A Guide Book of United States Coins 2017: The Official Red Book, Hardcover Edition (The Official Red Book A Guide Book) Hardcover – Illustrated, April 5, 2016

Very good coin book

Want to know which coins to collect? Want general info on the history of a particular type of coin? This book will give you that info in summary form. Want to know how much your coins are worth? Then buy the blue book version or subtract about 2/3rds off the prices listed in the red book to give you an idea of what a coin dealer may offer you for your coins. Keep in mind that grading, while subjective, is important when it comes to the value of a coin. A coin in its natural state of wear is worth more than a "lower grade" coin (one that has been cleaned with solvents or dipped to the point the luster is mostly gone or artificially toned or drilled through or dinged or scratched or tooled/whizzed). Please note, however, that there are times when buying a lower grade coin may be the only practical way to fill a hole in your particular coin set. For example, I wanted a certain coin for my type set but there was no way I could afford it and still pay my bills so I bought a legal copy of it to fill the hole in my collection. ("Legal copies" are stamped "copy" on the coin.) Problem coins and copies of coins have value and fill a need for many of us in the hobby who aren't affluent but first learn about the coins you want to collect so you can tell the difference between a natural coin and one that's not.If your goal is to make quick money selling coins, then don't collect, play the precious metals market and use the red book and blue book as guides for highly marketable coins like the American Silver Eagle and go online to determine the current melt value for silver to determine when to buy and when to sell. Otherwise, collect because you love the look of coins or enjoy putting coin sets together. If you love history, try collecting a type set of coins from a particular era or if you love the beauty and craftsmanship of a certain group of coins, assemble the best set you can afford no matter how long it takes. Try assembling a cent set out of pocket change before buying your first coin. For example, you can assemble a type set for cents (e.g., pre-1982 set which are 95% copper, 5% zinc cents; a post-1982 set which are 2.5% copper plating over 97.5% zinc; or a pre-1962 set when cents contained tin). The older small cents are harder to find in pocket change but it is possible find a few wheaties before you start buying for your collection. Collecting is for your pleasure and enjoyment. In the meantime, read everything you can about coins, including but not limited to, how to grade coins, how to spot fakes, and the history of the coins you want to collect. It's a great hobby that can bring you pleasure for years to come and you don't have to be rich to have a nice set of coins to enjoy.

I started getting the Guide Book of United States Coins (or as many who collect coins call it "The Red Book") back in 2014. I love this book. It has great information on the history of US coins, mintage numbers, good pictures of errors, variations of coins, other notes about certain coins especially rarer ones, and as far as I know, covers every US coin ever minted.Now, you may be asking, what changes year to year that you feel the need to get one every year? To be honest, not that much. They do update the prices of coins based on market conditions including spot prices of metals used to mint coins, and they also add coins new minted coins. But other than that, not a whole lot changes from year to year.I use this book as a stepping off point for pricing buying and selling coins. You may want to do a little other research along with this book when buying coins, but having this book has helped my find some amazing deals, and has steered me away from making bad buying decisions.

I read the red book reviews and saw that someone recommended the large print version of the coin guide so I got it (since I use reading glasses in some situations). I think I would have been happier with the smaller book even if I had to wear my reading glasses. Without having the smaller book I cannot be certain it would have been happier than with this larger version. The size is just bigger than a 8.5 x 11 spiral notebook and feels kind of heavy but I guess that is a good thing as the pages will not tear easily.

After my mother passed away I found some old coins in her belongings. I tried looking up the coins online, but quickly became frustrated so I bought this book. The layout is easy to follow and it provided me with a good guide as to the value (high and low) of the US coins I inherited. I looked up a few of them and then went to a local coin shop to see if the value quoted by the dealer was close to the values in the book. Obviously the condition of the coins varied, but the book did give this novice a good point of reference and helped me to keep my expectations in check.I do think you could probably find info in this book online, but this simplifies the hunt and gives beginners some good information. The spiral binding is also a bonus. Highly recommend for newbies!

Nice, convenient, well organized and illustrated price guide to glean ball-park values (e.g., for insurability, net worth). The book will get you fairly accurate pricing (e.g., +/- 10%). However, veteran numismatist will consult a professional appraiser, dealer, NGC, PCGS, etc. for buy/sell pricing, as these are all more current reflections of market value. The Guide provides a general description on each class of coin, mintage volumes, and values across 6-10 grades, depending on the particular coin. The Guide also does a decent job calling out oddities (e.g., unusual dye effects). I also use my Guide to make annotations on the coins I own (e.g., an easy way to inventory your holdings in the margins or with a highlighter... "Got this one, want that."). Prices rarely swing too much, especially on older coins. I buy this Guide every 2-3 years. I like the hardbound book (vs. spiral) as the pages are not as easily displaced or torn.

This is an amazing book. I have learned so much from this. It has to be the coin collectors bible. I referred to it often for just about anything you need to know about collecting. It has everything in it. Coins that I didn't even know existed and references on error coins from gold, silver, and even clad coins. I recommend it to everyone who is collecting coins. I just wish I would have know that is came in a large print. I didn't know that, but I still use it with a magnify glass, The pages fold back so as not to harm them. Also, there are free things for you to order. I haven't done it yet, but I plan to do it and soon. I suggest that anyone who has eye problems, as I do, look for the larger printed book.