Would like sound advice on a quarter set with and without error 1 1

[Sandon]

On 6/22/2024 at 5:37 PM, Blackmon0803 said:

What about the Minnesota DDR with the extra tree? I have that one in really great condition. Does NGC recognize that?

  NGC attributes only varieties that are listed on VarietyPlus, so, no, NGC will not attribute any "extra tree" doubled die reverse quarter. 

   The sixth edition, Volume II of The Cherrypickers Guide to Rare Die Varieties, at p. 246, lists two varieties of 2005-P "Extra Leaf" Minnesota quarters, FS-803 and FS-805, each of which involves an "extra tree right of fourth tree". The FS-803 is said to have only been issued in some of the "satin finish" mint sets of that year, so it wouldn't be found among circulating coins. (These two varieties, and apparently only a few others, are recognized by PCGS, and you would have to ascertain through PCGS Coinfacts whether you have one of them.)  The comments for both varieties note that "on the Minnesota quarters [from all mints], more than 100 known doubled dies affect the centermost tree (and other centralized areas of the design)." The comments further indicate that the vast majority of these varieties are minor, that there is much confusion among collectors regarding the many varieties, and that the market is unsettled as to pricing. The Cherrypickers' Guide lists each of the listed two varieties at $50 in MS 65 and $100 in MS 66, with no pricing for likely circulated pieces such as yours, which would obviously be worth less than mint state (uncirculated) pieces. 

    The most popular and valuable die varieties tend to be listed in the "Red Book" and popular price guides such as Coin World, Greysheet/CPG, and the NGC and PCGS online Price Guides. Less popular but still somewhat widely collected ones are listed in the Cherrypickers' Guide, VarietyPlus or Coinfacts. More minor and obscure varieties with a limited following may be listed on such sites as doubleddie.com (Wexler's die varieties), varietyvista.com, and conecaonline.org (errors and die varieties).  Even the sites that list minor varieties tend not to list coins whose "varieties" result from die chips or cracks, such as most of those to which you originally referred. (I haven't read the "Strike it Rich" book to which you referred but understand that it is not respected among knowledgeable collectors.)

   The 2023 edition Cherrypickers Guide (pp.245-249) lists a total of ten varieties for state and District of Columbia quarters, consisting of the two 2004-D Wisconsin extra leaf varieties, the previously mentioned two (out of over 100) 2005-P Minnesota "extra tree" varieties, a 2005-S silver proof Kansas with "a large dent on the bison's hindquarter", two 2007-P Wyoming doubled die reverse varieties with doubling on the "saddle horn", and two 2009-P and one 2009-D doubled die reverse District of Columbia doubled die reverse quarters, only one of which (the 2009-D recognized by NGC) is given a substantial value. On p. 250 there are photos of six representative America the Beautiful (a.k.a. National Parks) quarter varieties. The authors state that "[t]here are many America the Beautiful quarters that are more interesting than they are valuable". They conclude that "[c]ollector demand is modest for these varieties, but they do attract curious cherrypickers and inject some more fun into the modern quarter dollar series. Values may increase and solidify if interest (and therefore demand) goes up." There are no listings for American Woman quarters.

   In summary, the coins that you have found in circulation may be fun to collect, but they are unlikely to be of any real value.

   P.S. I viewed the Wyoming quarters that you just added to your initial post and concur that the depressions in the fields are likely the result of being struck through "grease" or other foreign matter in the die. This is considered a quality control issue or minor mint error, not a die variety, and is of little or no value.