How does one go about determining the value and selling old but somewhat cover damaged vinyl records?

Hi. Please see my answer to you stamp collection question. Since I already used the work “condition” once, I’ll say it’s all up to “Condition, condition.” It’s also critical to find out if your old records are originals or re-issues. I record company presses a small number of discs for the initial release, and if it becomes popular, presses more. Time passes and the hit fades from memory, or, it becomes a classic, generating more pressings. I’ve been trying to figure this out for myself. Look in the yellow pages and see if there’s an “oldies” dealer where you live. Pick their brain. Research on ebay. Records have to be pretty NM (Near Mint) to be worth anything, including the covers. I’m not looking to buy (au contraire) but I’m curious what kinds of recordings you have.

Thanks for responding. I believe you are no doubt very correct about the “condition” comments. I have a bunch of old records that date back some 50 plus years and while the records themselves are in reasonably good shape and playing condition, the covers are water damaged.
Typical of some of the many 45’s are: Ernie Ford – “Lusty Land”, Perry Como- “Dream Along with Me”, Les Paul and Mary Ford – “Song In Blue” and “Someday Sweetheart”; The Mills Brosther – “Singin and Swingin”, Ricky Nelson – “Ricky Sings Again”, Jerry Wallace – “Walkin In The Rain”, plus many others. I really haven’t done an inventory of all the records as they have been in storage for years and I recently uncovered them.
Again thanks for your good advice. I might just pitch them or hang on to them if they apparently have little value.

If my dad was still alive, he probably would have bought them. I grew up with Tennessee Ernie Ford, Flatt & Scruggs, etc. playing over and over in the house. I still can’t erase some of those songs from playing over and over in my head.

An easy, but not necessarily super accurate way to determine value is to see what other people are selling them for. For this I would use gemm.com. For example, your Ernie Ford Lusty Land 45 seems to go for about 5 to seven bucks in good condition:

http://www1.gemm.com/item/FORD-c-ERNIE/THIS—LUSTY—LAND/GML757736443/

http://www1.gemm.com/item/FORD-c-ERNIE/THIS—LUSTY—LAND/GML757736443/

Also, you may have a different release, but at least one 45” version of Ricky Sings Again is worth around 90 bucks.

http://www1.gemm.com/item/NELSON-c-RICKY/RICKY—SINGS—AGAIN/GML917791932/