This year was supposed to be the year of the cut back, the intervention required to pause my tape collecting habits. The big trim down! Sadly, as always, this was not to be…

Last year I purchased a tape called Gallery of Horror from a store in town, it was on the ultra rare UK Trytel label, a label that only a few tapes have ever surfaced on. I purchased it based on the cover art alone but little did I know that this was one-of-a-kind. A picture of the tape was uploaded to a private collectors forum and it went a little crazy after that, with offers flooding into my inbox.
I eventually, after seeking advice from other collectors, listed the tape on ebay (something I don’t like to make a habit of) and it fetched a cool £580. The sale allowed me to go back to the store and purchase a lot more tapes from the same guy, thus justifying my actions.

Anyway, over the last few weekends I have been back to the store to sort through hundreds of new titles. I’m very fortunate in the sense that this particular seller has all of his tapes in a storage facility, and only allows myself to rummage through them whenever I please, even leaving me a key to lock up once finished.

His storage habits leave a lot to be desired but rest assured, there be gold in them there compressed stacks.

In addition to what you see above, he also had fifteen extra boxes of tapes in a different area but sadly I wasn’t able to get pictures of their contents due to close supervision. I’ll tell you that the first tape I found in box number one was the US release of Gator Bait, so that should give you an indication as to what was inside each one.

While sorting through this clamshell carnage I tried to take as many front shots as I could. This was mainly done for my own benefit so that I know what he has and where to find them when I return, but also because the artwork on some of these foreign tapes is just too special not to share.

I’d say what you see below equates to around 10% of what he has. His Japanese collection alone is one to make any serious collector blush.

Japanese VHS

Greek VHS

Euro VHS

UK, US, Australian and Various Other VHS

I also took various side shots of the tapes, practically of all inside the storage container. So feel free to browse the shelves and let me know if there are any in there that you think I should pick up next time. I think i’ve been through these five times in all but I might still be overlooking a few hidden gems, especially on the Greek and Japanese tapes.

I made over 30 purchases in total, which may not sound like a lot but I ended up spending almost £300, so you can understand my predicament.

The aim is to return in a few weeks (once paid) and take a few more off his hands. Like I previously stated, I have special access to these so I know that for the time being they’re going nowhere.