Sold Date: May 25, 2024
Start Date: May 18, 2024
Final Price: $54.99 (USD)
Bid Count: 1
Seller Feedback: 3257
Buyer Feedback: 0

KISS - Asylum
1985 Mercury Records - 422-826 099-1 M-1
US Pressing!! - SEALED with hype sticker!!
Cover - EX (SEALED!!  One small corner rub) Vinyl - Mint (SEALED!!) Inner Sleeve - SEALED!!
Check out my other listings!!  I'm going to be listing all summer long!!  I have a ton of great stuff coming.


I grade according to the goldmine grading scale.  Please email with any questions.  If anything, I grade on the conservative side.  I have been burned one too many times by people that mis-grade albums.  
Please email me with any other questions about the album and I will respond as soon as I can.

Returns accepted - Please contact me within 2 weeks of receiving your album to initiate the return.  If there is obvious damage to the package upon arrival, please take pictures of the package before opening.  
Thank you for you consideration!!  Bid with confidence!!


Take a look at my other auctions, I will combine on shipping.  Shipping in the US is $5.00 for the first album and $1.00 for each additional album.
For International shipping we do not offer full refunds, but will do partial refunds if you can provide pictures of the package before it is opened to notate the damage to the package.  We will not refund shipping charges.
Also follow me on eBay.  I will be listing a lot of oddities/collectibles/vintage/music items over the next year.



RECORD ALBUM GRADING SCALE

MINT (M)
These are absolutely perfect in every way. Often rumored but rarely seen..  Sealed vinyl is assumed mint.  Just because an album is sealed it does not get this grading.  Covers can be damaged but still sealed.  Any opened album is automatically NM by defauld

NEAR MINT (NM OR M-)
A good description of a NM record is ?it looks like it just came from a retail store and it was opened for the first time.? In other words, it?s nearly perfect. Many dealers won?t use a grade higher than this, implying (perhaps correctly) that no record or sleeve is ever truly perfect.

NM records are shiny, with no visible defects. Writing, stickers or other markings cannot appear on the label, nor can any ?spindle marks? from someone trying to blindly put the record on the turntable. Major factory defects also must be absent; a record and label obviously pressed off center is not Near Mint. If played, it will do so with no surface noise. (NM records don?t have to be ?never played?; a record used on an excellent turntable can remain NM after many plays if the disc is properly cared for.)

NM covers are free of creases, ring wear and seam splits of any kind.

NOTE: These are high standards, and they are not on a sliding scale. A record or sleeve from the 1950s must meet the same standards as one from the 1990s or 2000s to be Near Mint! It?s estimated that no more than 2 to 4 percent of all records remaining from the 1950s and 1960s are truly Near Mint. This is why they fetch such high prices, even for more common items.

Don?t assume your records are Near Mint. They must meet these standards to qualify!

EXCELLENT (EX) and VERY GOOD PLUS (VG+)

A good description of a VG+ record is ?except for a couple minor things, this would be Near Mint.? Most collectors, especially those who want to play their records, will be happy with a VG+ record, especially if its toward the high end of the grade which would be considered EX

VG+ records may show some slight signs of wear, including light scuffs or very light scratches that do not affect the listening experience. Slight warps that do not affect the sound are OK. Minor signs of handling are OK, too, such as telltale marks around the center hole, but repeated playing has not misshapen the hole. There may be some very light ring wear or discoloration, but it should be barely noticeable.

VG+ covers should have only minor wear. A VG+ cover might have some very minor seam wear or a split (less than one inch long) at the bottom, the most vulnerable location. Also, a VG+ cover may have some defacing, such as a cut-out marking. Covers with cut-out markings can never be considered Near Mint.

Very Good (VG)

Many of the imperfections found on a VG+ record are more obvious on a VG record. That said, VG records ? which usually sell for no more than 25 percent of a NM record ? are among the biggest bargains in record collecting, because most of the ?big money? goes for more perfect copies. For many listeners, a VG record or sleeve will be worth the money.

VG records have more obvious flaws than their counterparts in better shape. They lack most of the original gloss found on factory-fresh records. Groove wear is evident on sight, as are light scratches deep enough to feel with a fingernail. When played, a VG record has surface noise, and some scratches may be audible, especially in soft passages and during a song?s intro and ending. But the noise will not overpower the music otherwise.

Minor writing, tape or a sticker can detract from the label. Many collectors who have jukeboxes will use VG records in them and not think twice. They remain a fine listening experience, just not the same as if it were in better shape.

VG covers will have many signs of human handling. Ring wear in the middle or along the edges of the cover where the edge of a record would reside, is obvious, though not overwhelming. Some more creases might be visible. 

Good (G), Good Plus (G+), Very Good Minus (VG?) 

Good does not mean bad!  It can serve as filler until something better comes along. But it has significant surface noise and groove wear, and the label is worn, with significant ring wear, heavy writing, or obvious damage caused by someone trying to remove tape or stickers and failing miserably.  Seam splitting will be more obvious; it may appear on all three sides, though it won?t be obvious upon looking. Someone might have written or it or stamped a price tag on it, too.  A Good to VG? cover has ring wear to the point of distraction, has seam splits obvious on sight and may have even heavier writing, such as, for example, huge radio station letters written across the front to deter theft.

If the item is common, it?s probably better to pass it up. But if you?ve been seeking it for a long time, get it cheap and look to upgrade.

POOR (P) and Fair (F)

Poor (P) and Fair (F) records, more than likely, end up going in the trash. Records are cracked, impossibly warped, or skip and/or repeat when an attempt is made to play them. Covers are so heavily damaged that you almost want to cry.

Only the most outrageously rare items ever sell for more than a few cents in this condition ? again, if they sell at all.