Hello, I'm new with questions

[garretterika]

I've been searching kennedy half dollars for errors, silver and BU key dates for several years now and I am trying to educate myself on errors and varieties. I come across coins I can't explain. Any help would be appreciated.

Here is a picture of a 1991 P half with what looks like triple images of the profile. I have quite a few of these. I presume this is mechanical doubling.

Also, I posted a picture of a 1991 D half with lines on the obverse raised rim. They correspond with the reeding lines on the edge. Is this a piece of reeding that fell onto the rim and the impression was struck?

The third coin is a 1972 D half with a double eye, thickened lines at cheek, chin, jowel, lips and nose. I had trouble getting a good picture. Is this a true doubled die?

I have been trying to decipher the coneca master listings for Kennedy half dollars because I would like to pull some out of the coins I search. I haven't been able to find a copy of The Kennedy Half Dollar book by James Wiles to buy. I understand an updated version will be published soon. Does anyone have any suggestions of how I might educate myself further on varieties and errors in this series and which ones have value?

One other oddity that I'm having trouble identifying are off weight Kennedy halves. I have approximately 30 coins that are underweight ranging from 10.3 to 10.9 grams. (normal weight is 11.34 grams) I also have one that weighs in at 12.1 grams. They are normally struck and not excessively worn. They are the correct circumference and thickness as far as I can tell. Thank you for your responses! I'm new to adjusting photos for discussion boards so I hope they are showing up correctly!

[diamond]

I've been searching kennedy half dollars for errors, silver and BU key dates for several years now and I am trying to educate myself on errors and varieties. I come across coins I can't explain. Any help would be appreciated.

Here is a picture of a 1991 P half with what looks like triple images of the profile. I have quite a few of these. I presume this is mechanical doubling.

You are correct.

Also, I posted a picture of a 1991 D half with lines on the obverse raised rim. They correspond with the reeding lines on the edge. Is this a piece of reeding that fell onto the rim and the impression was struck?

This is post-strike damage of some kind.

The third coin is a 1972 D half with a double eye, thickened lines at cheek, chin, jowel, lips and nose. I had trouble getting a good picture. Is this a true doubled die?

Your image is too small to make a determination.

I have been trying to decipher the coneca master listings for Kennedy half dollars because I would like to pull some out of the coins I search. I haven't been able to find a copy of The Kennedy Half Dollar book by James Wiles to buy. I understand an updated version will be published soon. Does anyone have any suggestions of how I might educate myself further on varieties and errors in this series and which ones have value?

One other oddity that I'm having trouble identifying are off weight Kennedy halves. I have approximately 30 coins that are underweight ranging from 10.3 to 10.9 grams. (normal weight is 11.34 grams) I also have one that weighs in at 12.1 grams. They are normally struck and not excessively worn. They are the correct circumference and thickness as far as I can tell. Thank you for your responses! I'm new to adjusting photos for discussion boards so I hope they are showing up correctly!

I do come across these underweight halves from time to time. The most prosaic explanation is that they were struck on planchets punched out of stock that was rolled too thin.

[garretterika]

Thank you mr Diamond! Are these under and overweight planchets certifiable as mint errors? If so, would their value merit certification fees? I find these by the sound they make when they hit another half dollar. They all have a tinny sound similar to 40% silver halves. Is that finding consistent with planchets that are too thin or thick?

[diamond]

Oh yes, they would undoubtedly be slabbed as mint errors. You'll usually get a label back like "rolled thin", "thin planchet", or "underweight". Some less competent authenticators have a habit of labeling them "quarter stock", even though they're much too heavy for that. Slabbed, uncirculated specimens generally bring between $20 and $40 on eBay, which makes slabbing hardly worthwhile. The "ring" of a coin will change with thickness. Thinner coins do generally sound tinnier. Abnormally thick coins will generally sound duller.

[garretterika]

Thank you Mr diamond for your expertise. Any suggestions on which varieties I should focus on learning that are most marketable in the Kennedy series?

[diamond]

If you're talking strictly die varieties, here's a good place to start for your education:

http://kennedyhalfdollar.com/index.html

[Dave Bowman]

Did someone say Kennedys?

While there is no hard and fast answer for your questions regarding value and the varieties you should look for, I have found searching 1964 through 1971S proof sets including the SMS issues to be a most fruitful endeavor. As indicated by the massive list of Kennedy varieties in the CONECA files, there are numerous Doubled dies to be picked. These sets offer very nice coins usually and often they will yield a very nice medium to high priced, high grade variety certainly worth slabbing and keeping or easily resold on the (ebay) market. The circulated coins do not seem to command enough of a premium for me at this time to search them. My opinion, of coarse. I am an enthusiast/collector/dealer and have been for a number of years now. My store on ebay continues to grow but I am afraid it's growth is fueled by my enthusiasm rather then demand for the varieties. Simply put, I do not sell enough Kennedys to pay myself for my time. I get enjoyment from the search and the occasional score. But that is me... If you are looking for a guide to use that is readily available, try THE CHERRY PICKER'S GUIDE. It lists a number of Kennedy varieties and thier values and will give you a good idea of where to look for them. I have found the majority of them in just the past three or so years. This book can be found at your local coin shops. There are many more to be found not listed in the CPG and they indeed have value beyond what you can cherry them for. To my knowledge, there will not be any more paper format Kennedy half dollar books because we believe the medium may be outmoded. There are projects in the works to provide e-books that will replace the paper. Timeline on that is anybodys guess. You may, however, occasionally see a used copy available on (once again) ebay. My education began by reading the CPG and THE KENNEDY HALF DOLLAR BOOK by JAMES WILES and searching coins to send in to CONECA for attribution. I sent in a number of machine doubled coins before I was able to hone my skills to zero in on true die/hub doubling. I still occassionally want a machine doubled coin I have found to be a true Doubled die but James Wiles always sets me straight. This coin forum may be a benefit if one were to post a good set of pictures of a given coin posing the question: does anybody know which variety this is? My education continued with searching hundreds, maybe thousands of half dollars, joining CONECA, and reading all I could find on the web about the subject. Now I include my store on ebay where my education about the value of these varieties is continually ongoing.
By the way, my first cherried Kennedy was the quintupled die for 1967 SMS DDO-006 and I have been hooked ever since. Other finds include a batch of 6 1973 D Kennedy DDO-001's all MS65's from an original roll of Kennedy halfs bought on ebay for @ $20.00! This really only scratches the surface of the many I have found over the last few years. So, they are out there. The sweet cherries are ripe for the picking. Go and GET 'EM! and GOOD LUCK!

[garretterika]

Thank you. I have been to that site one or twice. I'll continue to look it over.

[garretterika]

Hello, Thanks for the advice and telling me about your experience. Because of a limited budget, I have access mostly to circulated kennedy halves to search. I did buy a cherrypicker's guid a few years back but couldn't find any of the varieties and I must have searched thousands of kennedys. Maybe I should see an opthomologist! I have been looking for the book by James Wiles but haven't found one yet. I'll keep looking on ebay as you suggest. I'm still trying to sort out the abbreviations for the CONECA variety list for DD's. I think it will take a while before I figure it all out. Thanks for all your help.