VAMs, Just Who Do You Think Is Driving The Train!

sure, that is why I said I don't mind helping but if they only come around to ask about a attribution so they can sell it time after time and have no intentions on learning, just using others knowledge then that is when I will be hesitant to help. We are here to share knowledge not be a servant to others who wish to make a profit off of our knowledge. That furthers nothing and helps the hobby in no way. If someone shows a interest and willing to learn themselves then I have absolutely no problem helping them as much as I can. Like I said if you just only want my knowledge so you can make a quick buck and have no intentions on learning yourself, you just want me to tell you what VAM it is so you can sell it for a profit then put me on your payroll and I will find out what VAM every coin you have is


It will never be a level playing field because someone will always have more knowledge than the other in a specific series and some people just learn quicker than others so there will never be a level playing field in coin collecting no matter if it be VAM's or errors or any type of variety. That other series may bring more money than the one I am knowledgeable in but every now and then when you know the series well enough you can see little differences that do not match anything else you have ever seen that makes your series the more valuable series. Knowledge is king when it comes to VAM's there are a few people that are well versed in just about all TOP100 and HOT50 coins and they can spot them from a mile away. Me, I am not one of them, now you put a B1 reverse 1878 Morgan in front of me and you will see my eyes light up. The B1's are not as expensive as allot of the TOP100 coins or the HOT50's but still that's where my interest lies and I am happy to get each and everyone I can acquire. This is supposed to be a hobby and supposed to be fun, if you start taking it to seriously then it starts to drain the fun out of the hobby and you will end up with hurt feelings and nothing else to show for it

I've told the story before how Bryan1315 and SuperDave got me started on this in 2007 on this forum. At the time I had about five Morgans. The discussion was on 1878 B1 reverses. I had one 78 and checked it ... Holy Mackerel, it was a B1 reverse ( VAM 82). I was "connected". I began a quest to get all the B1's for my collection. Along the way I noticed how interesting and diverse the other 78's were ... gotta have 'em. Then the 78-S. Three and a half years later I have over 400 Morgans (200+ are 78's). I've studied tens of thousands of images online and study every 78 I see at shows and in Brick and Mortar shops (if the seller will let me). Not once have I considered it "work". I look at each one like a kid opening a Christmas present. At times I've asked others for help, only after I've exhausted my resources attempting to attribute the piece (it's like admitting defeat). A year ago there were far fewer pictures on VAMWorld ... kudos to a select few who have made that site what it is today. When someone lists a 78 over there or here for attribution, I will give it my best shot ... most I can attribute with a glance if the pictures are decent.

I have a basic understanding of the minting process, but very little interest in most of the discussions about it ... sorry Zeewool I know this is near and dear to you, but not my cup of tea.

The bottom line is vamming is what the individual makes of it. Those who choose to make it a business can't possibly experience vamming as I have ... more like work ... and you know how most folks feel about work. I have sold some of my duplicates to be able to purchase more, but to me it's like having to sell your children.

You probably don't remember me when I first came on the scene Nut, but Oz does..... I knew nothing about anything coin wise.... It just so happened that I chose the dealer site to wet my feet in .... I was not interested in buying though, I already had a great many coins given me.... and I just wanted to learn something about them... I felt obligated... I came across many really kind and wonderful folks there, willing to help in any way they could, but there were also a handful of blowhards who chose me to make fun of because of my ignorance....

I do not appreciate folks who attempt to project dominance or place me in a submissive position just because I am unfamiliar with something, so I made it a point to learn that which they were oblivious to... and that was the press and mint processes including the history of the coins that they projected their self proclaimed omniscience of... it was only my competitive nature that compelled me want to know more than they did about some aspects of these coins.... I began to challenge the blowhards, and so they despise me for that today... so be it.

I do not consider you or anyone else on this forum to fall into the blowhard category, and I do not fault anyone here for their boundaries of interest in vams.... that is what makes us all unique (especially me )..... No, I do not hold the mint process dear to me, I don't really care about it that much, I do wear it as my armor though.

We've snagged another one!

jaymon74, click on the link above these posts to learn all about VAMs.

Ok. I'm not really into particular coins. I just like to enjoy the hobby and learn what I can in all areas. That's why I got into it in the first place. To enjoy. I don't plan on straying from that important aspect of it. From the sounds of it Vamming is not for me.
Thank you for showing me where to look for the definition though!

I agree collecting is each to their own taste. I just don't want to get to the point where it's not fun anymore.

I didn't start out with this hobby to make a profit. All coins I have in my collection are not being sold to anyone as long as I'm alive. True, I do like to know the value of them, but that is just for my own knowledge.

I like to Bass fish. I've seen too many of my friends get sucked into Tournament fishing and now have lost the passion they once had. They worry themselves sick on making money of it. I refuse to get involved in that for that reason.

I'm not cutting anyone down or trying to start an argument. Please don't think that of me. I just want for people to think back to why they got into this great hobby. Don't lose sight of that.

Bryan, I hope you are well, I just wanted to state I love the Vamming hobby and have learned, been excited, and still get that way, and enjoy the reading of details about this hobby, you said,


" It is when you start worrying what everyone else is doing that it becomes unrewarding and starts to feel like a job. "

I hope you were not thinking about me, when you wrote this......

If so,

I do not worry about everyone else, I am concerned about the direction this incredible hobby is being brought to by the hands of some "in the right place at the right time people", and the effects this ALL is now having because of it.

No disrespect intended, you are a very bright, kind, willing to share your experiences with others type person, but, you, as you have stated, have "your set" already, I like sooo many others are still hunting and my concerns are, IMO, very real.....I love this forum for many reasons, one being the people here as a whole, are open and very approachable to comments from others and again, hope you were not and did not take any OFFENSE to my opinions......PS, I am also still having an amazing time with the hobby!!

I couldn't agree MORE with you all statements.......If one tries to compete you enter a whole new world of chasing the "JONESES" and the "WHO'S WHO"..
Lets put one thing "First and Foremost" in the front of all else... That is Vamming, the study of these coins....what, why and how they were coined... It is a very rewarding study that takes some time and covers a lot of info , but it does get easier as time goes...just like the game of chess, one learns the rules of the game(such as what are listable features) and how the pieces move(how to recognise what these features are on the coin) and then the playing of the game or should I say, the attribution of the coin...now this is not meant top be a perfect parallel of vamming...but I think you can understand my meaning....throw politics out and you have a great hobby... are there other issues? with any thing there will always be, but it never means you have to take part in it...let the hobby be as it is and enjoy the wealth of info on the subject and pass time...When I was 18 I majored in the automotive field..I continued my education in many more fields, and even at my age I still evolve and continue to enhance my learning skills, vamming is one aspect of that, and I do enjoy it and as I learn I do like to share what I have learned with others....to those who try and figure it out themselves and need a shove to get to the next level....
An old motto I have always lived by is:
The gift of giving is mine, its mine to share but it can't be taken as that's not giving....
Many here also do that, give there time,eye's and experience to help those who have experience or those who are new....
and to those who are new, this subject covers such understandings of the period, hte knowledge of the time(late 1800's) the minting presses, the need to MASS PRODUCE more coins than ever produced and in a shorter time frame than ever before..that production procedure and the faults that lead to what we now observe as Vams...G