VAMWorld 2.0

Do coins of different designs have different spectrograms? Are they different enough between designs and similar enough within designs that you could tell the design by the spectrogram, much like Merlin does with birds?

Tagging @tmanhg since he has the discovery coin.

Very nice! Not the usual VG-VF you see for this variety.

I still have some left for those of you who didn't get the calendar you wanted for Christmas.

Again, appreciate your input, John. A moving target in a subjective field - two qualities that make the fun of the hunt even more enjoyable. Is there a way for us to create a 'parking lot' to help crowdsource the efforts? This post will get deeply buried in the sands of time so we all might be well...

I see no reason to send this for a discovery at this time. The collar clash is marginal as far as what would be considered for listing (want 60° and strong). Cataloging collar clashing is a relatively new thing, probably within the past 10 years give or take. The absence of a picture of a VAM 2 or m...

I prefer to think of that variety as the barbecue sauce mouth variety. It is by no stretch of the imagination rare. This is the equivalent of the smile die crack on Peace dollars that goes across the tip of the bust. I imagine this may result in rework of the model a bit to try and prevent the die b...

I'll bet it's not raised on the coin. There's a chip below the I of In on that coin that was identified in a study Alan (@LateDateMorganGuy) did on 94-S. No bar below the tail, just S set right. I would probably call this VAM 2.

The subject of this thread says it all regarding attributing 1881-S. I'd be good calling this VAM 12.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Thanks, John. Curious, if this didn't have the collar clash and was submitted would it not come back as a VAM-2 as this is the description for a near date vanilla ice cream variety? Perhaps a related question, aren't VAMs still designated by qualities and not die pairings? Thanks again and happy ho...

colwillys wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 24, 2022 11:55 pm

How about the dot between GOD . WE ....

There was probably sufficient impurity at the crack to cause part of the planchet to end up raised a little there, which when worn looks like a die break.

It is a collar clash, but in order to be listable, you also need to show the same die pair without the collar clash.

Not sure if I've ever shared this here before, but this is an effective test for telling the difference between AU58 and MS6x if you're not sure. I show this to students in the Morgan dollar class at the ANA when explaining what the difference between slight wear and luster looks like. I had occasi...

LateDateMorganGuy wrote: ↑

Wed Dec 21, 2022 2:33 pm

Seems like just because they destroyed them, does not necessarily mean they were all used?

Obverse dies, yes, but unused reverse dies could be used the following year.

Alan identified 13 reverse dies for 1892-O in his die study, which is close to the number 15 in the report indicates. The other at least two dies could easily be represented by coins too worn to show up in Heritage or SB auction photos or coins that were never released. There may also be a reverse d...

There were some strong prices in that sale. Glad it was a success for you. I came away empty handed.

RogerRock wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 20, 2022 4:35 pm

Bottom pic showing TRVST on 1922 D with caption "die crack _maybe" looks like VAM 2H

Agree. VAM 2H.

There were a lot of unlisted die pairs in Alan's study. I can look tonight to see if it matches one of them.

Listen, I don't mean to sound harsh here, but if the Grey Sheet is gonna use the SSDC guide we're all gonna look like fools. When the priceguide came out it was out of whack with the market and it hasn't been updated... For a simple example, I can get an MS63 1878 7/8 strong for $550 OR, according ...