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Collector's review of the Professional Edition Red Book
Dentuck
Posts: 3,820 ✭✭✭
From the December 2009 Whitman Review:
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“The Professional Edition Red Book: It Totally Surpassed My Expectations”
Michael Luck
Member, American Numismatic Association
The Red Book Professional Edition came last Wednesday and I was shocked, to say the least. The format was put together quite well. The size, along with the spiral binding, works really well with all the information and being able to open the book and have it stay still while next to your computer at home or on the bourse.
What really amazed me (and yes, it was much better than I expected; I usually have high expectations and I was not disappointed!) is the format and how all the material and prices are presented. Lots of information, but in a way where it is easy to read and understand.
For $29.95 it’s a true bargain. If you only use this book once or twice to make a better decision on, say, a slabbed Proof type coin from the 1800s, then the book was well worth it!
I think many will be surprised at how much information this book contains vs. the regular Red Book, and at a price not much more than the regular edition.
The “How to Use This Book” section is well presented and not only simple to read but more importantly to understand!
The “Investing in Rare Coins” and “Common Sense” sections set the tone for this work and make a more clear understanding of the coin market. Yes, for some advanced collectors and dealers using this book it is elementary, but not for most.
The overview section (in black) for each series sums up well what books you need to help you delve further if you want to specialize. I get many people asking me every day, “Well, what are the specialized books for each series?” The Professional Edition Red Book answers that amazingly well, and in detail!
“Half Cents as a Specialty”: I will use this section. It explains some important points like why some 1795 half cents are struck over Talbot Allum & Lee cents, and makes good points of what to look for. Same with the potentially confusing Proof-only issues from the 1840s.
A good type overview for those many type collectors: the sections on grading and strike for each issue are well worth the price of this book alone. I was surprised and pleased with this.
I like having more prices and also, most importantly, the higher graded slabbed coins. Usually most higher grades of coins are slabbed by NGC/PCGS. Who would buy these raw? And I like the true auction prices realized, which give good valuation information.
What I really love, for example with the gold coins: the Professional Edition lists the total number certified. This makes up most if not all of the current examples for sale or held in the market. The average certified grade, and the percentage in Mint State: this information gives me a quick idea of rarity and availability.
Also, I like all the major Red Book (important) varieties for each coin series, and more varieties on top of that --- this is greatly evident in the half cent and large cent sections, and in Bust halves! With close-up, clear photos showing how to tell the varieties, all on one or two pages. Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.
The Lincoln cents have this for all the varieties of the PCGS and NGC Registry Sets. The Professional Edition Red Book is worth its price just for this section alone. And for all the early coins, to boot --- this floored me.
At $29.95 this book is a gift to anyone who buys it. It is amazing, all this specialized information, all in one volume, at this price. Amazing!
The early commemorative coins section: nowhere can you buy a book to read about the designs and the original issue cost, the mintages and important melting information, keys to collecting, the first points of wear. This information is not readily available elsewhere. Again, to an early commem collector, this is worth the price of the book.
This Professional Edition Red Book combines about five books in one.
I was pleasantly surprised. I thought it would be a good book, but it totally surpassed my expectations.
The appendices just are icing on the cake.
Whitman did an amazing job --- almost 400 important pages in large format, and incredibly easy to use.
Special thanks to longtime coin collector and ANA member Michael Luck for sending us this enthusiastic review of the Professional Edition of A Guide Book of United States Coins. We think most intermediate to advanced collectors will find the book as useful as Michael did. Let us know your opinions.
===
“The Professional Edition Red Book: It Totally Surpassed My Expectations”
Michael Luck
Member, American Numismatic Association
The Red Book Professional Edition came last Wednesday and I was shocked, to say the least. The format was put together quite well. The size, along with the spiral binding, works really well with all the information and being able to open the book and have it stay still while next to your computer at home or on the bourse.
What really amazed me (and yes, it was much better than I expected; I usually have high expectations and I was not disappointed!) is the format and how all the material and prices are presented. Lots of information, but in a way where it is easy to read and understand.
For $29.95 it’s a true bargain. If you only use this book once or twice to make a better decision on, say, a slabbed Proof type coin from the 1800s, then the book was well worth it!
I think many will be surprised at how much information this book contains vs. the regular Red Book, and at a price not much more than the regular edition.
The “How to Use This Book” section is well presented and not only simple to read but more importantly to understand!
The “Investing in Rare Coins” and “Common Sense” sections set the tone for this work and make a more clear understanding of the coin market. Yes, for some advanced collectors and dealers using this book it is elementary, but not for most.
The overview section (in black) for each series sums up well what books you need to help you delve further if you want to specialize. I get many people asking me every day, “Well, what are the specialized books for each series?” The Professional Edition Red Book answers that amazingly well, and in detail!
“Half Cents as a Specialty”: I will use this section. It explains some important points like why some 1795 half cents are struck over Talbot Allum & Lee cents, and makes good points of what to look for. Same with the potentially confusing Proof-only issues from the 1840s.
A good type overview for those many type collectors: the sections on grading and strike for each issue are well worth the price of this book alone. I was surprised and pleased with this.
I like having more prices and also, most importantly, the higher graded slabbed coins. Usually most higher grades of coins are slabbed by NGC/PCGS. Who would buy these raw? And I like the true auction prices realized, which give good valuation information.
What I really love, for example with the gold coins: the Professional Edition lists the total number certified. This makes up most if not all of the current examples for sale or held in the market. The average certified grade, and the percentage in Mint State: this information gives me a quick idea of rarity and availability.
Also, I like all the major Red Book (important) varieties for each coin series, and more varieties on top of that --- this is greatly evident in the half cent and large cent sections, and in Bust halves! With close-up, clear photos showing how to tell the varieties, all on one or two pages. Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.
The Lincoln cents have this for all the varieties of the PCGS and NGC Registry Sets. The Professional Edition Red Book is worth its price just for this section alone. And for all the early coins, to boot --- this floored me.
At $29.95 this book is a gift to anyone who buys it. It is amazing, all this specialized information, all in one volume, at this price. Amazing!
The early commemorative coins section: nowhere can you buy a book to read about the designs and the original issue cost, the mintages and important melting information, keys to collecting, the first points of wear. This information is not readily available elsewhere. Again, to an early commem collector, this is worth the price of the book.
This Professional Edition Red Book combines about five books in one.
I was pleasantly surprised. I thought it would be a good book, but it totally surpassed my expectations.
The appendices just are icing on the cake.
Whitman did an amazing job --- almost 400 important pages in large format, and incredibly easy to use.
Special thanks to longtime coin collector and ANA member Michael Luck for sending us this enthusiastic review of the Professional Edition of A Guide Book of United States Coins. We think most intermediate to advanced collectors will find the book as useful as Michael did. Let us know your opinions.
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Got it! Do you want a private reply, or can I post to the board? I think others will be interested.
New collectors, please educate yourself before spending money on coins; there are people who believe that using numismatic knowledge to rip the naïve is what this hobby is all about.
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