... wearing out lps . are you using a nail for a stylus. you may need a turntable/cartridge upgrade.
I haven't got a vinyl player down here and broke up my collection some time back (7000+ items at it's peak) and again, like yourself, sold a lot of stuff to get other items...
I always kept an old stylus for what I called "ploughing..." imagine buying a second-hand LP and finding a minor defect, then having to "re-groove" the disc - I have also used a powerful backlit magnifying light, a steady hand, and various implements...
Jackie has quite a number of rare old country lps - no replacements and no CD's available - so from time to time I have "repaired" some of these and transfered to CD for her...
Again, as you said, I regret parting-out plenty of records, but what I've got is the sacred stuff for me...
Just feels kind of funny to be boxing up the CDs to sit with the vinyl and holding this tiny piece of red aluminium filled with virtually no moving parts and holding so much to listen to, at whim...