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Originally Posted by mcc235 Thanks for keeping us all posted on these chip releases. What typically happens with a collector chip like this? I assume they have a limited production run, and once they are all sold they remain in the collector community. Is that correct? Or do they use these chips as regular chips for table games?
Is there any benchmark regarding the value of these chips (assuming they are limited in quantity and they sell out)? Does the chip value double every few years, every 10 years, or something else?
I realize that every chip is different, so there is probably no one single answer, but I was hoping there was some general indication which of these releases is the best to start collecting.
Thanks for any info you can provide. |
I must apologize as I saw this post while I was on a trip, but only had limited time to reply and I put it off. I then forgot about it, but your PM has made me return.
This is my opinion....
Limited Edition (LE) chips have been around, in a good supply, since 1994 or so. Generally speaking, a quantity of 2,000 is most common, and it is fairly difficult to find LE's is worn condition. Of course there are exceptions, but generally speaking, LE's leave the casinos in uncirculated condition and live the rest of their lives in collections.
A couple of years ago nearly all $5 LE's were valued at $10 - $15 each, but they have collectively come down to $6.50 - $8 each. I believe this was caused by so many of them being in the marketplace and almost all of those being in uncirculated condition. So many were in the marketplace (i.e., removed from casinos) because there was a fairly major surge in chip collecting with LE's being the sole interest of some new collectors.
The introduction of new collectors does continue, but there is a bit of a more even mix of those liking LE's and those who want house/rack chips and older chips. The people that held a lot of LE's are not get a great deal of interest and after holding a $5 chip for 3 or 4 years and having it fetch $6.50 is not a good return on money.
I even see LE's being offered at face, just to recoup money. All-in-all, it woill take quite a few years for an LE to apprecdiate in any real value and collectors for the most part want them because they are cool!
I would not recommend buying LE's unless you think they look cool, or you have the ability to forecast which few LE's seem to be a hit in the after market, i.e., the occassional Hard Rock, and for right now the Hooters calendar girl releases (which are refused by some collectors because it is the release practices of the casino that is placing a premium on the value of these chips).
Of the three Caesars Palace chips, only the $100 will have a chance at appreciating and it will do so a bit better if it is mated with the other two as a set.
So, now you ask (or did ask) where do worn LE's come from? Some casinos (usually those with less popular demand on their stock of LE's) will put the chips in-play in hopes of getting the gambler to take them because they look cool. I am of the opinion that 99.9% of players see a $5 as being a round, flat, red disk... end of story. Only collectors see the difference. After hours and hours at a poker table looking at chips, I sometimes spot an old LE and ask the player holding it if I can make an exchange for a house chip. No one has ever said no, and 99.9% of the time they are amazed that the chip is any different than all the others in their stacks, in the pot and in the casino!
The Colorado Belle is an example of well worn LE's. For several years they were prolific in the LE realease area, with 3 or 4 every year. The demand for Belle LE's was not that great as they were not in Las Vegas and their designs were not all that catchy. About 3 or 4 years ago the Belle decided that they needed the LE's to leave the casino and they purposely collected and removed from play all of their rack/house $5 chips (a Bud Jones coin-in-center) chip and put all of theior on-hand $5 LE's into play.
I am not sure if that help move LE's out of the casino, but it sure put some wear on what was left. (Yes, this act will cause the uncirculated versions to have a better value in future years, BUT!!!!! the current market for those uncirculated LE's is being met with the current supply. What will likely happen with those worn LE's is that they will end up being destroyed at sometime in the future. Probably when new owners take over (which they have) and decide to re-rack, and do a redemption on old chips and then destroy the on-hand chips. Or, since Gaming regulations require a casino to have a certain percentage of cash on-hand (there is a specific formula) based on chips out on the tables and other pertinent items, a casino will destroy chips to reduce the amount needed. This is when worn chips get destroyed.
In your PM you asked where to get started... The Collector's Corner here is a good start! Visit the Sticky Post made about reference links:
http://www.chiptalk.net/forum/chip-c...ster-list.html
Be sure to also visit
www.thechipboard.com (which does operate with a different set of etiquette rules than does ChipTalk.net) and, when you are ready I highly recommend visiting
www.ccgtcc.com which is the Home Page of the Casino Chip and Gaming Token Collectors Club, Inc., a club of around 2,700 people from around the World (most USA) with an interest in collecting casino memorabilia. And very significantly, we enjoy an annual Convention in Las Vegas, NV!!!
Well, I hope this answers your questions and if not, Im sure it had to answer someone's questions some where!
Welcome to collecting!!!
Jim (Gaming Ore) Follis
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