Basics and Beyond: Review of Latest ‘Cherrypickers’ Guide’

Well, it’s finally here: the 6th edition of Volume II of the Cherrypickers’ Guide. But is it what cherrypickers have been waiting for? Or is it something else, something that presages a third volume?

Unfortunately, I think it’s the latter. Don’t misunderstand me: I don’t mean to imply that there’s anything wrong with the new book. I think it does a great job for the material covered, which is half dimes through quarter dollars. But it really doesn’t replace the 5th edition volume II, which covered half dimes through quarter dollars and also half dollars, silver dollars, gold coins, commemoratives, and bullion.

Because the new edition doesn’t replace its predecessor, the 5th edition volume II is selling for big bucks on Amazon (used at $78.97 and up) and eBay ($125). With that said, what will you find in the new edition?

Like the earlier edition, the 6th edition begins with a couple of pages of “Reader Comments.” By Leonard Augsburger, the first comment sums up the mission of cherrypicking and what the new edition brings to it: “The Cherrypickers’ Guide represents one-stop shopping for anyone interested in the most important varieties among U.S. coins. With this single volume, the eagle-eyed collector will be prepared to identify valuable coins that many others have missed.” In other words, this book will enable you to find valuable coins that are unrecognized by their owners and presumably underpriced relative to their true values.

As to what the new edition has that the previous edition didn’t have in its coverage of half dimes through quarters, I found a summary answer in the preface:

“Volume II ... includes updated, revised, and in some cases completely new research for each of the book’s nearly 450 coins. Among its coverage are almost 80 new half dimes, dimes, twenty-cent pieces, and quarters. More than half of these new additions are among the Roosevelt dimes, Liberty Seated quarters, and Washington quarters, but there are significant Mercury dimes and Standing Liberty quarters, and even new Capped Bust quarters, among other additions.”

For readers not familiar with the Cherrypickers’ Guides, there’s a 10-page section on “How to Use This Book.” This section introduces the reader to symbols and abbreviations, as well as to topics such as factors affecting value, Registry Sets, specialized abbreviations for the different coin denominations, the Sheldon Scale, David Bowers’ Universal Rarity Scale, and much more. For readers tempted to bypass this section, I would say you should avoid this temptation. There’s too much here of major consequence to skip over it.

Because the preface had cited the new additions to the Roosevelt Dime chapter, I decided to check this out. First, I found a list of 13 dimes removed from Volume II of the 5th edition. Almost all of these were struck for “lack of collector interest.”

Was there a lack of interest because the variety is so minor, or was it because the variety is so rare? I ask this because the one I checked, 1953-S with repunched mintmark, is described in the 5th edition as being “... one of the more dramatic RPMs [repunched mintmarks] for the series.” As evidence of its rarity, the authors gave no values for the variety in any condition. The values were n/a, not available.

In addition to the list of varieties removed, there’s a list of 13 new dimes included in the book. Coincidence that the numbers are the same? Or did the editors reason that if they took out 13 dimes, they needed to add the same number? I’m leaning toward coincidence.

In the list of added varieties, I spotted three designated as “Bugs Bunny,” all from the San Francisco Mint. These “deformities” occurred in 1949, 1953 and 1955. I know what “Bugs Bunny” refers to in Franklin Half Dollars, and the 5th edition, volume II, has a picture of a 1955 Half Dollar on which Franklin appears to have two buck teeth. The “bunny teeth” were produced by a clashed die on the half-dollar and also on the new dimes covered.

Standing Liberty quarters have what I consider one of the best 20th-century designs, and I just recently completed a date/mintmark set of this series. My collection is listed in two PCGS Registry Set categories: Standing Liberty Quarters Basic Set, Circulation Strikes, and Standing Liberty Quarters with Major Varieties, Circulation Strikes. As it turns out, there’s only one major variety, the 1918-S, 8 over 7 overdate.

As the authors note at the outset of the Standing Liberty quarter chapter, “There are very few die varieties in the Standing Liberty quarter dollar series.” Indeed, they removed only one coin from the previous edition, a 1930-S with a “Likely Repunched Mintmark.” The reason for the coin’s removal is “Doubtful authenticity.”

Three coins have been added: 1917-S, Obverse Doubled Die; 1924-S, Repunched Mintmark; and 1930, Incomplete Shield. The 1924-S is included “for educational purposes only,” as it is a counterfeit. Because its inclusion is new to this edition, this is signified by a vertical rectangle containing a large “N” in the middle of a “sunburst” pattern. It’s fun to look for these salted throughout the book.

Looking at the Washington quarter chapter, I counted 23 coins removed from the previous edition. Unfortunately for me, the first two removed (1934 Medium Motto and 1934 Heavy Motto) were part of my Registry Set of quarters. According to a footnote, “These listings were included in the fifth edition for informational purposes only. In this edition, photographs of the mottoes, for comparison, have been added to the listing for FS-25-1934-401.” In other words, the essential information is included, just in reduced form. As with the Roosevelt dimes, most of the eliminations were for low collector interest.

As with the previous edition, the book closes with several useful appendices. These include one on differentiating doubled die coins from coins with other types of doubling, a look at the minting process, and what may be most important, one on choosing the best magnifier.

With a list price of $34.53, the new edition of Cherrypickers’ Guide was published by Whitman (whitman.com) and is available from the publisher and from other online sellers such as Amazon. If you’re into cherrypicking, this book should be in your numismatic library. 

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