It's the same story over and over again - dealers dumping less desirable titles on newbies, shilled auctions etc - most of us have a story from our early days. Unless like Spamways we were brought up within the industry, most of us were at the mercy of the dealers/auctions until we learned.
You crack me up, Nick
"spamways"
But you are right - and UNFORTUNATELY, there are dealers and auctions that prey on newbies. I think it happens less these days because of the internet etc.