the rix mix

Former student of mine has a bunch of old 45s and she has looked some up and claims she discovered they aren't worth much. That sounds crazy. Are they? Should I put you in touch with her?

Dana

In a word, no. I don't know rarities & values. But chances are they aren't worth much unless they're quite old & they've been well cared for - & who treated 45s kindly? Frame-able picture sleeves get good prices. Take em to a used record shop & ask, but watch the guy's eyes as he looks through em.

bob

Two common enough misconceptions; that old records are probably worth something & that I may know what they're worth.  In the decade that passed between when I first contemplated selling off most of my albums & when I actually did, the value of my collection dropped from profitable to near zero. Except for the handful of albums I knew were & always would be collector's items because of their frame-able album jackets. Most of my older rare LPs were  beat up,  & the newer ones were from cut-out bins, with the slice in the jacket.  A lot of my albums had been worth $5 to $10 (if sold individually at record fairs, a cataloging & logistical nightmare) simply because it was the  only way you could hear them. But there was a frenzy of CD re-releases of even the most unlikely records, & the mp3 format (now improved to "lossless"  compressed formats), & the appearance of music blogs & file-sharing sites, & "on-demand"  downloads 

There's always a strong market for an ancient Elvis picture sleeve 45 in excellent condition.

(I buy only classical CDs, not many of those,  always used or cut-outs, & won't spend more than $6 including shipping.  I have a "want list." I'm patient, & I find great bargains.)