NOS means New Old Stock!?

[6ixty 6ix]

Unused: stuff which can be in just about any condition, really. It's just a claim most of the time..
Original packaging (or price tag, etc): the product/packaging can also be in any condition (used or unused).
Anything claimed to be "mint" or "MIP" (mint in packaging) or "NIP" (new in packaging) or "NOS" should be in pristine condition, and have of the associated packaging and literature that would accompany the item when it was sold in its day. It should present itself as a perfect item off the shelf just as you would expect from something new today. Anything short of that is not true NOS in the high end antique business. The way an esteemed broker explained it to me once was using a currency analogy. A coin is mint when it is minted and hasn't been circulated. Even if you didn't spend it on anything, it might still be scratched up. It's no longer mint. People not only overuse these terms, they abuse them. It makes it hard for dealers/collectors to make sense of the nonsense.

 

[karfer67]

NOS is a grey area to me it means unused vintage parts that are in the package still. although this is where the grey area comes in i will be the first to admit that i cant stand looking at parts in packages and rip them open and might not use it. technically it has not been installed so it is still new but i have defiled it by freeing it from it's prison. a great example would be hotwheels collectors who keep the cars in package but that is not NOS it is MIP as mentioned before. however the seat that i just got from hooch that i am gonna use on A/A altered is clearly nos and has never been installed and as well has been very well preserved . i have seen some car parts that looked like they had been at the bottom of a bog but might still be in a tattered package and are called NOS which i guess they are they are new (well not really) and old and are original equipment but they may not be useable anymore due to age. bicycle tires are another area for problems i dont buy tires off ebay that are vintage for this reason anymore after getting burned bad on a set of "NOS" tires that ended up being so dry that they were not useable