Sold Date: September 28, 2018
Start Date: September 18, 2018
Final Price: $26.00 (USD)
Bid Count: 6
Seller Feedback: 6765
Buyer Feedback: 17

1970 WB - Grateful Dead " American Beauty"- NEAR MINT VINYL and EXCELLENT SLEEVE!!  All my records are bubble wrapped and shipped in crush proof boxes. I use the Goldmine Grading System.  What may appear to be spots are reflections from my flash camera. Additional records won are only $1.00 for shipping.Buyer pays $3.95 shipping.

NEAR MINT or NM
Sometimes dealers use M- (Mint Minus)grade. You may need to ask the dealer if he/she uses the M- grade the same way as NM. They should mean the same thing. However many people have used several confusing grades all based around the Mint grade. We define NM and M- as being almost mint. This grade should be, for the most part, the most widely used grade for records that appear virtually flawless. Virtually flawless records are not perfect. As we mentioned above, no record truly will be perfect, cover or disc. A very minor scuff and very little else can appear on the vinyl. This will most likely have occurred during packaging, or removing the record from the inner sleeve but obviously it had been handled with extreme care. It should play without any noise over the flaw. The flaw should be very hard to see. If a scuff covers more than a few tracks yet can be seen, it will not be NM, however it may come very close. You should always use strong judgment when evaluating the vinyl's condition. Any blemish no matter how small, prevents records from being MINT (Or our PERFECT grade).

NEAR MINT COVERS
The cover should look as close to perfect with only minor signs of wear and/or age. Minor impressions to the cover (due to the outer edge of the vinyl resting inside) may be acceptable, however the artwork should be as close to perfect as can be.

EXCELLENT or EX or VG++
This is truly NOT a Goldmine defined grade, however it is becoming more and more mainstream among collectors and sellers. It is also a very conservative grade for those who don't want to grade NM, for fear they may overgrade the record and cover (buyers are very picky remember!). In which case it is a very acceptable grade yet should not command the highest price based on NM value. To put it simply, when collectable records are concerned there are only 2 collecting grades. NM being "Collectors Condition" and everything less than NM is not. We are not saying EX records won't have any value, they just should not be sold for the highest end of book value. EX records will play just like NM or MINT, meaning no audible noise will be heard during the play. They should sound as good or better than they look. Many very rare (collectable) items can command very close to NM value, simply because NM copies may not even exist.

EX (VG++) VINYL
An excellent (or VG++) condition for vinyl will allow minor scuffs which are visible but only slightly. There may be more than a few, so be careful not to call a record that has wear to more than 15% of the surface -EX. The wear should be minimal and of course should play mint! Any scratches that can be felt with your fingernail can NOT be called scuffs. Scuffs lay on top of the grooves. If there any break in the grooves that can be felt, they ARE scratches. And most often, they will be heard when played (soft clicks or even loud pops). Once again, "No scratches can make this grade"! Only a few minor paper scuffs and that's about it. The play should be close to perfect as well!

EX(VG++) COVER
Artwork should still be as close to perfect as can be. Some impression to the cover (minor outer ring wear) but no ink wear! Some slight creases to the corners, but not wrinkled and obtrusive to the eye. The corners can show white (where the artwork pasted slick was) meaning, slight wear. No seam splits or writing on the cover or taped repairs can make this grade. If you don't think a cover is NM than call it EX or less. There will be obvious reactions to the EX grade but if you use the EX grade and price a bit lower, your risk of overgrading will be reduced dramatically. You will also make more people happy, rather than trying to call it NM.

VERY GOOD PLUS or VG+
What does this mean? Some people will call a less than NM record VG+ and skip the EX grade. Goldmine defines it as Excellent (EX), yet commands only 50% of the value (for most records). It can easily be defined as 2 ways. VG+ should be the next grade below a NM value when grading 45 singles. EX can be used for EP's. 45 singles have only 2 songs and EP's (7' by the way)can have 3, 4, 6 or 8 (seldomly found) songs on the record. With 45 singles one side may be NM and the other side may not. If the flip side is not NM but still plays well (or great, no noise), VG+ is a conservative grade. Very few 45's should be called EX unless they are of rarities. This means you can allow a valuable item to be worth a bit more than just calling it VG+. Perhaps the buyer will think a VG+ is EX and you can under sell yourself. Use careful judgment when buying and selling them with this grade!

VG+ VINYL
Now for LP's (the big ones). VG+ will show wear, surface scuffs,(or spiral scuffs that came from turntable platters or jukeboxes for 45 singles)and some very light scratches. Surface scuffs are caused from blunt (not sharp)objects. Often the minor scuffs are caused from inner sleeves. The vinyl should still have a great luster, but the flaws will be noticeable to the naked eye. Sometimes holding the record up to a very bright light you will see many tiny lines across the surface. If the flaws don't cause any surface noise the vinyl can still make the VG+ grade. Most (but not all) VG+ records should still play like a NM record. Because the vinyl has more than 15% (yet less than 30%) wear to the surface it can make this grade. Remember, the record still should look as though it was handled with extreme care. Sometimes people find records that have no scuffs that are visible, yet a careless needle scratch causes a break in the grooves. Play the record. Any obtrusive clicks or pops, which cause the song to be less than enjoyable, may not even be VG+! Be cautious! Scratches are not acceptable to a serious collector in any way. If you call a record 95% NM but note the record as having 1 track with a bad scratch, many will only consider it as VG (explained next). You should seldom call a record 'A Strong VG, plays mostly VG+'. Remember the more conservative you are about the visual and audio part of the grade, the better chance you will not have complaints from those who buy from you. Be honest. If you were buying that record, what grade would you say it was? There are many serious collectors in this market and they won't hesitate to call your grading lousy if you put a VG+ grade on a record that plays less than great.

VG+ COVERS Now that we defined the EX grade, a few extra flaws will make this grade. A virtually clean cover but may have small writing on it. (Magic marker in big letters will not cut it. They are an eye sore so be wary of overgrading).The artwork should look clean with slightly more aging. The back of the cover usually gives away the age of the cover. Flat white paper will be somewhat yellow yet no stains or mildew from water damage. Some minor wear to the seams or spine, but no tears or holes popping through. The corners will be slightly dog eared yet no crackly bends defacing the artwork. In essence, a VG+ cover should have no more than 3 flaws mentioned. If all apply, it is less than VG+. (see next grade below)

VERY GOOD or VG
This grade has become the much lesser demanded item. A lot of people feel that a VG record is a record that is good enough. They are not really going to look very good, but they should STILL play very good. there will almost always be some surface noise when they are played. The Dynamics should still be excellent, overpowering the surface noise. A VG record will appear to have been well played but still have some luster. The vinyl may be faded, slightly grayish, because of surface scuffs, which often happens to records that are played and left out of jackets. Still they should appear to have been handled as carefully as they could have been. Records that get continuous playing time will always start to deteriorate. Records that get less play are easily evident since they almost always look as though they were played only a few times and then packed away for decades. More and more surface scuffs and scratches, and audible sound defects WILL be heard. They should not overpower the dynamics of the music. With VG records, the surface noise will be minor crackle or a slight hiss, but should only be heard in between tracks or in low musical passages.

IMPORTANT NOTE: With Jazz and Classical recordings, the music can become very low to the point where no music is even heard. If any crackle, tics, clicks or pops are heard, these records will have very little value to a serious collector! Classical and Jazz is seldom wanted if they are in less than VG+ condition. It is wise to play these records (a s you should all records) when evaluating grades. Some classical records may look VG+ or even NM, however play less than perfect. Beware of overgrading these. They are difficult to grade and conservative grading is a must with them. and equally as important. Most dealers truly will not have a lot of time to play every single LP they sell. It is just impossible. However when records have questionable flaws, the record should be tested at least where the flaw occurs in the playing surface. Visually noting the flaw may not be good enough. If the record skips, you will have made a mistake and the value would thus be much less. A Classical LP in VG condition often will only be worth 10% of the NM book value. If they are even wanted at all.

VG COVERS
VG covers will look worn, used. There may be some seam splitting (but not completely separated!). There will be some ring wear, where the ink has begun to wear off, giving the cover a look of snow falling. If the artwork looks snowy all over, it is less than VG condition. There may be some writing on the cover (still, no Large letters in magic marker). It will look aged and more yellowish due to contaminants in the air (sometimes looking like cigarette smoke). Still it should be decent. If damaged beyond any formidable beauty, it will not make this grade. VG should at least still have some attractive life to it, and not have taped seams or water damage to it. If you decide to tape repair a cover, to prevent further damage, use clear acid free, scotch tape and place it on so that it is not obtrusive to the eye. If only a small split, only tape the split. Don't run tape across the entire spine or seams. Too much tape means too little interest. Use as little as possible. If the split is minor, it is best to just leave it alone. Note the flaw and go from there with the grade. Place the record in a polyvinyl jacket and then behind the cover (outside of jacket but behind it).

GOOD or G (including the G+ and VG- grades)
A good record will look very well played, dull, grayish and possibly abused. However a Good record should still play. It will have distracting surface noise, such as crackle that is continuous or some hiss. Will also have some loss of dynamics caused from grooves being worn. It should play without any skips or any obtrusively loud pops or repeated clicks caused by deep scratches. If you can't enjoy the record, it is no longer even good. Good means that it will play with some form of decency, so one can still enjoy the music even though you can still hear noise caused from the wear. NOTE: Rock and Roll records generally play loud. G condition records for them will be the most likely thing that will still sell well. Jazz and Classical and easy listening in G condition are almost worthless to a collector, since the musical passages often get very low and surface noise is too distracting to the listener. Also check on 45 singles for the length of time. Records that play longer than 3 minutes, may not be as dynamic and thus any wear will be heard more than the music (overpower the dynamics). Use conservative judgment when grading these types of singles.

GOOD COVER
A Good cover will have just about everything wrong with it. It will have seam splits (possibly taped and repaired, but only with scotch tape. No duct tape or masking tape repairs). These are big turn offs. May have magic marker writing on the cover but still if they are in huge letters, it is a big turn off. In essence, the cover will look virtually trashed, but some artwork will still be noticed. If the artwork is worn, it is POOR and the cover is worthless. Huge tears or gouges in the cover will also make the cover POOR. Be careful about sealed records that have been water damaged. Mildew still can get inside and cause great damage to the cover and the disc. Use common sense and you will save yourself from an overgrade.

***NOTE Sealed records that have water damage should be opened. Otherwise you will be in trouble later on when the cardboard starts to deteriorate inside the shrink-wrap. Attempt to dry the covers using a hair dryer (be sure to remove the record first!)

G+ and VG-
This is separate from the above. Many records that appear in VG condition often play less than very good. Goldmine defines them as better than Good, but less than Very Good. The value should not i