Argh!...VAM troubles

PP, What are you going to do with your Vams? Collect, try to resell at a profit? Do you want them raw or slabed? This makes a big difference. Raw Vams will always sell cheaper than slabbed. If you see a top 100 listed on eBay most of the time the seller knows what he has and gets top dollar for it. I personally prefer to see the coin in hand. Find a coin dealer that's not into Vams and you can find some nice ones at a reasonable price.

PP,

It appears you want to " VAM for profit". I started that way, but have been unable to let go of a single one. I've picked most of mine up off eBay and a few at shows. I personally don't bother with the local coin shop because I don't respect the proprietor. And the St Louis shops are too far for regular trips.

I picked three dates and focus on those. Between those three dates there are nearly 200 VAMs. Then I went to VAMWorld and studied the pictures (especially for the pricey VAMs) and made notes (cut and pasted to make my own mini-VAM book) and I keep it handy. I invested in Jeff Oxman's 1878 8TF Variety book ... and joined the SSDC. As I get more of the VAMs I'm looking for, I may move to other dates. There are so many "unattributed" VAMs on eBay that it's like a treasure hunt every evening ... oh did I forget to mention I no longer have a personal life. I have a technique that I've refined after about 1000 hours of this over the last year. I have offered to share here in the past but had no takers. Since you have indicated an interest I'll email you through the CCF email.

Well, I see you don't have an email option here. Sorry.

You tread on a very slippery slope my friend. I started focusing on my Morgan collection, then soon after discovered VAMs, and soon I was collecting only '21 Morgans... Any wide reeded '21 Morgan I saw I bought, I have more '21s then every other date combined. I got frustrated trying to attribute them all, and have started to look at other dates, but still have trouble letting a '21 stay on a shelf.

On a similar note, I think I let a 1903 micro S slip through my fingers once (figuratively of course), but then again it might still be there... guess I know where I am going this weekend...