Our Grading Standard: The Crasey Guarantee

Every record collector knows the sinking feeling of buying a vintage single described as “mint” or “near pristine”, only to open the package and find a crackly disc scuffed by decades of neglect.

At Crasey Records, we grade conservatively using the globally respected Goldmine Grading System. We are music fans, not corporate drop-shippers. We want you to drop a single on your turntable, crank the volume, and enjoy the authentic, punchy warmth of 45 RPM vinyl without nasty surprises.

How We Grade Every 7″ Single

We assess both the physical vinyl and its sleeve separately under direct, high-intensity studio lighting. Because vintage singles were made to be played, we adopt a strict “when in doubt, grade down” policy.

  • Mint (M): Absolutely perfect in every way. Typically applied only to sealed, unplayed shop-stock or dead-stock inventory.
  • Near Mint (NM / M-): An almost flawless 45. The vinyl retains full factory sheen with zero visible scuffs or hairline marks. The sleeve is crisp, with sharp corners and no creasing or ring wear.
  • Very Good Plus (VG+): Our most common high-grade benchmark. The vinyl shows minor visual signs of handling or light paper scuffs from inner sleeves, but it has been thoroughly cared for and plays cleanly with minimal, if any, background surface noise. Sleeves may show slight handling wear or minor age discolouration.
  • Very Good (VG): A well-loved, playable record. Surface marks, light hairline scratches, or minor groove wear will be visible and may cause soft crackle or surface noise, especially during quiet intros and run-outs, but it will never overpower the music or skip. Sleeves will exhibit noticeable ring wear, seam creases, or minor edge rubbing.
  • Good Plus (G+) / Good (G): Highly playable on vintage equipment or domestic stacking spindles, but showing significant wear, loss of sheen, and audible surface noise or clicks. We only list records in this grade if they are hard-to-find classics or iconic jukebox titles.
  • Fair (F) / Poor (P): We do not sell unplayable, cracked, or severely warped vinyl in the shop. (Desirable legacy singles in this state are reserved exclusively for upcycling into our retro vinyl clocks!)

The Crasey Audio Verification Difference

Visual grading under a spotlight only tells half the story. The ultimate test is needle-on-groove:

  • Turntable Play-Testing: Whenever a record is visually borderline or falls into the VG bracket, we play-test it directly on a turntable to verify the audio quality firsthand.
  • Listen Before You Buy: If you want to hear how a specific single plays before parting with your cash, drop us a message at hello@craseyrecords.com. We will gladly rip the audio or share a quick video preview so you can hear the exact playback for yourself.

Sleeves & Archival Packaging

A grade applies to the sleeve just as strictly as the wax. Every product listing explicitly details the packaging housing the single:

  • Original Picture Sleeves: The authentic period art, clearly noted for condition, ring wear, or edge splits.
  • Vintage Company Sleeves: Period-correct original factory paper (e.g. EMI, Parlophone, CBS).
  • Reproduction Sleeves: Crisp, modern archive reproductions for iconic labels (such as green Parlophone or 2 Tone check), clearly labeled as reproduction house sleeves.