Thoroughly was cucumbers, scrubbing lightly with a soft vegetable brush and removing all dirt and sand. Discard stem and blossom ends. Cut cucumbers into spears or slice lengthwise or cut into coins.

Prepare pickling liquid - combine sugar, salt, vinegar and water in a large stainless steel or enamel saucepan; bring to a boil.

In a hot jar, place 1 clove garlic, 1 tsp peppercorns, 2 bay leaves and 3 heads fresh dill. (If using quart jars instead of pint jars double the above amounts in each jar.)

Pack cucumbers into hot jar to within 1/2 inch of top rim. Add hot pickling liquid to cover cucumbers to within 1/4 inch of top rim (headspace). Using a nonmetallic utensil, remove air bubbles. Whipe jar rim removing any stickiness.

Center snap lid on jar; apply screw band securely and firmly until resistance is met - fingertip tight. Do not overtighten. Place jar in canner; repeat for remaining jars.

Cover canner; bring water to a boil. At altitudes up to 1000 ft, process - boil filled jars - 10 minutes. Remove jars without tilting. Cool upright, undisturbed for 24 hours. Do not retighten screw bands. After cooling check jar seals. Sealed lids curve downward. Remove screw bands; wipe and dry bands and jars. Store screw bands separately or replace loosely on jars as desired. Label and store jars in a cool dark place.

Yield 6 pint jars or 3 quart jars.