General question

[JackBnimble01]

Did the old vam world web site have
On the vams a listing for rarity,saying something like this vam is highly desirable, or it’s a very common vam?
I just joined last year, and I kinda remember something like that, any thoughts? Maybe my memory is going?

[rogerg]

This one does.
Rarity scale. The rarity scale identifies how likely you are to encounter the listed VAM "in the wild"
R-1 = Common (Tens of Millions)
R-2 = Not so Common (Several Million)
R-3 = Scarce (Hundreds of Thousands)
R-4 = Very Scarce (Tens of Thousands)
R-5 = Rare (Several Thousand)
R-6 = Very Rare (Several Hundred)
R-7 = Extremely Rare (Few Tens)
R-8 = Unique or Nearly Unique (Several)

[DHalladay]

But keep in mind that the ratings were guesses when they were first assigned, and have not been updated since. VAMs that were thought to be rare at the time may, with the passage of time, have proven to be much more common.

In other words, do not take them as gospel.

[messydesk]

Did the old vam world web site have
On the vams a listing for rarity,saying something like this vam is highly desirable, or it’s a very common vam?
I just joined last year, and I kinda remember something like that, any thoughts? Maybe my memory is going?

There may have been some such pages. I most likely unlinked them from the wiki, because they are bad information. The R-ratings were guesses, tend not to be accurate, were established with different methodologies over time, aren't updated, and for the most part have no bearing on value. Die studies produce more insightful information regarding relative rarity within a date and mint. An analysis of this would be quite welcome.

[HawkeEye]

Should we just remove them from all documentation to remove the confusion?

[CascadeChris]

Should we just remove them from all documentation to remove the confusion?

I would think that's an executive level decision only Leroy could make.

[shortnock]

They are only guides, and appreciated by, at least, this VAMmer.

[RogerB]

"Rarity Scales" are like having the butcher's thumb on the meat department scale.

[alefzero]

At this point in the VAM game, condition rarity is more important than absolute rarity. The handful of "list" VAMs that are absolutely rare are very well known and when they come to market, sellers will generally point that out in descriptions and prices. Ones that are not on the lists might not be rare but have low population representations at ANACS and in the SSDC Registry, simply because few are pursuing them and registering them. Many of us do, however, have pet VAMs that we know are rare and unfollowed.