How do you spot an overplayed used lp without obvious scratches etc


I'm pretty good at spotting record defects and scratches that will or won't affect sound quality.
Even with a well done cleaning, you play what looks like a good album and it has simbilence, a rough thick surface noise etc.

how do you spot these from a gem pressing?, 
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Showing 1 response by jerroot

Over the past few years I've found it has gotten a bit harder to discern differences since, at least in my area, more vendors of used LPs are using RCMs to clean their stock which results in the removal of a lot of the telltale signs of prior poor handling, i.e. fingerprints, stains, visible grunge. One sign of mishandling that cannot be removed are the squirrely lines on the labels around the center holes. These are indications of sloppy handling when playing records and, in my mind, offer a valuable clue as to how this person's collection was generally handled. Unless it's a title I really want, I tend to pass when I see these marks if they are more than very minor. And then there are just the times when you've got a bad pressing and there is nothing you could have seen or do afterwards that will make any difference. That even happens every so often with brand new pressings. Fortunately I have great relationships with my used record vendors and if a used pressing is really bad they have never had any problems with an exchange. If it's at a garage/estate sale I pretty much pay my money and take my chances.