>but i didnt have to use a if found() when i used the seek before so i dont understand why it is not returning a record

That I can't say. But using found() is a good idea, or another, maybe better way is to use the SEEK() function:

IF SEEK(value,'table','tagname')
  messagebox('Record Found')
ELSE
  messagebox('Record Not Found')
  wait window value  && to see what's not being found
ENDIF