Armstrong - Washington-Franklins 1908-1921, 2nd Ed.

Rather than hi-jacking any of the threads on W/F identification, I am creating a new thread to ask for opinions on Armstrong's book(s).

I recent bought "the Expert's book" (haven't had a chance to look at it yet) and now have a chance to pick up two of Armstrong's books for a good price (WF 1908-1921, 2nd edition and US coil issues of 1906-38).

Does Armstrong's book compliment the Expert's book or are they a repeat of each other?

Thanks!

Brian

There is some overlap. The Expert's Book was essentially an expansion of Paul Schmid's previous book "How to Detect Damaged, Altered, and Repaired Stamps". Each of the Armstrong books have much more detail on the individual issues and are a quite worthwhile addition to Schmid's Expert's Book.

hey Brian,
I lost my copy a year ago and will be looking for another one someday and I own the Schmid book. The Armstrong book is one of the best out there and has some cool stories that you won't find in the Schmid book-- and the Armstrong book is laid out in a sequential way that helps the reader to understand how all of the variations happened. Love the story about the $0.06 coil that has never been found but Armstrong suggests that it does or did exist. Hope this helps, Ray

Would one buy the W/F book if they wanted the best detailed help for the identification of the Washington/Franklins? Or is it just to read?

If the answer is "both", is it more detailed than the Scott Specialized Catalog?


-IBFS

Both books are written for the purpose of giving a detailed analysis of the W/F issues and are far more detailed than Scott. The Armstrong book is much cheaper than Smidt's Expert book but is still an excellent resource - moreso than Scott. I got my Armstrong W/F book for $10 and have since purchased Armstrong's 5th Bureau book for only $5 off ebay. I highly recommend all of the aforementioned books!