10 Tips For Buying Second-Hand Vinyl

If you are planning to dig deep into the magical world of used platters, here is what to check for and how to find it

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There are few better afternoons to be had, at least for people like us, than one spent digging through the crates in a record shop.

Reissues are abundant now in this so-called second-coming of vinyl, but there is still nothing quite like finding an older press still in sparkling condition, and hopefully at a bargain price.

But it is not only in the finding of a record for which you have long been searching; it is as much about the condition in which you find it. That may be a given, but knowing what to look for and how to get your hands on it can be a tricky game.

Every collector will have their own routines and insider secrets, but hopefully this list of tips will save you wasting too much money on stacks of poor quality LPs, whether you are doing your digging in person or rooting through the millions of second-hand records online.

Judge your record by its cover

The sleeve of a record can be indicative of what you are going to find inside. Don’t put too much stock in bent corners or the odd minor tear – we all know how easy it is for that to happen – but a particularly battered cover should temper your expectations somewhat. Likewise, something is well taken care of, especially if it has been put in a plastic outer sleeve, will likely lead to a disc in similar nick.

Inner sleeves have their own tells. If there are no tears here, it is unlikely the record has been pulled out and put back all that many times, while the sleeve clinging to the vinyl as you withdraw it – especially if it leaves a few hair-like fibres on the disc – can also mean very few plays and a relatively dust-free LP.

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