Just got results from NGC. This is a tougher VAM. Not one of the ones PCGS or NGC will attribute, but it's a "list" VAM. @Cascade helped me i.d. this one at the Anaheim ANA.
Well, let's see what we got. Normal Date, Round O maybe a little high and a little left, tilted right. No clashing noted. Patch of weirdness under the tailfeathers. Die looks a bit crumbly at the top of the obverse. Nice extensive die cracks; they'll finalize the attribution when it comes. In fact, the ones thru the top front of the hair, and at the back of the cap, should be the starting attribute when searching VAMworld. Knowing it's a List VAM should make this a momentary exercise. So we wander over to VAMworld and start looking around. Yep, there it is. I'll leave it at that to allow others to walk thru the process.
Thats basically the exact processed I used that took me all of a minute or two sans knowing it was a list vam when I first attributed it under a dimly lit hotel lamp lol
Well, the key to VAMming is knowing what's "common" and what's not for die anomalies. In this case, extensive die cracking is common, but cracking into and about the head is not; the latter is likely to be called out. Die crumbling is likely to be noted for LDS versions of VAMs even if it's not an "official" pickup for the variety. And anomalies around the tailfeathers usually get at least a mention if not being the center-stage identifier on their own. And with 1888-O, the moment you've ruled out the Scarface and Hot Lips, you immediately head to the tailfeather area to look for an "E." And in this case, you hit paydirt when you do that. So this one's not that difficult for an experienced VAMmer, if a little more subtle than the "biggies" for the date.
So far no one has gotten any part of this right. No one has stated that VAM (just come on out and say it). And no one has guessed the grade correctly.
I cherry picked one of these late last year and passed it on to a friend that is building an 88-O set. It landed in a PCGS MS64 slab has and nothing over this one. Love the tail feathers!
I wanted to let other less-experienced VAMmers have a shot at attribution. It's a 36A, characterized by the bulge below the tailfeathers, and the relatively uncommon combination of die cracks would easily confirm the VAM even if the tailfeather bulge weren't noticeable. I suppose it's in a 64 slab if my thought of 63 is incorrect.
