V rare 1st press The Carpettes 7" EP Small 3 NM vinyl/pic sleeve mine from new

	£		20
	$		27

Fabulous virtually unplayed 1977 1st pressing of the self-titled EP "The Carpettes" - the third release on the legendary Small Wonder record label. Near Mint vinyl (played just a couple of times on a audiophile system). Near Mint picture sleeve kept for over 40 years in a protective plastic sleeve. This record is absolutely as new despite being 44 years old. Owned by me from new. Note this is the original 1977 Small 3 pressing it is not a re-issue. Condition is "used" as it has played just a few of times but has been sitting on my shelf for over 40 years. 
Tracklist: A1 How About Me And You
A2 Help I'm Trapped
B1 Radio Wunderbar
B2 Cream Of The Youth
Incredibly rare - there are no original pressings for sale on Ebay and only 6 elsewhere - none in such good condition. I realise that these descriptions may sound like exaggeration but the first records I've sold are starting to get feedback so you check for yourself - I believe in pointing out all defects I can detect. I'm not a record dealer - I realise in hindsight that I went from being an audiophile record listener to a record buyer in the late 80s and most of my collection from then got very little if any plays. These are the first albums and singles I'm selling off before downsizing and I've currently listed and sold about 50 of the 60 or so 'holy grail' albums from this era - when they've gone, they've gone. 

I've taken photos of all sides of the sleeve and vinyl in high resolution - the reflections are of my camera and conservatory roof but hopefully you can see clearly the fabulous condition of the media. 
Using the Goldmine standard  and working on the principle that no played record can be mint I've rated the vinyl as:
Vinyl Side A: Mint- Side B: Mint-

But that's only because I've been honest about it being played. You can't tell - it is absolutely immaculate. The picture sleeve is near mint with some minor scuffing around the edges.  There are few examples of this vinyl being sold in such good condition - You will not find a better copy
From a pet and smoke-free home.

A respectful note about offers

I've done my research on pricing. Of course a record is only worth what someone is prepared to pay but records are collectable and original pressings are like first editions of books - people are prepared to pay more for them than re-issues. I set the starting price based below the typical selling prices on eBay and another well know discography seller. I allow offers for those purchasers who are really keen to get a much sort after copy, don't want to wait 10 days to the end of the auction and don't want to risk being 'sniped' in the last seconds of bidding. I set the offer level close to typical selling price for records of a similar grade (which for most of my 'Holy Grail' albums is near the maximum. Please don't make offers below the starting price or ask for combined prices for multiple records that attempt a similar thing. They will be automatically rejected without me knowing it and, if this happens three times, you cannot make an offer for rest of the time of the auction (eBay's rules, not mine). 

Special packaging and delivery

The record will be packaged in a Defendapack MusicMax mailer. I will also use additional internal stiffeners and the sleeve and record will also be protected by a PVC sleeve. The records will be removed from the outer sleeve and travel in a plastic record bag inside the PVC sleeve to avoid damage to any card or paper in transit. This has worked really well so far according to my buyers. 

As a valuable item this can be dispatched with Royal Mail  first class next day delivery before 1pm for the base price of £7.75 in the UK.    As lock down eases, I can now drop off records at my local post office so that you should (Royal Mail being compliant) be in receipt of the record either one or two mornings after payment (if you are in the UK). Bear in mind there is no Royal Mail service on a Sunday. Other cheaper and slower options are offered.

I make nothing on shipping and the packaging is done at my own cost.

 You can also pick up for free from East Grinstead, West Sussex and I will also post worldwide using Royal Mail.

For multiple purchases, I will combine postage where possible (there is a limit with Royal Mail weights but I'll do my best to save you money. 

Following a number of requests, I'm now using Royal Mail International Tracked and Signed for overseas delivery. This promises reliable delivery to Europe in 3-5 business days and the rest of the world in 6-7 business days - I'm not sure why eBay suggests the delivery may be a month or more. It is tracked end-to-end with online confirmation and signature of delivery. Note this means your delivery address can't be a PO Box as a signature would not be possible. The prices quoted i are the direct Royal Mail costs up to 200g and providing cover up to £250 and you can check the price on the Royal Mail website here https://send.royalmail.com/ - just put in your country; a weight of 199g; select "Large letter"; the likely value of the record and click 'International Tracked and Signed" eg a single up to £50 value to the USA mainland costs £10.45 . Again, I make absolutely nothing on the postage. I have to make customs declarations on any overseas packages and I will list the value as the selling price of the album(s). For multiple purchases I will try to combine postage costs.   

Some people prefer to use onward shipping companies based in the UK and I know I've had items forwarded to China and Eastern Europe from UK-based addresses. I'm not sure if there is a similar solution for USA and Canada.

If you have any questions please let me know and I'll try to answer them.

A  little more about me:

I'm also listing original 7" pressings from the Clash, the Undertones; and other legendary bands from the punk/new wave, so please check my other listings if you are interested in mint or near mint original vinyl from this era.

These all comes from my personal record collection of over 1500 vinyl albums and 158 singles put together over 50years. As I need to downsize I am starting to advertise around a 100 rarities starting with 90's vinyl, which I was still buying (but rarely playing!) while the world had moved to CDs. I have Jingles independent record shop in East Grinstead to thank for this as they continued to stock an albeit limited number of vinyl records and I felt obliged (as a vinyl aficionado) to keep buying them even though they were by artists I wouldn't normally consider (eg the Prodigy, Massive Attack etc). Un/fortunately this meant that a fair amount of these records never got played but just sat on my record shelf for 20 years. Almost all of my singles came from Graduate Records in Dudley (of UB40 fame!).

I have been an audiophile for as long as I could afford it and moved up from a Thorens TD150record deck, via Linn Sondek and Pink Triangle to my current SME10, which I've been running with an SMEV arm and Koetsu Rosewood cartridge for over 20 years. If that means nothing to you, suffice to say I take extreme care of my vinyl to the extent that I invested in a Loricraft PRCII professional record cleaner nearly 20 years ago and all of my vinyl immediately goes into protective plastic sleeves. Almost all of my rock/pop collection has been bought from new and I will always make this clear on the listing.