NCGH

The National Coalition
of Ghost Hunters

Welcome!

The NCGH is a nation-wide organization dedicated to the promotion of networking, open communication, and cooperation between paranoramal investigative groups/individuals who use science-based techniques.

Please feel free to look through our directory to find and contact groups in your area or an area you’re visiting, join our forums, and apply for membership.

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One of the best ways for the hunter on a budget to find equipment is the flea market. Almost any town above a few thousand will sport one, but if not one will be within a decent driving distance. They range in size from a couple of booths in an old gas station garage, to huge hundred booth operations that span several buildings, and sell anything you can imagine, even services like repair work.

Common hunting items can almost always be found, though some searching needs to be done. It is easy to find common household still cameras, both digital and film. A good film camera can be found for $20 easily and occasionally as cheap as $5. Digital will run twice that for a few year old model, but for the hunter on a budget, a good steal. Video cameras can also be found in bulk, however quality becomes an issue. Your group probably wants a smaller camera with a night shot feature, but most cameras at the market are older cameras without these features. Also with the older cameras, batteries, accessories and film become an issue as these items either become impossible to find or wear out. That does not mean that newer camera can not be found, they are just a bit harder. While not as common, voice recorders can be found at good price. These tend to be straight forward, they run on battery, an interface is usually easy to see and most can be used by anyone without the need of a manual.

The big pull for hunters at the market however, is the odd tidbits that are almost impossible to find elsewhere. Rare or not usually available equipment such as oscilloscope, old security systems (occasionally new or non-traditional systems as well), cables of all types and lengths, video splitters (lots of old video hardware equipment, mostly analog) and all sorts of other things that are expensive or hard to find otherwise.

Always know what you are looking for before you buy, sometimes what seems like a good purchase turns sour when you find a cable missing, a feature doesn’t work, or you can’t understand the foreign scribbles that mark the buttons without the missing manual. Flea markets are the ultimate place for buyer beware, most people have a no return policy at best, and others simply will not be there the following week for you to even try, so ask questions, try out your proposed equipment and try to find any faults with the items before the deal goes down. Expect some missing parts, particularly power cables, so while looking, remember the extra cost of getting those parts elsewhere.

Not everything is a deal, sometimes what you find will be for sale at twice the real value. Other times you will find things for near free (and sometimes free) prices. There is always the option of cutting a deal (I’ll buy 4 if you knock $X off each) as no price is set in stone. Trading is also an option depending on the person, assuming you have the items to trade. But the biggest boon to flea market dealings is when you can deal with the same person time after time and build a relationship. When you do this, they will look for items you are interested in, cut better deals, and even hold items you can’t afford at the moment.

Flea markets are invaluable for finding equipment for the hunter with not a lot to toss around, but plenty of time to spend browsing the market. Note that most flea market sellers don’t take credit cards or checks, so a wallet full of cash is a very good thing.