Gotcha, you were just giving a theoretical use for VIX in back testing and not meaning to imply that shorting VIX is a direct substitution for a short Var Swap.
Why distinguish between a bear call and bear put spread? Why must one trade a call vertical? Any atm fly can achieve those results passively. Are you really trying to insinuate that there is some edge here? If so, it didn't happen without more detail.
Preference for bear calls over bear puts comes with assignment issues. Has nothing to do with r:r profile. Yes I believe there is an edge here, but I specifically haven't gone into greater detail.
No, because the VIX options are marked to a forward var swap (futures). Just because it's a fwd swap doesn't make it less a var swap. Var swaps carry duration.
SPX is Euro. Right, understood. Trading verticals and gamma trading = edge. Sweet. So you're trading OTM short call verticals. And unless you're selling the 10-box over 10 it's not edge.
Exactly, but the point was that they are not traded the same. Vix always represents the forward price. For that reason, they will not serve the purposes of say a short vol 30-day variance swap.
No, trading verticals randomly = no edge. I'm suggesting certain conditions in which there might be a significant statistical edge in short vol on SPX. This suggested the use of a var swap to profit from the conditions. Further analysis lead me to believe that there was more alpha to be had in adding a gamma scalp when possible. This made me lean more toward the bear vertical. SPX is euro but if left to expiry I still must deal with assignment issues, when the intent is to simply let all contracts expire. So bear call vertical is the preferred choice for those reasons.