I won't go into detail, since Twl has it covered, but I have found many, many LPs in thrift shops. Some play perfectly and some are trashed. I am often surprised to find that the one that looks the best on visual inspection is noiser than the one with all the scuffs and dust. I also frequently find new, sealed LPs in the bins with the old. What you find might depend on your musical interests. I have found classical LPs to be in generally in better condition than rock. Broadway shows are the worst of all--at least in my area.
One thing that I've found is that if you clean your LPs by hand (Disk Doctor) they will sometime have a fair amount of background noise on the first play, but will quiet down after another play or two.
One thing that I've found is that if you clean your LPs by hand (Disk Doctor) they will sometime have a fair amount of background noise on the first play, but will quiet down after another play or two.