USPS records delivery delays

Sellers can be strange: there was a $300 re
cord I wanted, but told the seller I was interested if he could send it expedited (within 5 or 10 days) max, and asked him to give me an all in quote. The record is still for sale, he never got back to me. Next.
But still: it is worth asking. You know a record from Western EU to USA is going to cost 24 dollars + for fast shipping. That may deter you from buying a cheap copy that is less or equivalent to shipping price, but for high value records, it is the cost of doing business. I did this before Covid kicked in unless I wanted to wait. And now, it's wait and wait and wait. 

I buy a lot of used records online. The last couple years, since Covid kicked in, there have been slow downs, but that’s not the worst of it-- the longer it remains in postal authority hands, the more likely it is to get damaged. I’ve had more damaged records (damaged by shipping casualty, not the product falling short of grade) in the past year than in all the years I’ve been buying.
I do priority or better for any record that means anything to me. I did get an old Pharoah Sanders Impulse record that was somewhat obscure via media mail today, and it was fine.
Foreign sources: take forever now, aside from cost. I look for dealers that can do DHL Express or the equivalent through Fedex or whatever (Mumbai to Austin within less than 10 days), and stopped buying from some foreign sources due to inherent delays in their standard postal service (which is what most sellers offer because of price).
I’d say if it is a valuable record, pay the premium for fast shipping. It will not only get it to you sooner, but will mean the package is in the hands of the berserkers who may do mayhem to your goods for a shorter period of time, all due respect to our postal workers.

@bkeske said "...I’m surprised it isn’t a total train wreck....
Agreed. It's amazing that it works at all, given the volume.