Buying Guarantee - Record Info pages at select45rpm

Further to Post & Payments Pages, this is how we make Selling Easy...

Online buying
says you have rights about buying goods sight unseen online. How these are supposed to be implemented is another thing still, and Paypal's grey law is another thing too with ebay problems as we've found buying dud goods. But you don't stay in business long with poor dealing methods. This is our take on these rights...

Our stock is strictly checked
as we state above with washing & play-testing each record before listing & again before posting to check it's ok still. This will catch just about every fault & you'll never need to return substandard goods. We are accountable if there indeed is an omission or error beyond our description. Sellers not making very sure goods are as described are wasting your time, nobody wants to waste their own postage returning a sellers' error. Read our 'Vinyl Pressing Quality' page on the Vinyl Info tab as some buyers still don't understand vintage vinyl is not a perfect medium.

Important: If you aren't happy with an item for any reason
Keep it calm & professional. You must Contact Us first with no exceptions. We can then see what your problem is and advise you what to do next. It's Common Courtesy to do this in any sales situation to give the seller a chance. Unauthorised forced returns are hostile actions that will stop us accepting further orders from you. We know a tiny minority of dealer-hating hypocritical buyers can have awful immature attitudes & can act foolishly which you'd never do to a person's face, so behave professionally as nonsense won't be tolerated, be sure "we've heard it all before". Be aware if you act badly, as per our email page comment, we will publish your entire message on our site & it stays public for at least three months, so be nice. This is required in a world where troublemakers think they can misbehave yet mouth off to others. We say no you don't sonny... thankfully these sort are pretty rare.

We are fully aware
what the items we send out look like & play like as our grading is very accurate & returned items that are not the same item (proved by the big photos) in the same condition as posted are not accepted. If you have damaged the item, be sure from our Soundfiles we can prove it wasn't damaged, so please don't try it on. Damaged items are not accepted back, if you choose not to have them back we'll treat them as abandoned. Sale Prices are not negotiable & be sure we know all the tricks & ways of record buyers after our years dealing with generally great buyers.

Changing your mind
or not liking the music is no reason to ask for a refund. Be informed of what you are buying, our soundfiles will help on many items. Over all our years collecting records we guessed a lot & had pleasing results! The ease of copying records to CD or MP3 and not wanting the actual item is no reason either.

No Sale.
People can be harsh in communications, usually for them not understanding & even after you've sold them nice records they were delighted to get, it can turn sour. Trying to explain they are wrong usually gets the response as in they never read obvious details, then they then turn unfriendly in some way. It usually only ends one way: goodbye. Bad for you as you miss the items you want, less bad for us as we lost a sale, but might sell them next week or not for 2 years. Harsh worded emails from buyers for no good reason means it's over. Even saying 'just return it' like a robot doesn't please them either we've found. Record buyers are not easy people sometimes, we find Hifi & Books buyers very different. But if you want to buy again in a year & be nice again as you'll see our items that you want & regret earlier events, be nice, say hello & we'll more than likely let you buy again.

If a refund is granted...
implying contact must be made detailing why a return is needed, it will be for item price only unless we are at fault. We expect contact if you are considering returning something and a confirmation you will or won't. You have 7 days to return the item from the delivery date. The returned item must be the exact same item we sent you in the exact same condition.
You must use the same Trackable Post Service to return with save postal losses. If you want to save on postage sending the item without Tracking, it is totally Your Risk & we are not liable for your losses. We are very aware of the item we sent you from the big photos, so any 'damage' will be considered Postal Damage & left to you to make a Post Claim, as we would have to if it was damaged on it's way to you. The return address is on the Order Form & we'll send it to you also.
If a returned item is received & it was not sent Trackable, then we will not accept any further orders from you as you have ignored our clear instructions. The reason why is not to cost you extra money returning, but to remove the risk of a Postal Loss & the trouble a person will make to cover their failings is predictable, even with no proof. We even had one annoying dealer say he sent a Postal Order once for an item he never reserved yet will have no proof we cashed it or received it if he checked the receipt you used to get in the days a Postal Order was not the cheque like item we last saw a few years ago. If you've ever sold in the pre Internet days, you'll know the sort who think a dealer would rob them for a small amount instead of keeping them as a customer. Heard it all before.

We keep all tracking receipts
for 10 weeks maximum. This allows even the most tardy buyer to contact us if there's a problem. If you make contact over 10 weeks later and still expect results, there is nothing we can do after so long. Paypal only gives buyers 45 days, our 10 weeks is 70 days.

Undelivered Mail: The Buyer's Responsibility
We send a Posting Out Email saying we'll post this week. UK buyers will usually receive within THREE working days despite First Class Post being used, Worldwide usually takes SIX working days. The Post failing to Deliver is becoming a nuisance in the colder weather months worldwide. If you paid past the 2pm UK Wednesday DEADLINE you may not get your item posted until next week, a deadline time is published to help you.

IF YOUR ITEM HASN'T ARRIVED WITHIN FIVE WORKING DAYS UK or TEN WORKING DAYS WORLDWIDE, ie one Week UK or Two Weeks Worldwide, YOU MUST ASK US FOR TRACKING INFO as occasionally the Post either can't be bothered deliver it or can't write a card out. There is a Tracking service online for most Countries & they give much detail including the lies the Post put about leaving cards when we know they don't! We put a Return Address on items to at least get the item back but for non UK post being so high to get tracking, no-one wants to lose out & buyers think they shouldn't have to repay it for them not asking for Tracking if it's not delivered. Any item gets returned within 14 days, but if the buyer doesn't ask, we don't know & reading tiny lettering to type in is a real chore. If the item gets returned for whatever reason they give, either you must repay the Postage in full again for redelivery, or we'll just refund the item price less the postage as we paid your Postage to Royal Mail & do ask you to be aware if it appears late in Delivery.

Our Replies to any questions
will always be brief & to the point, as the medium of speedy replies by email allows, assuming we want to reply. People today don't have the time to type or even read lots of time-consuming pleasantries & other fussy stuff in a full dedicated letter style some may unreasonably think emailing is about. Saying a person didn't give a full detailed reply together with a cheery greeting having quickly replied to you at 11pm Sunday night just isn't worthy of a further reply... Sending long essays about an unimportant matter will be quickly scan-read & ignored usually. You are here to buy from us, you can return an item on the exceptionally rare chance you are not happy with it, but you don't own us or our time.

Further advice, Record Info and Sensible Disclaimers for today's 'protected' world...

Helpful hints to a bit of silliness, it's all here...

• All artists contained within our listings are included without bias or regard to their public standing past, present or future.

• Enjoy your records responsibly and safely in the company of a responsible adult.

• A record will become slippery if you get it wet and drop it on the floor.

• Parental guidance is advised each time you buy a record whatever age you are.

• Only read the label when the record is stationary, see next comment for why.

• Do not read labels whilst rotating on your turntable as it will cause nausea and you may fall off.

• If records are ingested, do not induce vomiting, but mildly wipe the surface with a damp cloth until the item reappears.

• If your Replacement Stylus costs just £10 less than the complete cartridge, you will feel an idiot if you then buy just the Stylus but snag a connecting pin & dislodge it so you have to buy a new Cartridge.

• Record sleeves often contain unwanted body hair and/or fluff and occasionally dead insects.

• A record player stylus can be a lethal weapon and do more than just wear out your records.

• Some LPs are very high priced but only have one good track. If the track is the last one as with a Blossom Dearie LP, why not trim the LP down to a 7" and it'll be much easier to play.

• A Dymo tape plastic sticker will always ruin a label however careful you are removing it. Even soaking for ages never works as the glue hardens & will always ruin the label.

• An obscure record we consider 'Great' you may think is the worst song ever made.

• A good song will always be a good song be it in or out of fashion.

• Do not clean acetates with meths as they will melt.

• A common 50s-60s record in mint condition is not Stunning.

• An Elvis Gold HMV in mint with crisp mauve labels unfaded by light or use with gold print so bright IS Stunning and also very scary as a greasy fingermark will stain the label!

• Some music may be too intense for some listeners.

• Adding 'Monster Killer Floorpacker' to any record description will always increase its value threefold.

• Records do not get marked by pulling in & out of the sleeve unless it is dusty or gritty.

• Records only really get damaged if stored out of paper sleeves, in those nasty 'toast rack' holders, old record players malfunctioning or if stood on by a fat bird in Stilettos in the 1960s.

• To remove Warps from Records, the guaranteed way to success is to have a 22 year old Blonde with a hot ass sit on them for an hour. The records still won't play but you may have made a friend.

• Packing a record in newspaper then card then taping it in solidly each time, then wrapping it in bubblewrap and taping it in solidly then packing in more card or paper and taping it in solidly is a waste of time & really annoying to open as you have to carefully cut it right where the vinyl edge is and risk damaging it in your frustration at how stupidly people pack records.

• Early 50s UK Gold label EMI pressed records, especially the MSP, 7M etc series can be very fragile and are prone to cracking at the label edge.

• None of our records are "Impossible to Find" as we know exactly where we put them.

• Certain records may induce dizziness, vomiting or sudden death if played repeatedly.

• Views contained within all lyrics are of the responsibility of the copyright holder.

• Some early 70s Pye pressed Promos contain a Stereo version, whereas the regular issue was only in Mono.

• A cracked vinyl record will eventually shrink (over decades) & leave a gap rendering the record unplayable.

• Some less than Pure Vinyl Records are made of vinyl which ages over time, resulting in mid 70s-early 80s EMI vinyl now looking cloudy & streaky even if not stored in PVC. This is due to the chemicals used in manufacture. Sniff a mid 60s Pye record & see we aren't fooling you. Pre 1968 vinyl will be of better quality & unless PVC bags make it streaky, these are fine.

• A record may contaminate you with harmful bacteria if handled without washing it first.

• Higher grade records may be sharp on the edges and chop your fingers off leaving blood on the grooves which will leave noise next time you play it, if your other hand is OK.

• Do not leave children alone with your records as they will wilfully damage them as you spend all your money on records instead of nice toys for them, you swine.

• Do not play a wet record on your turntable as risk of death by electrocution. Some people swear by "wet playing" to reduce surface noise as the stylus floats. Stupid idea, buy a custom stylus size instead.

• Our personal views of musical quality may not agree with yours. You may like The Birdie Song & play it daily..

• Do not play Barry Manilow records to a Metalhead as risk of death by a severe pummelling.

• Adding the word "Rare" to your item means a buyer will always pay significantly more for it as they will always believe you.

• Some sellers deliberately overgrade so you pay more & it's up to you to haggle for a record you'd not have bought for a cheaper price, just as it's there & you wanted it, you'll find it hard to return.

• Certain pop & beat records described in days of Old as 'Northern Soul' may today better be called a Mod Dancer. We call them "Beat Soul" on our listings.

• Being the B side of a million selling no 1 hit does not make it a Rarity! (Beatles Rarities LP).

• Record Centre adaptors mostly have nipples that will get on your tits/moobs as they poke teasingly through your picture sleeves and devalue them.

• Ensure the music has completely ended before ripping the stylus from the grooves as a large amount of records are found with a click on the fadeout from this abuse.

• A record with a glued in centre no longer has the centre intact. Flick it with a finger & see it shoot out.

• If a record label has an unsightly tear or dark mark on it, put a nice new sticker over it. Ebay sellers do. It's not fair. We remove all stickers.

• If a record label has an unsightly sticker on it, remove it and leave an unsightly dark mark or tear there instead.

• If a record label has an unsightly tear on it, decide to like the other side instead so you'll never see it.

• Removing a sticker does not guarantee that there will not be another sticker, tear or writing under it, or even a drill hole as we found on USA 45s.

• An Ember Demo with just a big "A" on the B side looks no different to an issue of the B side is the wanted side. Looky Looky.

• Peeling off a sticker slowly and getting too confident it's removal is easy & then foolishly going faster will end in disaster.

• Record Dealers are rarely Collectors, but they used to be.

• Do not leave your records by a blazing fire as they will melt.

• Most people who wrote their names on records never took them to parties to lose anyway. This page is copyright text by select45rpm.com. Note the copyright notice above.

• Only using 'Popsike' to value records is a dangerous game.

• Bill Haley invented Rock & Roll. Rock The Joint 1952 the first regional 'hit'. His best records deserve more respect.

• Describing an ordinary record in average grade with gushing over-excited 'xxx' bullshit will get the bidder over-excited to the point of bladder failure and they'll pay five times as much.

• A record with more than one name on, including scribbled outs, was once nicked from a party.

• None of our records are "Floorpackers" unless your floor is 7" square and in a Doll's House, otherwise you'll find they are too small.

• If Record Collector says our obscure £50 record is only booked at £4 then go buy one from Record Collector instead.

• To safely remove a sticker you can at least peel, keep the speed of peeling constant. Stickers only tear (themselves or labels/covers) once arrogance that it's 'easy' takes over and you peel too fast.

• Sharon Tandy should have had a hit record. She was a good looker too!

• The term 'Mod Dancer has helpfully made many musically mediocre & ignored records freshly into desirable items. Shades of Moronic Believing.

• Buyers bypassing a Near Mint copy in hope of finding a Mint one are missing the point of collecting. A VG copy of a record you've wanted for years should be snapped up or wait another decade.

• Does it really matter if a know-all online wins an argument over you to get rid of them? You know they are in the wrong, but you are better than them & it's unimportant. Let someone else have a sporting chance with their foolish ego intact instead, it's only fair.

• Many early 70s Rock LPs with unlaminated covers have a tear on the front cover top right from careless sticker removal.

• Decca Classical LPs are not as hifi as 'experts' claim they are.

• A person writing their name on a Classical LP is an optimist.

• A person writing their name on an EP or LP's label that also has a picture sleeve is missing the point.

• Do not play your records more than once daily as they will wear at a faster rate than the standard daily one-play wear rate as quoted by experts worldwide.

• After years of underpricing good 60s records, Record Collector are now overpricing them beyond their real worth. Cue ebay with millions of unselling overpriced 'gems'. It happened the same with 50s singles years ago.

• Most Funk records are surprisingly cheap despite their rarity & belovedness.

• A £500 Classical LP issued in Stereo may only be worth £5 in mono.

• Do not store your records with sandpaper covers to protect them. One was issued.

• An easily removed & added Factory Sample gummed sticker does not make a real Demo copy.

• Storing records in their original sleeves after 20-60 years of use will result in noisy vinyl from the dirt & dust accumulated inside them.

• Keep old sleeves, but but the record in a new paper or card one & put the old sleeve with it inside a polythene cover. Looks nearly the same.

• EMI type LP sleeves with polythene inners sweat and react with the vinyl leaving streaky lines that play with noise in advanced cases. The Glassine (Greaseproof Paper type) sleeves are much better.

• Those D-shaped polythene covers some 1950s EPs have been in nearly 60 years have never knowingly reacted with the vinyl. But they are likely to be dusty now inside if you keep them and may downgrade your Mint record.

• Do you really play your Records anymore? Or are they just pretty jewels in a box to stare at once a year, if knowing they are there. Be nice, give them a play & make sure the plastic sleeve hasn't reacted with them too!

• Use the correct size stylus as dictated by the vinyl groove wall dimensions for ultimate sound reproduction. Use a microscope & laser measuring device costing several thousand pounds to make sure you are doing it correctly.

• Do not keep your records in a freezer as they may shatter easily and play with a cold sound.

• Someone paying a huge mad price in an Auction for a record does not mean that is now the going rate for it. It's probably a Fake Bid anyway.

• The Foundations 45 on Psycho is a severely overpriced mediocre soul 45 worth about £50-75 realistically, if even that.

• Some people collect Records simply as the labels are pretty. Especially the pre 1957 era.

• People on ebay really still do nag sellers for feedback, as having feedback is of course far more important to their little egos than enjoying the item they bought. If you don't do this immediately, they will still get upset & then say don't leave any then.

• Not all records on Blue & White Vogue, even if priced highly, are actually good music too.

• All our records have been fully checked & references provided to see they are not Killers or Monsters as that would be dangerous.

• Wooden cases or shelves with tightly packed records will shrink & expand creating pressure on your rare vinyl, squashing the grooves.

• A record with no centre is worth half or even less as it's no longer a true collector's item.

• Be sure your expensive Psych LP collection is not put against a damp outside wall with no clearance as the condensation will affect the covers, or feck them up totally.

• A record is not worth exactly what a Price Guide says it's worth.

• a VG no centre torn label Nappy Brown London 45 isn't worth the £100+ price one ebay seller thinks & might make under £10 if auctioned as it's not a collector's item now

• All Karl Denver's hit records 'A' sides are crap except 'Wimoweh', but 'Lonesome Traveller' EP track & 'Highland Fling' B side are of note.

• Do not keep your records in PVC sleeves or PVC lined sleeves as they will sweat & deteriorate. Use Polythene 400g ones instead.

• Some records are deliberately released with a rubbish A side but a great B side to annoy future collectors.

• A Tri Centre is a Triangle shaped centre, not round, European sellers now think Tri-centre means any fixed in centre.

• A record that has the original middle glued back in as it annoyingly fell out when you washed it is sadly now a no-centre record and worth a fraction of it's earlier value even if it's the only known copy!

• Always play the B side of even the worst track as a gem may be lurking hidden there. Even B sides of 1980s records can be better than the A side, eg the Mobiles next 2 hits.

• Beware when using a pencil rubber to erase pencil on labels that no rubber debris gets in & stays stored in the sleeve as rubber will react badly with the vinyl within hours & leave a noisy mark! Oh yes.

• Common or less collectable records with no centre, torn labels, stickers or writing are almost worthless.

• Your £40-paid copy of 'Crazy Baby' by the Coasters or 'Tainted Love' by Gloria Jones is extremely likely to be a bootleg. There are more details you can read eg Manship's Guide To Bootlegs & some sites will detail more.

• Australian records are weird sounding as they never added EQ to the final cut, leaving it sound undynamic & lifeless sometimes.

• The term "Rare" in Coin Collecting (Freeman Bronze Penny 1860-1967) terms means there are 600 thousand to 1 Million in existence. On this basis, every hit record IS Rare, so ebayers ARE right after all.

• Not many women collect records, though they certainly do like the music.

• The made-up word 'Freakbeat' to describe a R&B Mod Dancer is now considered passé.

• The ultimate hifi Classical LPs are the Mercury late 50s UK pressings.

• Record values can go down as well as up.

• However great the record, as the years move on, fewer people will know it & the value will go down. You must play your records to your kids to keep them alive & wanted!

• A Demo copy of a non charting record will often be easier to find than the Stock Copy as this meant someone had to actually want to buy Sharon Soul's single which sadly few did.

• An acetate of a record not noted for the artist being collectable, only the record itself, is not as wanted as the standard pressing of it & may be of much less value as acetates are noted by amateurs to be not very long lasting...

• Acetates last as long as an ordinary record even if played a lot or they'd not still be around 50 years later as they are today!

• A person who makes it clear they want to be left alone may later get upset if you appear to be ignoring them!

• A record with a high price may never have sold at that price & never will. Rare does not always mean valuable or wanted.

• A record is only worth what you can get for it. An online price check does not mean yours will sell for that price, but it could sell for Half that price or Double it.

• In the 1980s Record Collectors bought more records as they didn't cost much to buy. Records we were buying for £2 ain't £2 no more.

• Any collector with a VG+ copy of a standard chart hit will not care that you have a Mint one for a Tenner as their copy cost 20p.

• At some time in your life, that record you once desperately wanted and paid big bucks for will have to be sold.

• Some Record values may not have changed in 15 years.

• Deep Cryogenic Treatment is just another way for the gullible to lose money on some hack idea, realigning the molecules allegedly.

• Good music early UK 45s pre 1957 are as popular as ever on Golds & Thick Tris.

• Colouring the edge of a CD with a green pen improves the sound quality (oops that one was proved a hoax years ago...).

• If you think a seller online is being unreasonable or unfair before you even get the item, just think how annoying they'll be if you try to reason with them. Walk away at the first sign.

• Most music released from 1970 onwards will never be collectable as there is no nostalgia for it.

• Nostalgia for 1990s music is now being tried on the TV. The last era where nostalgia could occur was 1980s music. Will 2010s music have retro nostalgia for Retro type music?

• Why has there never been a CD Complation of the "100 Best Rap Songs"?

• Playing records on an autochanger means one will stick in the mechanism & leaving one play for eternity.

• Playing records on an autochanger means one will slip on another & sound more Psychedelic than what was intended. Wow, man.

• Playing records on an autochanger without unlocking the arm means the arm will fly across putting a beautiful deep gouge into your record. It's why many LPs of a certain age have the first track ruined.

• Most Records made since 1985 are unlikely to have ever been played since new so will be mouldy & noisy now and worth 10p each in a bulk lot.

• Playing your 45s at 33rpm reduces groove wear and creates a hypnotic mood.

• Playing your 45s at 78rpm on an old wind-up record player with a worn needle will remove all the music from the grooves & leave lots of black plastic threads everywhere.

• People playing a record whilst still in the sleeve to keep the dust off it actually happens more than you'd imagine.

• Never playing your Records means they will stay in all-important Mint condition & as no-one else will ever know what they are or that they are worth anything, on the day your effects are cleared, they'll go to Oxfam instead of putting Jimmy through College.

• A warped record will never straighten out properly. If it plays as-is, leave it alone.

• Heating a warped record to straighten it never works as the record shrinks.

• If your Mint copy of that 45 you paid hundreds for has too many spindle marks now you've played it 5 times, simply push the centre out and it'll look mint again.

• 45s are best stored in white card or paper sleeves, or in the thin polythene bags with the original sleeve kept separate from the vinyl.

• Playing your records with all your hifi turned off will make you sing the music in your head instead, keeping them in all-important Mint condition.

• Making Tapes & CDs or filling an iPod with rare music & giving it to a younger person for them to just enjoy the music will keep record collecting alive when you want to sell your records. Do not tell them how old the music is until later, years later.

• Consult an expert before buying any record as they will always know more than you as they are your Guru.

• Selling your Record Collection after putting all the songs you like on CD or MP3 or on the computer direct will remove the responsibilty of looking after biodegradable records & covers.

• Store your records upright in an airtight container to preserve freshness.

• A buyer who paid "how much" for a shop fresh 1960s Beatles LP now has the challenge of keeping it like that for as long as they keep it or it'll hugely devalue. Happy with that now?

• A high grade styrene USA 45 will always sound better than the vinyl pressing.

• Styrene records, especially soul ones, can be hissy on the intro from a DJ back-cueing the record unaware his stylus scrapes & hisses the grooves on going backwards. Back-cueing 50s-60s styrene is a big risk.

• Most collectors store their 45s in boxes rarely looking at them, let alone playing them.

• The idea of taking the record out of it's cover & whizzing it round in the open air and having a hard bit of stone on a stick bash the groove walls is the last thing on many buyer's minds today.

• If you are a Record Buyer, at some time in the last year you will have found a Record Centre adaptor blocking up the vacuum cleaner or in your bed.

• A record is often worthless & unwanted until the day after you finally managed to sell yours for a fiver.

• An 'expert' in a subject can be easily proved wrong by others who do not bother their ego by claiming to be an expert.

• A obscure record you have heard & seen making big money before will suddenly become worthless & unwanted the day you decide to sell your copy.

• Will the fool who paid £660 for Hipster Image 45 in mint in Dec 2009 ever get his money back on reselling it?

• Buyers who refuse to pay full price for items, yet on selling their own items, oddly want Full Price for theirs are indeed Hypocrites.

• A record is only worth as much as it will sell for and may sell the next time for ten times what you paid or ten times less.

• Having read this much, you have unconditionally agreed to buy at least one record from us. :o)