Why Your Best Cherrypick of 2025 Is a Strategic Masterclass in Numismatic Edge

I cracked this open after months of chasing “sleepers” at shows and online auctions—and what I found changed how I see every coin. This isn’t just about finding rare dates. It’s about spotting what others *ignore* on purpose.

The Strategic Gap in Third-Party Grading and Its Hidden Value

Here’s the truth no one wants to admit: grading services like PCGS, NGC, ANACS, and ICG don’t care about most die varieties. They *can’t*. Their job is speed, not sleuthing. They grade the coin in front of them—not its history, its die state, or its hidden doubling. That’s not a flaw. It’s the rule.

And that’s your opening.

Take the **1951-S/S Jefferson Nickel**. Only one graded by PCGS. Found it from a fuzzy Trueview image, barely visible. Tail? A smudge. Doubling? Maybe. But I knew: if the coin had *any* hint of the S/S shift, TPGs wouldn’t see it unless asked. So I submitted it as the standard variety. Got MS-67. Top pop. No attribution. Months later, with a side-by-side photo and a firm note, PCGS confirmed it. Same coin. New price tag.

This isn’t luck. It’s a pattern. Grading services skip varietal attribution unless:

• You ask—*and* prove it.
• The variety is famous (1955 DDO, anyone?).
• A third-party service like VAM or FS has already flagged it.

Why Grading Services Miss Varieties

TPGs aren’t coin detectives. They’re factories. Thousands of coins a day. One grader, one glance. They look for wear, dents, luster—not microscopic die clashes or repunched mintmarks. As one insider told me: “If you don’t tell us what to look for, we won’t find it.”

So the **1951-S/S**, the **1873 Shield Nickel DDO**, the **1926 TDO FS-101**—all sat in generic holders for years. Not because they were common. Because no one *bothered* to ask.

The result? A silent market inefficiency. TPGs assign value based on grade. But true value? That’s in the details they ignore. And that’s where you step in.

The Psychology of Dealer Behavior: Why You’re Not Competing

Most dealers aren’t lazy. They’re busy. And their customers? They want the 1955 DDO. The 3-legged Buffalo. The 1942/1 Mercury. They don’t ask for the 1956 Type 1 half with two-sided frost. Or the 1863 proof with a reeded edge pulled from a mint set.

So dealers don’t look.

They use $20 loupes. No databases. No time. They assume: “If it’s rare, it’s already graded.” And they’re right—*for the obvious stuff*.

But the rest? The near-misses, the overdates, the doubled dies hiding in plain sight? Those slip through. Because checking takes minutes per coin. And minutes cost money.

That’s your edge. You’re not faster. You’re *focused*. You’re the one with the 20x loupe, the Cherrypickers’ Guide, and the patience to compare one shield line to a photo from VAMWorld.

Case Study: The $48 MS-64 Buffalo with Unattributed DDO

Found it at a small show. Dealer had it in a junk box. Paid $48. Looked nice: pastel toning, clean fields. But under the loupe? Doubling on the date. Clear. Sharp.

Why didn’t the dealer see it? Old ANACS slab. “No variety” printed in bold. No one had ever asked for a look.

I cracked the slab. Resubmitted. PCGS confirmed the DDO. Same grade. Same coin. New value: $250–$400. That’s not a flip. It’s **information arbitrage**—buying a coin at standard price, then revealing its hidden truth.

And here’s the kicker: the dealer didn’t lose. He cleared space. I got a bargain. The coin got its due.

The Attribution Pipeline: From Raw to Resubmission

This is where the real work happens. Not in finding the coin. In *proving* it.

1. Target old slabs. ANACS, ICG, PCI. “Normal date.” “No variety.” These are red flags. *They mean no one looked.*
2. Use a high-power loupe. 10x–20x. Look at the date. Shield lines. Mintmark. Overdates jump out. Doubling shows as ghosting or misalignment.
3. Compare to references. Use The Cherrypickers’ Guide, VAMWorld, CoinFacts. Match die states, repunching, reed counts.
4. Submit with proof. Don’t just say “check for variety.” Say:
   

   “Request attribution for FS-008.7. See attached: shield lines show clear doubling south of crossbar, matching VAM-2.”

One guy did this with an ANACS MS-65 Jefferson Nickel. Got it slabbed as PCGS MS-67FS. The FS (Full Steps) alone doubled the value.

Code Snippet: Building a Die Variety Screening Tool

For the tech-inclined, automation helps. I built a script to flag doubling in auction images. It’s not magic. But it cuts hours of manual checks to minutes.

import cv2
import numpy as np

# Load coin image (loupe macro)
img = cv2.imread('coin.jpg', 0)

# Edge detection to highlight doubling
edges = cv2.Canny(img, 50, 150)

# Use HoughLines for line detection (e.g., shield lines)
lines = cv2.HoughLinesP(edges, 1, np.pi/180, threshold=100, minLineLength=10, maxLineGap=3)

# If multiple parallel lines detected in a single "line" area, flag for DDO
for line in lines:
    x1, y1, x2, y2 = line[0]
    # Calculate angle and position
    # If two lines are close (≤5px apart) but not overlapping, alert
    print(f"Potential doubling detected at ({x1},{y1}) to ({x2},{y2})")

Pair this with tools like CoinAI (still emerging), and you’re screening thousands of images a day. Not finding everything. But finding *enough* to stay ahead.

Broader Market Implications

This isn’t just about coins. It’s about how value is created.

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1. TPGs aren’t the final word. Collectors now trust attribution communities—VAM hunters, FS trackers—more than slabs.
2. Value lives in the details. A coin with a verified FS or VAM sells for more—even if the grade matches a generic.
3. The arbitrage loop is real. Buy raw → crack → attribute → resubmit → premium. The 1867 Shield Nickel FS-301 RPD went from $400 to $3,500. Not because it changed. Because *someone knew*.

Grading services don’t go looking. They go by the label. And that’s your power. The submitter’s knowledge *is* the bottleneck. And the profit.

Actionable Takeaways

Want to start? Here’s how:

• Hunt old slabs. ANACS, ICG, PCI. Higher chance of hidden varieties.
• Buy a good loupe. $200 for 10x–20x beats spending $1,000 on a slab that missed the point.
• Study references. Download PCGS VarietyPlus, VAMWorld. Learn the die states.
• Resubmit smart. Only pay the $20–$30 fee if the potential gain justifies it.
• Talk to experts. Join ShieldNickels.net, VAMWorld. Share finds. Get feedback.

Conclusion

The best cherrypick of 2025 isn’t a coin. It’s a mindset. It’s knowing that most people stop at the grade. That dealers skip the details. That TPGs won’t find what you don’t tell them to look for.

Whether it’s a $48 Buffalo with a DDO or a $1,500 Shield Nickel with a rare RPD, the value isn’t in the metal. It’s in the **knowledge gap**—the space between what’s seen and what’s *known*.

And in that gap? That’s where the real finds live.

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