Just received a "sealed" Beatles BC13 1978 edition. The box looked like it was in rough shape. There was an outer seal over the inner, and it became apparent when I opened the outer seal that the inner seal was gaping. The records inside are trashed. Unsealed (the records should have been individually sealed) seam splits, spindle marks. One record even has the owner's initials on the label (and Sgt. Pepper is orange Capitol even though the others are Parlophone). I paid a premium for a box of VG records. Purchased on Discogs from a seller in Riverside California. Emailed the seller, as my guess is the seller is a victim also, because no seller would be this stupid, even if a seller were this unethical. Hopefully they have the name of the person that sold them this "sealed" box. If the seller is uncooperative over the broken seal I will take the matter up with my credit card company. Have purchased several hundred records in the last year rebuilding my collection from scratch. Have had very good luck, but this one, jeez, I don't even know what to say. Great start to the weekend. Any words of wisdom are appreciated.
Sealed? I sold a bunch of those in my record department back in the day, and they didn't come sealed. Inner records weren't sealed, either. That said, there shouldn't be any Capitol albums in there--all Parlophone.
The version sold in America that contained the Parlophone albums (which was limited) was indeed sealed: Gripsweat - Numbered THE BEATLES COLLECTION LP BLUE BOX BC-13 US Edition #2941 Sealed 1978
Yeah, there's that one, but it's rare as hen's teeth. The BC13 box that is common--and since it wasn't noted I'll assume this is the one the OP is talking about--is the one that was issued in the EU. And all this "outer seal" "inner seal" "gaping" stuff makes no sense in context of the rare US version, which was shrink-wrapped.
The seller has responded. He acknowledged there was a mistake and is providing a return label and will issue a full refund upon receipt. During my previous vinyl foray I purchased a sealed blue box and the individual LPs were all factory sealed with Union Jack stickers except Rarities. It should be noted that regardless of whether this set should or shouldn't have had individually sealed LPs, the LPs were VG. Marks, seam splits, spindle marks (heavy spindle marks on many labels), and some labels with the previous owner's initials written in ink. The Pepper is an orange Capitol label. Inserts are missing. Mildew inside box lid. You name it. The inner sleeves were all open to the outer sleeve. Anyway, kudos to the seller for immediately responding to my email. He said he was busy with customers but that he could explain when he had time. No explanation needed, just glad a refund is forthcoming. This HAD to be inadvertent, because the whole set is trashed including the outer box, and it was sold as mint and sealed. My blood pressure has returned to normal.
Forgot to mention, the serial number in the listing was 1635. There was no serial number on the box I received.
Provided tracking to seller on the return and he has already provided refund even though he doesn’t have the package yet. All good.
I'm pretty sure I know where you bought it from because I have actually visited that store in Riverside on more than one occasion. The place is a bit disorganized and is pretty cramped but the selection is decent if you don't mind squirming around the other customers while going through the stacks. The pricing is off though...they will charge $50 bucks for an orange Capitol Sgt. Pepper while in another aisle you might a decent copy of ELO's Time for $6. One whole side of his store has hundreds of used albums that are new arrivals on which he puts post it notes with really decent prices...but I think the prices go up once the LPs hit the regular racks that are alphabetized. That is a good place to look first when you shop. I saw a first pressing German Abbey Road on his Discogs listing and drove to the store and he was cool enough to sell it to for the posted price. The vinyl was a bit dirty and my first thought was "I hope he wasn't going to mail this to someone without cleaning it." It played fine after cleaning. I did see a Blue Box there but it was behind glass so I didn't get to examine it. When I saw the listing online I was sort of sceptical if it was a 1978 edition. I was going to there and look at it again but it was sold. I think some used record stores are getting a lot of business and I noticed that it might difficult to manage them and keep up with demand. I think the owner of this store is a good person but sort of overwhelmed by his inventory. He does have a great selection of public domain jazz LPs (DOL, Wax Time) for very good prices.
Very happy to read you were made whole on this. Thank your lucky stars. One of those rare happy endings. I have a blue box, can't remember where I acquired it, that had an unsealed box but all the LPs inside were individually sealed and have the UK Union Jack sticker affixed to the front. I opened A Hard Day's Night some years back to play and it was indeed a new record.
Found another BC13. It is the '78 numbered box. Seller disclosed that 2 were unsealed and rest were sealed with Union Jack sticker. Great set and very pleased. Matrices checked out as pre-1978 pressings.
Well, at least in Europe, getting a BC-13 is a 99% sure shot of getting impeccable records. The problem is rather of making sure to get the right version (as they were reissued in different countries, and especially with German versions, it's quite a gamble of how it will sound, depending on what mastering you get).
I agree the Capitol boxes are sealed. I just purchased the Capitol BC-13 sealed #509. I already have a VG+ 1978 UK and an opened #215 Capitol version, but the box on 215 is damaged (even though Lps are all VG+). Was going to use this new one to sell one of the other 2. But seeing it, I'm not sure I should open? Although 3 BC-13s are total overkill.
