Who owns this site?
I'm Ward from New Plymouth, New Zealand. I have a passion for music all the way from ABBA to Zappa. I grew up listening to records in the 70s and 80s and naturally I'm loving the rebirth of the format. I created this site so vinyl lovers could find a place to purchase quality records from a trusted seller. Someone who listened to the records and graded accurately.
Why should I subscribe?
When you subscribe you will be emailed a newsletter of my latest albums at the same time they are listed on Trademe. It also allows you to take advantage of the free records deal. Subscribing is free and you can unsubscribe at any time.
How are the records cleaned and packaged?
They are first cleaned with a Spin Clean, then with an Ultrasonic Cleaner. This process vastly improves the sound quality. Finally to remove any remaining dust they are dry vacuumed and placed in a brand new inner sleeve. Extra care is given to packing, the record is removed from the cover to stop seam splits. I use LP mailers and bubble wrap to ensure safe delivery. Tracking is available on all purchases. I ship with Courier Post & Fastway (residential and P.O Boxes) Pass the Parcel (rural deliveries)
Free Records?
Buy any album ($25+) from Vinyl Kitchen's Trademe page and get one record from the Free Records list per $25 you spend. All records in the free list are graded Very Good (unless stated otherwise) so expect some surface noise here and there but still a good listen. They are all cleaned and come with a new inner and outer sleeve. Getting free records is optional you don’t have to ask for one. Once you have purchased a record from me just email to let me know what free records you want. The more you buy the more free records you get.
Free Shipping?
I offer free shipping to anywhere in New Zealand for purchases $80 NZD and over. On Trademe you can add items to your cart and it will automatically trigger free shipping when you reach $80.
Feedback
When you buy a record from Vinyl Kitchen you can rely on fast and trustworthy service. I hate buying a record only to find it's been posted without any protection and is not graded correctly. Sometimes you get no indication it's been sent or it may even arrive weeks later! Buying records online can be a shot in the dark. Below is some feedback I've received on Trademe. You can buy with 100% confidence when dealing with Vinyl Kitchen.
samaritan Original copies, often overseas pressings, as described, and worth every cent! You can trust Ward, and future trades will only enhance your mutually beneficial relationship.
rudeboymonkyman - Absolute top notch trader. The album was everything promised and more. Packaging was flawless, communication was great. Can’t wait to buy my next album!
ham22 - Brilliant packaging, brilliant comms, brilliant vinyl, simply brilliant service all round, recommended to all. cheers.
pglida - Thanks - Excellent all round service and merchandise. These are the best presented LPs I’ve received yet, great packaging and delivery and your grading system is spot on. This trader understands and values the supplier/customer relationship.
bartdude - I love to crate dig and try to support local record stores but I can say *hand on heart* the quality here is so much better than any store, and a selection I don't often see. I rebuy my CD and cassette on vinyl...I might have to do it again with better vinyl!!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED *****
bassman17 - Fast, friendly transaction. A great communicator, and he offers all sorts of sweet bonus deals above and beyond what you're paying for. Which is good-quality, clean vinyl exactly as described. Highly recommended trader. Check him out.
kazbah - Awesome trader. Great communication. packaging excellent & record is fantastic!! Looking forward to trading again.
kimberly83 - As always vinyl sounds fantastic, well packaged, quick delivery, and great communication. Thanks for another fantastic Trade Happy New Year!
downunder67 - Awesome trader, super fast delivery of excellent vinyl and very well packaged. Highly recommended A+++++
jmmeister22 - Awesome service, I received the record the following day and in perfect condition
jeremytodd40 - Fast and easy trade. Awesome packaging, and spotlessly clean. Vinyl maybe in better condition than advertised. Highly recommended
kazza132 - Super impressed with the speed this has arrived, and the fantastic condition of the record and packaging. Best trade ever..thank you so much
rezbandrules - Loving the customer service, support, advice and awesome quality products. Surely the best guy to get vinyl from in NZ! Playing INXS Loud ! Cheers again for efficient and no fuss trading!
zappa95b - Excellent trade, very well packed and and arrived in great condition, also fast delivery. 10/10. cheers.
rpma - This guy is the bomb, great product & amazing service, highly recommend
aliwallie - You should be awarded "Trader of the year"!
dvsgal1 - Thanks for a great trade. Super fast postage and very well packaged. Record is in great condition, all as advertised.
gypsy26 - Very friendly and professional trader. My records arrived the next day, awesome!! Will be trading again for sure..
mikef4 - Very very impressed with this Trader. Record is awesome and graded as described. Brilliant packing and super quick delivery. 100% highly recommend to all and look forward to future trades
supernerd - LP has arrived. Much thanks again for another smooth and easy trade.
henneseyvenom - Great trader, item arrived as described. The best packaging I've ever seen from a TradeMe seller of vinyl
staceyd04 - Product was in amazing condition and shipped extremely quickly. Fantastic trade.
pool_room - Amazing trade. Super fast, next day delivery and the record was professionally packed. Thanks heaps!
samaritan Original copies, often overseas pressings, as described, and worth every cent! You can trust Ward, and future trades will only enhance your mutually beneficial relationship.
rudeboymonkyman - Absolute top notch trader. The album was everything promised and more. Packaging was flawless, communication was great. Can’t wait to buy my next album!
ham22 - Brilliant packaging, brilliant comms, brilliant vinyl, simply brilliant service all round, recommended to all. cheers.
pglida - Thanks - Excellent all round service and merchandise. These are the best presented LPs I’ve received yet, great packaging and delivery and your grading system is spot on. This trader understands and values the supplier/customer relationship.
bartdude - I love to crate dig and try to support local record stores but I can say *hand on heart* the quality here is so much better than any store, and a selection I don't often see. I rebuy my CD and cassette on vinyl...I might have to do it again with better vinyl!!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED *****
bassman17 - Fast, friendly transaction. A great communicator, and he offers all sorts of sweet bonus deals above and beyond what you're paying for. Which is good-quality, clean vinyl exactly as described. Highly recommended trader. Check him out.
kazbah - Awesome trader. Great communication. packaging excellent & record is fantastic!! Looking forward to trading again.
kimberly83 - As always vinyl sounds fantastic, well packaged, quick delivery, and great communication. Thanks for another fantastic Trade Happy New Year!
downunder67 - Awesome trader, super fast delivery of excellent vinyl and very well packaged. Highly recommended A+++++
jmmeister22 - Awesome service, I received the record the following day and in perfect condition
jeremytodd40 - Fast and easy trade. Awesome packaging, and spotlessly clean. Vinyl maybe in better condition than advertised. Highly recommended
kazza132 - Super impressed with the speed this has arrived, and the fantastic condition of the record and packaging. Best trade ever..thank you so much
rezbandrules - Loving the customer service, support, advice and awesome quality products. Surely the best guy to get vinyl from in NZ! Playing INXS Loud ! Cheers again for efficient and no fuss trading!
zappa95b - Excellent trade, very well packed and and arrived in great condition, also fast delivery. 10/10. cheers.
rpma - This guy is the bomb, great product & amazing service, highly recommend
aliwallie - You should be awarded "Trader of the year"!
dvsgal1 - Thanks for a great trade. Super fast postage and very well packaged. Record is in great condition, all as advertised.
gypsy26 - Very friendly and professional trader. My records arrived the next day, awesome!! Will be trading again for sure..
mikef4 - Very very impressed with this Trader. Record is awesome and graded as described. Brilliant packing and super quick delivery. 100% highly recommend to all and look forward to future trades
supernerd - LP has arrived. Much thanks again for another smooth and easy trade.
henneseyvenom - Great trader, item arrived as described. The best packaging I've ever seen from a TradeMe seller of vinyl
staceyd04 - Product was in amazing condition and shipped extremely quickly. Fantastic trade.
pool_room - Amazing trade. Super fast, next day delivery and the record was professionally packed. Thanks heaps!
How are the records graded?
All records are listened to from start to finish before grading. They are then given a grading based on the following guidelines
MINT (M): I don't sell new records so I don't award this grade. This should only be given to unplayed records.
NEAR MINT or NM, M-: This record appears virtually flawless A very minor scuff and very little else can appear on the vinyl. It should play without any noise over the flaw. The flaw is very hard to see. COVER: The cover looks as close to perfect with only minor signs of wear and or age. Minor impressions to the cover (due to the outer edge of the vinyl resting inside) may be acceptable, however the artwork is be as close to perfect as can be.
EXCELLENT or EX : Minor scuffs which are only slightly visible. There may be more than a few scuffs and NO visible scratches or marks you can feel with your finger. Sound wise very minimal surface noise is acceptable in a few areas as long as it is not constant, between songs is generally acceptable. COVER: Artwork is still as close to perfect as can be. Some impression to the cover (minor outer ring wear) but no ink wear! Some slight creases to the corners, but not wrinkled and obtrusive to the eye. The corners can show white (where the artwork pasted slick was) meaning, slight wear. No seam splits or writing on the cover or taped repairs can make this grade. (An EX+ will be given to a record slightly better than an EX)
VERY GOOD PLUS or VG+: Record shows wear, surface scuffs. The vinyl still has a great luster, but the flaws will be noticeable to the naked eye. If the flaws don't cause any surface noise, the vinyl can still make the VG+ grade. Sound wise some areas of surface noise may be present as long as they don't override the listening experience. COVER: A virtually clean cover, but may have small writing on it.The artwork looks clean with slightly more aging. The back of the cover usually gives away the age of the cover. Flat white paper will be somewhat yellow yet no stains or mildew from water damage. Some minor wear to the seams or spine, but no tears or holes popping through. The corners will be slightly dog eared yet no crackly bends, defacing the artwork. In essence, a VG+ cover should have no more than 3 flaws mentioned. (An EX- will be given to a record slightly better than a VG+)
VERY GOOD or VG: This record is a record that is good enough. They are not really going to look very good, but it will STILL play very good. There will almost always be some surface noise when they are played. The Dynamics should still be excellent, overpowering the surface noise. A VG record will appear to have been well played but still have some luster. COVER: VG covers will look worn, used. There may be some seam splitting . There will be some ring wear, where the ink has begun to wear off. Giving the cover a look of snow falling. If the artwork looks snowy all over, it is less than VG condition. There may be some writing on the cover (still, no Large letters in magic marker). It will look aged and more yellowish due to contamination's in the air (sometimes looking like cigarette smoke). Still it should be decent.
GOOD or G: A good record will look very well played, dull, grayish and possibly abused. However a Good record should still play. It will have distracting surface noise. Such as crackle that is continuous or some hiss. Will also have some loss of dynamics caused from grooves being worn. It should play without any skips or any obtrusively loud pops or repeated clicks, caused by deep scratches. Good means that it will play with some form of decency, so one can still enjoy the music even though you can still hear noise caused from the wear. COVER: A Good cover will have just about everything wrong with it. It will have seam splits (possibly taped repaired, but only with scotch tape. No duct tape or masking tape repairs. These are big turn offs. May have magic marker writing on the cover but still if they are in huge letters, it is a big turn off.In essence, the cover will looked virtually trashed, but some artwork will still be noticed. If the artwork is worn, it is POOR and the cover is worthless.
On a scale from 1 (Poor) to 10 (Perfect) the above gradings are equivalent to: MINT - 10, Near Mint - 8, Excellent - 7, Very Good Plus - 6 , Very Good - 5 , Good - 2
MINT (M): I don't sell new records so I don't award this grade. This should only be given to unplayed records.
NEAR MINT or NM, M-: This record appears virtually flawless A very minor scuff and very little else can appear on the vinyl. It should play without any noise over the flaw. The flaw is very hard to see. COVER: The cover looks as close to perfect with only minor signs of wear and or age. Minor impressions to the cover (due to the outer edge of the vinyl resting inside) may be acceptable, however the artwork is be as close to perfect as can be.
EXCELLENT or EX : Minor scuffs which are only slightly visible. There may be more than a few scuffs and NO visible scratches or marks you can feel with your finger. Sound wise very minimal surface noise is acceptable in a few areas as long as it is not constant, between songs is generally acceptable. COVER: Artwork is still as close to perfect as can be. Some impression to the cover (minor outer ring wear) but no ink wear! Some slight creases to the corners, but not wrinkled and obtrusive to the eye. The corners can show white (where the artwork pasted slick was) meaning, slight wear. No seam splits or writing on the cover or taped repairs can make this grade. (An EX+ will be given to a record slightly better than an EX)
VERY GOOD PLUS or VG+: Record shows wear, surface scuffs. The vinyl still has a great luster, but the flaws will be noticeable to the naked eye. If the flaws don't cause any surface noise, the vinyl can still make the VG+ grade. Sound wise some areas of surface noise may be present as long as they don't override the listening experience. COVER: A virtually clean cover, but may have small writing on it.The artwork looks clean with slightly more aging. The back of the cover usually gives away the age of the cover. Flat white paper will be somewhat yellow yet no stains or mildew from water damage. Some minor wear to the seams or spine, but no tears or holes popping through. The corners will be slightly dog eared yet no crackly bends, defacing the artwork. In essence, a VG+ cover should have no more than 3 flaws mentioned. (An EX- will be given to a record slightly better than a VG+)
VERY GOOD or VG: This record is a record that is good enough. They are not really going to look very good, but it will STILL play very good. There will almost always be some surface noise when they are played. The Dynamics should still be excellent, overpowering the surface noise. A VG record will appear to have been well played but still have some luster. COVER: VG covers will look worn, used. There may be some seam splitting . There will be some ring wear, where the ink has begun to wear off. Giving the cover a look of snow falling. If the artwork looks snowy all over, it is less than VG condition. There may be some writing on the cover (still, no Large letters in magic marker). It will look aged and more yellowish due to contamination's in the air (sometimes looking like cigarette smoke). Still it should be decent.
GOOD or G: A good record will look very well played, dull, grayish and possibly abused. However a Good record should still play. It will have distracting surface noise. Such as crackle that is continuous or some hiss. Will also have some loss of dynamics caused from grooves being worn. It should play without any skips or any obtrusively loud pops or repeated clicks, caused by deep scratches. Good means that it will play with some form of decency, so one can still enjoy the music even though you can still hear noise caused from the wear. COVER: A Good cover will have just about everything wrong with it. It will have seam splits (possibly taped repaired, but only with scotch tape. No duct tape or masking tape repairs. These are big turn offs. May have magic marker writing on the cover but still if they are in huge letters, it is a big turn off.In essence, the cover will looked virtually trashed, but some artwork will still be noticed. If the artwork is worn, it is POOR and the cover is worthless.
On a scale from 1 (Poor) to 10 (Perfect) the above gradings are equivalent to: MINT - 10, Near Mint - 8, Excellent - 7, Very Good Plus - 6 , Very Good - 5 , Good - 2