[78-L] e-bay sellers record grading

[Steven C. Barr]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "DAVID BURNHAM" <burnhamd at rogers.com>
>I was surprised when I received a recent shipment from an e-bay dealer I've 
>always found to be very reliable.  Everything I've purchased from him has 
>been in excellent condition.  But this item arrived, (2 records of a 3 
>record set of Stravinsky's Duo Concertant with Stravinsky and Dushkin) and 
>I was amazed at the poor quality of the records - surface cracks on all 
>surfaces, heavy smudging, several scratches and obviously lots of wear - 
>more like the condition I would expect to see a Wilf Carter disc than a 
>Stravinsky Violin piece!  Since I always check the condition of a record 
>before I bid on it, I went back to the listing and noticed that the 
>condition was indicated as VG-.  Preparing to complain about the inaccurate 
>rating, I noticed his "important notice", to check below for what the 
>grading terms mean.  This is what I found:
>
> VG- Significant wear, and surface noise may be distracting
>
> This is actually his poorest rating, starting at "NM", (near mint).  I 
> guess I can't really complain since he was honest about what his ratings 
> meant, but I'm not leaving any feedback.
>
Well, in the old "standard" method of grading 78's, a "V" (or, worse yet, a
"V-"...?!) indicates a marginal, well-worn disc!

...stevenc