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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;stldanceartist, post: 1688496, member: 13307&quot;]Hello everyone!</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>So, I decided last night to do a little research into the availability and history of the 1977 D Kennedy Half Dollar.&nbsp; As you may know, this is a new entry to the Cherrypicker&#039;s Guide to Rare Die Varieties - so new, in fact, that the corresponding entry is missing almost all the information normally included with each entry.&nbsp; There is no Rarity scale, Interest scale, Liquidity Factor or Pricing information... </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>As an example, the 1974 D, a rather common DDO for Kennedy Halves (I have found 10 in rolls in the last 6 months), is listed as URS-10 (251-500 pieces, although I would guess the actual number of surviving coins to be MUCH higher than this).&nbsp; It is also listed as an I-3 for moderate interest and L-2 for Liquidity, meaning it &quot;might sell in a moderate amount of time, maybe at a discounted price.&quot;&nbsp; The coin is listed in the CPG at $40 in MS63, $200 in MS65, $450 in MS66, and n/a in MS67.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>However, if you are like, and you find a 1977 D DDO (FS-101), you will find none of this information.&nbsp; What you will find is helpful information to diagnose your find - a clear photo, a description, &quot;Light to strong doubling is evident on IN GOD WE TRUST, LIBERTY, and the date; it is strongest on TRUST&quot;, and comments &quot;The specimen shown here is a late die state.&nbsp; Earlier die states will show more pronounced doubling.&quot;&nbsp; The PUP (pickup point) is TRUST.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>[ATTACH]254809.vB[/ATTACH]</p><p>(Highlight of TRUST on my newest 1977 D DDO FS-101)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Imagine my excitement, then, as a roll-searcher, when I found my first example of this coin.&nbsp; Then the next.&nbsp; Over the past 6 months, I have actually found 5 examples.&nbsp; Three of these coins were sent in to NGC with a batch of other coins; the grades received were AU58, UNC Details (Obverse Scratched), and MS62.&nbsp; I was tremendously excited, especially about the MS62 - to find a scarce variety, and an uncirculated one, to boot, for face value? - until I tried finding an approximate value for these coins. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>[ATTACH]254810.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]254811.vB[/ATTACH]</p><p>(My NGC MS62 example of the 1977 D DDO FS-101)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I started doing some research into the Population Reports of the three major TPG - ANACS, NGC, and PCGS.&nbsp; What I learned was more exciting -&nbsp; and more frustrating, because the TOTAL graded population of this variety, throughout all three major TPG, is only 23 coins.&nbsp; Here is a breakdown of what&#039;s out there as of 4/14/2013:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>ANACS:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>AU50 (2), AU53 (2), AU55 (1), AU58 (1), MS60 (1), and MS61 (1)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>NGC:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>AU58 (1), UNC Details (1), MS62 (1) - so far, all my coins - MS63 (1), MS64 (1), MS65 (2)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>PCGS:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>AU50 (1), AU53 (1), AU58 (1), MS62 (1), MS63 (3), MS64 (1)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>That shows a total of thirteen graded uncirculated examples, including my UNC Details coin, and ten circulated examples.&nbsp; When looking at the NGC Registry sets for Kennedy Half Dollars, 1964-date, including varieties, at least half of the top ten sets are missing this variety (the #1 and #3 sets are obscured.)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Pricing is even more difficult.&nbsp; The variety is not well-known enough to be listed in the Red Book, Coin Prices, Coin World, or Numismedia online catalogues.&nbsp; The Cherrypicker&#039;s Guide lists only N/A for each grade.&nbsp; To find an approximation of value, it is necessary to search recent auction listings.&nbsp; An MS65 example is listed on David Lawrence Rare Coins as &quot;sold,&quot; with an estimate of $635 but no selling price listed. Teletrade sold a PCGS MS62 for $280 in July of 2012, and eBay has the only four remaining examples of completed and active auctions: an NGC MS64 for $560.50 BIN/BO (still active), an ANACS AU55 for $125 BIN/BO (still active), a PCGS AU Details that sold for $89 in January of 2013, and a PCGS AU50 that also sold for $89 in December of 2012. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I have to admit - I had two of my examples (the AU58 and UNC Details) listed on eBay until I discovered just how scarce this variety can be to find.&nbsp; They have since been pulled, and the two newest finds will be sent to NGC as soon as I have enough coins needing certification to warrant the invoice and shipping costs.&nbsp; I would estimate the two new finds to be in the mid to high AU range, although one is borderline MS (it will be an exciting submission.)&nbsp; In all, I have paid $2.50 (plus grading fees) for these five coins - a price anyone would be ecstatic about.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>[ATTACH]254813.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]254812.vB[/ATTACH]</p><p>(My most recent 1977 D DDO FS-101 roll-searching find.)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In conclusion, I hope that this article has shed some light on what I would consider an elusive and exciting variety within an under-appreciated series - one that is still within the reach of new collectors due to the quantity of coins being stored in banks and reserves.&nbsp; Exciting finds are still out there waiting to be bought for face value![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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