How it Works

Modeled after my friends at Purple Peak Records (please check them out, I buy from them myself!), large sale lists will be announced via a mailing list in advance of the sale. Why? I would like to give first access to collectors and build what I hope will be a dedicated audience. You get access to an excellent selection of items while I can fund further purchases for my collection.

I will only use this list to send out sale related announcements. No spam or constant harassment, I promise. Simply information pertinent to the sales. I will preview items from upcoming sales on The Vinyl Archivist Facebook and Instagram feeds.

The pre-sale e-mail will contain full instructions, but here is a basic outline: Each sale will begin at a set time and consist of a list of albums with description and condition notes. More expensive and collectible albums will have a few pictures as well. It is first come, first served. You purchase an album by sending an e-mail, and at the end of the sale I will tally up the totals and invoice accordingly. Payment is accepted via PayPal or Venmo (or cash, if you’re local to NYC). Please familiarize yourself with my grading and shipping options before the sale.

Full Instructions

This is an in-depth explanation, but the instructions are straightforward (if you’ve come to me via the Purple Peak Records sale, you’ll recognize the system – thanks Tom and Jeff!).

It is first-come, first-served. Keep this handy before the sale: All transactions will be via e-mail. You can send as many e-mails as you want to catalogue@thevinylarchivist.com and I will go through them as the day goes on. So just like at a record store, you grab a record and it’s yours to buy, or you can put it back. I will determine the reserve based on the time stamp of your e-mail.

You can send an e-mail for each individual title if you are concerned about being first in line. I considered giving each record a ‘buy it now’ option via my eCommerce site, but would like to give you all more flexibility in ordering – this way you can browse through the whole list and choose records at your leisure, rather than rushing through and hoping at the end that the record will still be available. I also then don’t have to cancel orders after the fact. It would be a mess. This is more work for me, but hopefully more rewarding for you.

On that note: You can change your mind during the day. Say you order five things, but later you decide you don’t want two of them. You’ll lose your reserve place in line if someone else ordered those two in the interim. Don’t be the person who reserves 25 records only to weed them out later. I retain the discretion to not make the sale and give them to someone who played fair. Please don’t waste my time or that of the other serious buyers. Be realistic, and don’t reserve anything you don’t actually intend to buy.

If-then-else clause: Have you ever bid on items on eBay from a seller, and the record you really wanted ended later? Do you bid on all items hoping that you win the item you want, and also the add-ons that came before it? Or do you get stuck with only the items you had less interest in?

Basically it works like this: “I will take record X, if record Y is still available, otherwise I don’t want it”. Or any variation thereof.  Remember, I am a collector too. There’s nothing worse than ordering five albums with a $5 throw-in, only to find out that’s all you’ve won, and you’re stuck with a $5 LP (that you only had mild interest in) and a $20 shipping price. This will protect you. I will watch for this as I tally orders and give you a chance to back out if it doesn’t make sense economically. I want happy customers.

I will be checking e-mail throughout most of the day, and will update the list if items have been bought and paid for. It would be helpful if you alert me to when you’ve sent your last reserve e-mail and I can begin tallying up for you. This could take a while, so please have patience.

Once I’ve carefully figured out who gets what, I will send you an invoice (payment options are PayPal or Venmo). Payment is due within 24 hours of final invoice with shipping, unless otherwise discussed (I can hold Bi-Weekly sale items for up to four sale cycles, but the records much be paid for, and shipping calculated at the end). For international orders please allow extra time as I determine the best price available. As you can tell from above, it is of the utmost importance that you honor your commitment to buy what you reserved. Please be cognizant of your fellow collectors.

Please ask questions before the sale when possible. I will pay attention to e-mail throughout the day, but I won’t be glued to my computer for eight straight hours. I have provided what I think to be thorough condition reports for each album listed, so I do not anticipate needing to answer questions about specific items.

In addition, I have outlined my grading method here. I have included photos of actual items that best reflect each grade. Please view these before the sale to get an idea of what the condition of the listed grades reflect. My personal method is to always err on the side of grading conservatively. That said, this isn’t a sale for mint freaks: these are vintage records that have been played (though there are a handful of sealed and nearly new items), and I’ve tried to price accordingly.

The list is alphabetical. The header of each entry will list the Artist – Title | Condition (Vinyl/Sleeve) | Price. The next line will list the Label, pressing details and any other information. Below that I will describe the condition of the record and sleeve in greater detail.

If you’re still here, thanks for reading this far. I hope you will all take a look at the upcoming sales, and that there are some records that you’ll dig.

After the sale I may then advertise to Facebook groups and other music boards, or begin listing the items on Discogs or eBay. Be warned, these prices will be significantly higher to account for the overhead, and to match the market there. The goal here is to not need Discogs or eBay for any of these items.

I have many additional records and CDs available through my Discogs page that will not be offered here. These include new/sealed LPs, those I’m selling on behalf of friends, and others of a more general interest and quality than the specialty sales here. If you are interested in adding any of these to your order, I am offering an automatic 15% off the listed prices. Place the order via Discogs to reserve the item, but do not pay. I will invoice you along with your purchase through the catalogue.