range of books at reasonable prices.

Post details of specials such as $5 a bag etc.

Feel free to include details for second hand book shops.

I'm in Geelong and will do a post for here soon.  

Please note op shops often have short term sales, and sometimes change their pricing or even close, so checking with the stores is advisable for older postings.

Thanks, Peter.

[serendipityricho]

Hi Pete--over the years the oppos in my area..Latrobe Valley

have increased the range of clothing etc and dont stock as many books 

as the old days........................................................................................................Richo.

[pruetrading]

There are some great little op shops out there, but if they don't use good quality removable price stickers (and often the cheap places don't), its sometimes just not worth it.

I've found op shops pricing books with red pen, pink texta, or written so heavily in sharp pencil that the prices are  indelible. One place takes its best books and sticky tapes a large cardboard price tag onto the endpaper.....ruining it. Another place I use to go to had some vintage books with lovely clean dustjackets, but priced them with large, super cheap stickers stuck over the title or cover art. Usually impossible to remove without lifting half the dustjacket. 

Even if you try to gently explain the downfalls of the above methods, they still keep doing it..... so I stopped buying from them.  

[mybookstoreonline]

In Perth Western Australia Save the Children have the best second hand books.

They have 2 sales per year, one in Joondalup at the sports arena next weekend 9th and 10th of April, another in August at the uni in Crawley. 

The best shops to go to for 2nd hand books are Belmont Save the Children, this is in Belmont shopping forum.

They price their books only ever in pencil on the front fly, they obviously know what they are doing.

They have a clean out every now and again and reduce their prices further.

The other Save the Children shop worth visiting is Morley 28 Rudloc Rd, whilst they do other things as well as books, the backwall is nearly all books, with lots of genre.

[peteepie]

Trip to Hamilton from Geelong - various op shops.

about 2 hours, 45 min one way, plus browsing time.

all shops had eftpos. (book fair cash only)

Colac 

Only went to Vinnies which had a small range and was overpriced.

Note the Red Rock lookout just past Colac is well worth a short detour.  Views over crater lakes and across Lake Corangamite.

Pomborneit

Not far out of Colac (20 minutes) is the big yellow "Pombomart".  Full of small stalls, operated along the same lines as the Mill Markets, but maybe a bit cheaper.  There used to be a stall full of "book club" titles for $2 each but this seems to have gone.  Still several book stalls but you'll be paying $4 upwards.  Some stalls full of special interests such as WWii etc.  Good place for non-fiction titles.  Nice place to explore and the little cafe is well run with good food.

Camperdown

Vinnies at 156 Manifold Street had about 8 bookshelves worth @ $2-$3 but was a bit messy.  Books pretty worn out.

Lifeline at 178 Manifold Street (on the corner) is a nice airy shop.  Large book section with books priced $2-$4.  Prices in light pencil.  Several bookcases of paperbacks, one of hard covers, all pretty good quality.  Big kids section.

Worth checking out in Camperdown is the Mammoth Mart at 261 Manifold Street on the left as you leave town towards Warrnambool.  Eclectic range of garden nursery items, furniture, crafts, second hand goods, clocks (!) in a huge meandering store.  Down in the second hand section to the left of the checkout counter is a large collection of books.  Lots of small paperbacks, "book club" hard covers, a whole bookcase of RD.  Priced from .50cents to only $2 mainly.  Most books have been there forever...I've called in a few times and there rarely seems to be anything new, but a one off visit is well worth it.  Fun to explore anyway.

Noorat

I took the turnoff to Noorat/Mortlake about 15 minutes past Camperdown.  No op shops at Noorat, but this is the birthplace of Alan Marshall.  Signage and info about Alan around the town.  Great little walk on the edge of town is the Alan Marshall walk.  500 metres uphill through the dairy cows to the most perfectly conical crater you're likely to see, where young Alan used to play.  You can go another 500 metres (almost straight up!) if you are feeling energetic for views right across the district.

Mortlake

There is an op shop here somewhere but I was running a bit late and didn't see it on a slow drive through town.  St. James op shop in the old courthouse in Shaw Street.  Sounds like an interesting location to check out at least.

Hamilton

I was going to Hamilton to for their book fair - see book fair thread.  Visited four op shops all within a block of each other.  Easiest to park at one pair, then drive to the other pair.

WDHS op shop in Brown Street near Lifeline o/s.  The pick of the bunch in Hamilton.  Priced $1-$2.  Don't know if it's always so, but they had a lot of hard covers that looked almost brand new.  No price markings.  I bought 7 very nice books for $14.

Lifeline at 45 Brown Street.  Not much chop.

Vinnies at 69 Cox Street.  Little room at the back with quite a good range @ $2-$4.

Salvoes just around the corner from Vinnies.  Worst Salvoes I've ever seen for books.  There is another one listed at 89 Kennedy Street that I didn't get to, so maybe that is their main book store.

Not a fantastic lot of op shops in Hamilton apart from WDHS, but worth a visit to them all in conjunction with the book fair which runs for 2 months from the first week in Feb to the first week in April.  Maybe drive this route from Melbourne if holidaying in the Grampians area.  Would only add about half an hour driving time to the trip.  Return to Melbourne via Ballarat is about 3 hr 20 min.

[peteepie]

Lifeline Morwell

2/8 Fleming St

Huge book section very well organised-alphabetically sorted

Mostly $2 a book

Prices in light pencil on flyleaf

[peteepie]

Geelong - south of town

Listed in the order you'd go if you wanted to visit them all.  Probably 15 km all up from start to finish.

Vinnies, Fyans St, Sth Geelong

Mostly $2.  Quite large table of $1 books.  Medium range but it turns over quite well.

Salvos, Barwon Terrace, Sth Geelong

Overpriced as many Salvos seem to be.  $4.25, $5.25, $6.25.  Big range nicely sorted in alpha order.  Lots of hard covers.  Books in generally good condition.  Nice airy store.  price stickers easily peeled.

Lifeline, Haworth Court, Breakwater. (corner of Breakwater Road)

Bit gloomy.  Books recently tidied up.  $1/$2.  Kids .20 cents. Lot of cookbooks.  Stack of VC Andrews @ $2.

Over the bridge into Belmont now.

Easiest to do a loop turning right off Settlement Road into Francis St.

Kalkee, Francis St, Belmont

Closes at 4.

Good range but low turnover.  Lot of hard cover books in good condition.  Big kids range. 

Cheap - all books $1, bag of books for $5

Salvos, Settlement Road, Belmont

Good range.  $1 unless marked.  Well organised in alpha order.  Romance - 10 for $2.

Shelves are starting to overflow a bit as more books get marked at $2/$3, though still mainly $1.

In excess of 20 books of many popular authors.

There are 3 op shops in High St Belmont but none big on books.  Best is the Scout shop half way down the hill but their books are pretty messy and doubled up in places, which I hate!  Only one shop in Highton with tiny range.

Turn left into Torquay Rd after above Salvos and on to Salvos in shops opposite Aldi.

Salvos, Torquay Rd, Grovedale

Smallish range.  $1.25 to $6.25, mainly $3-4 range.  Wouldn't bother except to get a pie from next door.

Vinnies, Marshalltown Road, Grovedale

Pretty big range.  $1 table of large coffee table books. Most books $2/3.

Nicely sorted, alpha.  Nice big shop.  Open Sundays

3216 Connect (christian reformed church), 2 Dendle St (just round the corner from above Vinnies)

Only open Wed, Thur, Fri 10-4 and first sat of the month.

Hc $2, pb $1, kids books .50 cents.  Small to medium range nicely laid out.

Brotherhood S L, Torquay Road, Grovedale

Hc $4/5, pb $3.  Roughly in alpha order.  Nearly all fiction.  More Hc on top of clothes racks in middle of store.

Books half price at the moment.

Hunger for knowledge thrift shop, Essington St, Grovedale

Not easy to spot-nearly at the end of the street.

Only open Wed, Thur, Fri 9-4, Sat 9-1.

Surprisingly big range.  Was a mess but now most are bookcased.  Not sorted.

All $1 unless marked says the sign, but they sell them all for a dollar anyway.

Quality variable but bargains to be had!

Grovedale Uniting Church, Torquay Rd, Grovedale (turn into Reserve Rd and use their car park)

Only open Thur 10-4, Fri 11-3, Sat 10-3

Their book shop is newly opened and chock a block.  Separate to the Op Shop.

They have a lot of books left over from their recent book fair.

Big range mostly $2/3.  Easily perused and slowly getting into alpha order.

Prices in pencil.

Best days to do this are Thu/Fri to cover them all due to opening hours.

Will cover north side of Geelong soon, as there are a few worth dropping into.

[misterforgetfulsbooks]

Great information Peetie, I love the Salvos just out of Geelong heading across to the Bellarine Peninsula, not sure of the town name.

Can say I'll never go back to the Drysdale Book Sale again - grossly over priced however that Salvos made up for the trip + some finds in the West Geelong opps.

Wonthaggi - we have 6 opp shops

The Vinnies would have the best range with books between $3-$4 and a clearance section 10 for $1

Salvos have the next best range and are more competitively priced, hard to find being out in the industrial area on Inverloch rd service rd

Rose Lodge behind the yellow PBE real estate in the middle of town are the cheapest 20c - $2 and don't have many as they sell fast

Save The Pets a few doors up, probably the most expensive in town $4-$10

Paws Galore just around the corner in Watt st are quite reasonable but not a high turn over 50c - $2

Last but not least Lifeline opposite McDonalds have a small book shelf 50c - $4

Hard to find opps in our area are the:

Bass opp shop just off the HWY in the community centre, has a fill a bag area and priced area around $2

Corinella just up from the general store, around $2ea. Fri.

Grantville next to BP around $8ea.

Nyora in the old station building, 10c - $2ea. Frid miday

Korumburra biggest range in Hillside Lodge heading up the hill on the left very reasonable

Salvos are expensive opposite side bottom of the hill

Kilmany a couple of doors up are around $2-$4

Vinnies are around the back of these 2 opp shops and are very cheap

Leongatha, can't go past the range in Vinnies but are high priced due to ex Mentone book shop owner pricing them - pfft

St Pauls church opp has very cheap books only not a lot

Salvos are high priced but have a good range

[misterforgetfulsbooks]

Salvos Abbotsford on Victoria cres would be my favourite opp shop for books

very large range and reasonable prices, just have to be there when stuff is going out as locals know when that is

Savers in Moorabin/Cheltenham on Warragul road  would be my next favourite and have a great range at reasonable prices

Salvos in Noble Park on the Princess HWY would be the 3rd favourite with quite a large range and reasonable pricing

Salvos Stud Park round it off with not that many now and prices vary from reasonable to rediculous now

I think any opp shop is worth a look as you never know until you go whether there is something there on the day or not

[peteepie]

Anyone heading down towards Geelong and the Surf Coast might like to make a short detour into

Hoppers Crossing

Before you get to Werribee take the first Hoppers Crossing exit.  Turn right over the bridge, round the bend and you are on Old Geelong Road.  Go through the lights at Costa Drive and coming up on your left is a big Salvos store:-

Salvos  Old Geelong Road

Big range in well displayed alphabetical order.  Generally good/excellent quality.

$2.25 to $7.25, mainly about $4.25.  Price stickered.

I just had a quick scan and didn't buy anything due to the high cost.  Love the work the Salvos do but so many of their stores (not all of them) price their books out of the market.  For me, due to pricing, 4/10

turn right the way you came and then left at Costa Drive (traffic lights).  Almost straight away on the right is

Vinnies  Costa Drive

Good range and quality.  Perfect alpha order and well displayed in nice store.

.50 cents to $3, mainly $1 and $2.  Price tags easily removed.

Well worth a visit  8/10

Payless Op Shop next door to Vinnies.

Only listed hear cause they are right next door.  Very small range.  Wouldn't expect you'd find anything but you never know.  1/10

turn left again out of Costa Drive into Old Geelong Road, and then left into Elm Park Drive.  At the T intersection you will see almost straight ahead,

Lighthouse Op Shop  Elm Park Drive

There are quite a few books in no particular order, and a lot are quite raggedy.

However, only .50 cents per book and I found four I was pretty happy with.

Can't complain about the price,   6/10

just a few doors up the road is the

Brotherhood of St. Laurence  Elm Park Drive

Big, bright store.  Large book display all priced at $2...not price marked.

Interesting display method.  They have a whole bank of A-E all mixed together, but they are shelved in order from most recently received to the oldest.  Then another lot F-M etc.  Good for repeat visitors to just check what's new.  

Quality variable, but seemed to have an interesting mix.  My favourite of the HC stores  8/10

From there just turn left out of Elm Park Drive and rejoin the freeway where you left it.  All up only about ten minutes of driving added to the trip for three pretty good Op Shops plus a dear one and a uesless one!  Happy book shopping.