1878 P Morgan Dollar VAM-85 New Discovery! New B1 Reverse!

yeah I know, he is the one who purchased the TeleTrade auction, there are 3 known so far. I believe I have a VAM-86 coming and will be here ion the 30th if it is it will be the 3rd 86 known also (the one I have coming is MS-63DMPL by NGC) if it is a 86 I will have my set at 100% once again. All of the "experts" tell me that after FUN show we will know more about how rare it actually is since I am guessing everyone that is interested in 1878 VAM's will be looking for one there and if none are found in a big show like that chances are its going to be incredibly rare

I think he got a steal on the coin in my opinion. We all know this Reverse didn't last very long that's a given. so now lets say there are 20 of them out there (this is the upper level of how many that people I have talked to estimate there probably are) and now lets see how many people have 1878 Morgan sets that will need this coin. there are allot more than 20 but we will say 200. Ok if there are 20 coins to go around 200 people (its allot higher than that) how much do you think these 20 will sell for once these people start bidding on it? now also say quite a few of these 200 that collect these have allot of money to complete this set. That is why that one person that has two of them now is buying all he can find, so he can resale them to these people who needs one to complete their set. You also have to remember that when mine was found it was said by one of the people that is big in the vamming community that if it turns out to be as rare as it seems to be that they wouldn't be surprised if a MS-63DMPL example brought $30,000.00 at auction because of all the interest in 1878 VAM's. Even Leroy Van Allen himself collects 1878 VAM's from what I have heard


About the coin that I think may be a VAM-86, Both of the others ones that have been found are highly circulated (like in the EF range) so if this MS-63DMPL I have coming is in fact a VAM-86 I will have the finest known 85 and 86 to date. I really hope it is a VAM-86 not only to complete my set but also because I am not to sure about what everyone else is saying about it being between VAM-85 and VAM-80. If this coin is a VAM-86 then I can look at the 85, then the 86 then my 80 and see the cracks develop to get a better grasp on which one was first. we know the 85 was before the 80 but since both 86's that have been found I am not sure where it comes in to play at and hopefully this coin will answer that question I have. The coin I have coming, the pictures weren't that great but I know it is the VAM-80 Obverse so it may end up being a VAM-80, I know its not a VAM-85, but I think I see some of the characteristics that would make it a VAM-86 but as I said the pictures weren't the best so I will have to wait until it gets here to find out

yeah some people that are 1878 "experts" have told me that we will have a better idea of how rare they are after FUN. I am not sure why they think FUN will be the indicator but thats what they told me anyhow. I will be surprised if more than 1 is found there though. I really hope they do find some there that way we can get a indicator of the rarity of them. its been over a month and there has only been 3 found so far and allot of people are looking for them since it was in CoinWorld and the subject of a few web sites and quite a few newsletters about the VAM-85 and VAM-86 so the word is out there and most people that are interested in these things know and are looking for them. In 6 months we should have a real good idea of rarity I think and that is when the price will reflect the rarity if one was to come up for sale. Now that NGC has decided to attribute it it will definitely help with people trying to find them, I am sure PCGS will not be far behind in attributing them also so that will be another big boost in people looking, so I figure 6 months is about right to get a good sense of rarity

All this being said, I really do not care how rare it is because I have absolutely no plans on selling mine and the only way I will ever profit from the rarity is if I happen to come across another one, and even then I am not sure I would ever sell. I can tell you this, I was offered a considerable amount more than what was paid at TeleTrade for the second one even before the coin had gotten back from LVA. I mean quite a bit more, and when I say that I mean about 10 times what a regular MS-64DMPL 1878 Morgan would normally sell for

I realize this is not a commercial discussion. However, from my experience the "value" of a coin like this will only dimish with time. More will be inevitably be found , and as that happens, the "hammer price" will go down.

Bryan, I know you have no interest in selling, and I am personally glad to see that.

But if there was a time to maximize your profit, it would be now.

I have several VAMs which I will never sell unless I am threatened with foreclosure on my home. They are not unique or as infamous as your V85 is. But they are as dear to me as your V85 is to you.

Interesting perspectives here from all.

I would agree that now would probably bring the most money for your coin, I see the comment VFM made and agree, Now is the time to bring in all you can, IF you were going to sell, I also feel as stated, If the coin should receive the attention from the right venues, the marketing expertise from the people who do this best, and the word gets out LONG before the right auction house were to sell your coin, just stand back, sip some of your favorite beverage, and watch the people fight over YOUR discovery coin.

When it is all said and done, and the dust settles, I know, you will receive more than you feel now is fair and much, much more happier about the amount this coin WILL bring in, and I am also willing to bet, you will know the person with the deep pockets, who was fortunate to have won, one the First new B1 Reverse discovered since 1965...........Actually the first of the one's to be found.

I guess I do not feel the same as VFM does and who knows, we might ALL be amazed at the amount the coin brings, if and when it goes up on the block.......

I believe the dollar amount is secondary to the find, and can not wait, being a passionate Vammer as far as a collector goes, to see just how many do show up, will it be Me, You, or who knows, THATS what I am talking about, the search, the hunt, the passion in learning the entire process.........Going blind quickly........

For sure. Discoveries like this generate much positive publicity for numismatics and hopefully get more people interested in varieties. It's great thing all the way around.

I hope to never sell the coin to be honest and if I were really honest I would probably sell every other coin I have in my collection before I sell this one (and I have quite a few coins). Just please remember lets don't turn this thread into one like the other 5 talking about where the hobby is heading or anything like that. Lets just keep it about the VAM-85 and VAM-86. If we start going in that direction it will probably end up getting locked because thats not what this thread was actually started to do and we need to really keep it on target. It actually started out about the VAM-85 before it was a VAM-85 and just turned into what it has became, and the VAM-86 is a direct result of the VAM-85 being discovered and that is the only reason I brought it up in this thread instead of starting another one. VAMmers are just like every other variety collector, where your knowledge lets you see the little differences that do not match what you know to be on other coins. Without knowledge there would be no new varieties of any series. It also helps to have extra sets of eyes also like what we had here when I posted the pictures for opinions, it was for a second opinion. It was actually the second opinion that made me rally look at the coin closer because when it was purchased it was to upgrade the VAM-80 I already have and luckily I posted pictures and SuperDave said "wait a minute here" and made me take another look. He has been in the vamming game allot longer than I have and he kind of led me in the directions I should take to get the experts opinion and then decide what to do next. So that is what these forums like this is for, a second pair of eyes to see if they are in agreement or see if they can bring light and make you see it in another way