Sleeve: VG - Vinyl: Excellent - Description: Vinyl very clean - looks like it hasn't been played much.  Sleeve VG except mark on upper spine highlighted http://www.discogs.com/Chills-Kaleidoscope-World/release/1022358
Record Collector Magazine's Grading Guide:   " The record itself is in brand new condition with no surface marks or deterioration in sound quality. The cover and any extra items such as the lyric sheet, booklet or poster are in perfect condition. Records advertised as Sealed or Unplayed should be Mint.  The record shows some signs of having been played, but there is very little lessening in sound quality. The cover and packaging might have slight wear and / or creasing.  The record has obviously been played many times, but displays no major deterioration in sound quality, despite noticeable surface marks and the occasional light scratch. Normal wear and tear on the cover or extra items, without any major defects, is acceptable.  The record has been played so much that the sound quality has noticeably deteriorated, perhaps with some distortion and mild scratches. The cover and contents suffer from folding, scuffing of edges, spine splits, discolouration, etc.  The record is still just playable but has not been cared for properly and displays considerable surface noise; it may even jump. The cover and contents will be torn, stained and / or defaced.  The record will not play properly due to scratches, bad surface noise, etc. The cover and contents will be badly damaged or partly missing.  The record is unplayable or might even be broken, and is only of use as a collection filler."   As well as the above grades,  is often used as well; this is really for a record that appears new but is known to have been played because the label has light spindle marks or because it has come from a previous owner and is assumed to have been played by them. For records which appear to fall between the accepted grades, + and - are also often added to the grading.

 

In addition to the basic grading, any individual faults should be noted separately such as if an otherwise  cover has a name written on it, or a 7" single is missing its original centre etc.    Grading is always going to be slightly subjective but there are a few things to bear in mind when trying to get it right:  means perfect and there's nothing subjective about that. If it's not perfect (even if it's unplayed), then it's not . Mint Minus is a grade best avoided. It's either  or it's not. You wouldn't describe something as being perfect minus! If it's not quite  then it's  or at best . If in doubt, err on the side of caution. Better to slightly undergrade and exceed your buyer's expectations than to overgrade and disappoint them. Don't use excessive plus and minus signs. The grading guide is pretty fine-tuned so there shouldn't really be any need for more than one. You can't really distinguish between VG++ and EX- for example. The age of a record has no bearing on it's condition. A 50-year-old record graded EX should be in no worse condition than one graded EX but pressed last year.