Uncirculated - Chip is in perfect condition and has never been used. Excellent - Chip has sharp and square edges. Very little table play. Fine - Chip will stand on edge. Has seen some table play but still very nice. Very Good - Chip has rounded edges. Great inlay on both sides. No bad nicks or damage. Cancelled - Chip has a drill hole in it.
Gambling has become one of the most favorite pastimes of people from all over the world. Today people not only visit casinos to play games like poker or blackjack, but also play these games online and even at home with their friends. There are several types of chips which are available in the market today for players. However, those who are interested in purchasing casino grade chips will have to be a little careful about the chips values.
Home play chips are available in different price ranges depending on the material chips are made and the designs of the chips. These chips can be used not just for poker but for other games like blackjack too. The points given below will help to determine what chips to choose.
What chips to purchase
Chips are available in plenty of different designs and are made with different types of materials like plastic, clay, ceramic and clay composite. What chips to purchase will depend on the personal preference of the buyer. The value of the chips would depend on the material with which it is manufactured. For example, plastic chips are not such expensive as those made from pure clay are the costliest chips.
The feel of the chips
Choosing chips should also depend on the feel of the chips itself. Chips made from different materials have a different feel. For example, plastic chips will feel and look a little unprofessional and crude especialy when they are not manufactured with proper designs while clay composite chips look and feel professional even while holding them. The sound of the chips itself when placed on the table is considered to be an important factor which determines the value of the chips. Casino chips, which are usually made of composite chips, have a unique sound that is why they are costlier than the plastic chips.
The design
One of the most important factors which determine the value of the chips is the design itself. Chips are available in plenty of different designs from the plain colored chips which are usually seen in home poker chips set to the intricately designs which are usually seen in casinos. The more intricate the design of the chips is, the more costly it will be.
Also, several manufacturers often introduce limited edition poker chips for collectors. These chips will be very expensive and also worth their cost since they would be made from the best material with aesthetically pleasing design. The value of the chips is usually based on:
- the material used for the chips,
- the weight of the chips,
- the design of the chips
- the rarity value of the chips itself.
While the standard mass produced chips are perfectly fine for home play, collectors prefer the rare and valuable chips with intricate designs. The cost of the chips will also depend on the manufacturer producing them. There are several manufacturers who are known as the pioneers in the business and produce classic chips for casinos as well as home play. Generally the chips sold by them would be quite expensive but they are equally valuable since they are known for their superior quality.
Casino chip collecting is the practice of intentionally taking casino chips (also called 'checks') from Casino premises or trading or collecting online, or in person, for the purpose of collection. Casino chip collecting is a variety of exonumia, or coin collecting. Before it became a more serious hobby, casino chip collecting was simply a case of people keeping them as souvenirs from a casino they may visit. The biggest boost to the hobby came with the creation of the online auction site eBay. eBay has now become the most popular way to collect and trade casino chips with listings in the casino category regularly including more than 20,000 items for sale.
Casino chip collecting became increasingly popular during the 1980s, as evidenced by the sale of chips through several casino and collecting newsletters. Bill Borland's Worldwide Casino Exchange (early 1980s) had a casino story each issue and dozens of old chips for sale. Likewise, Al W Moe'sCasino and Gaming Chips magazine ran for several years in the mid-1980s and attracted hundreds of subscribers. Each issue featured stories and pictures from old Nevada casinos and included photos of old, collectible chips.
Archie Black established the Casino Chip & Gaming Tokens Collectors Club (CC>CC) in 1988[1] in response to the continuing evolution and popularity of chip collecting. Membership in the club includes an annual subscription to the club's magazine, Casino Collectible News, now in its 26th year. The magazine has won six First Place Awards from the American Numismatic Association for Outstanding Specialty Numismatic Publication.The club held its first annual convention at the Aladdin Hotel and Casino in 1992. The 22nd annual convention wrapped up in June and the 23rd annual convention to be held at South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa 25-27 June 2015.
As the number of collectors grew, the creation of an official grading system was viewed as being a useful tool in part of the process to help determine the collectible value of the chips, as opposed to the face value they can also represent. In 2003, members of the CC>CC's Standards and Archives Committee agreed on a grading system that would be used worldwide. There are many published price guides, but two in particular are more widely used by casino chip collectors. The Official U.S. Casino Chip Price Guide, now in its 4th edition, covers chips from casinos in Nevada, Atlantic City, New Jersey, Colorado, Deadwood, South Dakota and the several Midwest States that permit Riverboat casinos. The Chip Rack, now in its 15th edition, attempts to include all chips and checks issued by casinos in the State of Nevada. Some chips are considered high-value and have a listed value as high as $50,000. During their 2014 convention, a $5 chip from the Golden Goose SOLD for $75,000, and a $5 chip from the Lucky Casino SOLD for $52,500.
Below is the system that is currently used to grade them:
| Grade | Description |
|---|---|
| New (N) | Never used in games; square and round edge chips will be as from the manufacturer with absolutely no wear, no dings or nicks; no scratches on surface of chip or inlay. |
| Slightly Used (SU) | Only slight signs of use, edge still crisp but ever so slightly dulled with very little wear; cross hatching may show slight wear near edge; few or no edge nicks; still retains luster in mold design; bold hot stamp; inlays excellent. |
| Average (A) | Typical chip found in play after months/years of use; slightly rounded edges; will have minor defects such as small nicks on edges; inlays are beginning to show even wear and about half of the cross hatching has worn from the body surface; hot-stamps have dulled, beginning to show even wear and may be missing a small amount of foil. |
| Well Used (WU) | Moderate and uniform wear of edge, surface and hot stamp; noticeable edge nicks and/or surface scratches; no luster in mold design; cross hatching is nearly worn off; hot stamp is still readable but much of the foil is missing. |
| Poor (P) | Edges that were formerly sharp and square, are now well worn bicycle tires; original hot stamp foil is mostly missing with only the recesses visible (may have to hold towards a light); moderate to large chips (nicks); surface cross hatching barely visible (if at all); severe scratches to inlay or chip surface; severe color fading; partial wear up to half of Chipco design from the edge to the center of the chip. Damage, such as cracks, breaks, missing inlay or other chip structure do not apply to this category. |
| Cancelled or Modified (Can) (Mod) | (Either by the manufacturer or the casino): A. Drilled, B. Notches, C. Overstamped, D. Clipped, E. Bent, F. Painted. |
| Damaged (Dam) | A. Severe nicks or chunks, B. Loose or missing inlay, C. Cracked, D. Broken, E. Warped, F. Permanent Stain, G. Severe Fading, H. Cigarette Burn(s). fire damage, I. Over-cleaning. |
Casino Chips For Sale
As well as the system for grading chips, there is also a system for identifying chips shown below:
| Issue | The chronological order in which the chip was issued. |
| Denomination | Refers to the dollar amount of the chip. |
| Basic Color | The base color for most of the chip. |
| Mold | Identifies the look/manufacturer/distributor of the chip. |
| Inserts | The different color patterns used on its edge. |
| Inlay | Refers to the size and shape of the inlay, as well as composition and color. |
| Rarity | The best estimate of the number of surviving chips of its kind known to exist. |
There are many different ways to collect casino chips. Because of the amount of chips available and the increasing price of some, collectors have begun to specialize. A collector might choose to collect every chip from a certain casino or one from every Las Vegas casino. Collecting by denomination is also very popular, such as only $1 or $5 chips. The first rule of proper care and storage is to keep them away from sunlight and fluorescent light. The best way to store a collection is to keep them in a folder. As opposed to a coin collection, cleaning the chips will not decrease their value but is still not recommended unless really necessary. Chips have inlays and hot stamps on them which can get unreadable over the time if they are not maintained properly. The hot stamps and the inlays of the chips are what determine their value so it is very critical to ensure that these are not severely damaged while handling them. Collectors especially should be careful and maintain their rare chips effectively to keep their value intact.[2]
References[edit]
- ^http://www.ccgtcc.com/ccgtcc_history.pdf
- ^'Cleaning Chips'. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
External links[edit]
