How To Start Chip Collecting: A Tutorial

Poker Chips and cards

Casino chip collecting has been around since the 1980s. The collecting of poker chips in Canadian casinos has seen significant growth over the years. It moved mainly from its Casino souvenir role to becoming a fun hobby for many casino players, both offline and online. Several casinos operating with no deposit bonus codes in Canada also allow chip collecting. This is to favour the rise in how many players are catching on to the art of poker chip collection.

About Chip Collecting

Simply put, this is the practice of taking casino chips from casino premises. You could also get chips by trading them. You can trade by buying from the casinos in person or collecting them online from online casinos. Casino chip collecting has grown in popularity globally and in Canada specifically. Given the massive growing interest in the collection of chips, it is no wonder that it has moved from a hobby to a recognised part of casino gambling.

Chips collection has become more in demand, especially since NFTs and the blockchain industry are working. As an aspiring casino chips collector, you should know that there are grading systems for chips. It is used to identify the true value of any chip. Through the efforts of chip collectors, they have made the art of chip-collecting a serious endeavour. Akin to how renowned art collectors are praised, chip collectors are also gaining recognition.

The main reason is that these chips can lead to huge fortunes when sold at poker conventions and tournaments. With this knowledge, collectors of chips now commit to investing in their art of chip collecting. This same idea has driven more people to become chips collectors even without being casino players.

The Art and Benefit of Chip Collecting

Collecting chips is a popular hobby for a vast majority of casino players. There are dedicated chip collectors and curious players interested in collecting chips as souvenirs from the casinos they visit. IIn addition, chip collection could provide some sort of monetary reward over time. Online stores such as eBay can list your chip collection and trade them off for different chips or cash.

Type of Chips

If you are starting as a new casino collectables collector, especially a chip collector, you need to know the types of chips to collect. In that way, you can avoid spending too much money on chips that would produce no immediate income.

  • Chips can be identified by their colours and design, distinguishing each chip from another one.
  • Chips are priced in most casino houses based on their colour, with the cheapest going for $1 and the most expensive running into hundreds and thousands.
  • The $1 chip denominations are the most common chips in most casino houses in Canada; they come in different colours white, blue, etc.
  • The $1 denominated chips are the easiest way to become a chip collector.

Chips to Collect 

Having discovered the types of chips, your next concentration would be on the chips to select from. Your oldest or rarest chips are not always the most expensive for chip collectors. As a chip collector, you need to look out for unique themed chips and stay on that line of collections as those chips would pay off more over time. Some such unique themed chips may be chips of special events, the anniversary of the casino house, a national remembrance day, etc. These sorts of chips luckily come in the $1 and a few $5 denominations.

You should also look out for chips with intricate patterns when you’re collecting, either buying or trading off on casino chip marketplaces. This is essential because chips with intricate designs are more valuable than normal chips. As a collector, before taking any chip, it is important to find out enough information on the chip itself, like the logo and name of the casino where and when the chip was manufactured.

Even if you decide to collect rare chips, make sure they are in good condition before trading for them. If you are collecting casino chips, not for profit, try to keep your stash of random chips, and they may turn out to become something big for you one day.

Where to Get Chips for Your Collection

Getting chips from casinos is the best way to buy them, especially if you start as a collector. You can easily buy your chips from the cashier or on the table; this is the modus operandi in most casinos. However, note that buying chips from the casino cage would not guarantee you those unique chips or even the rare ones.

To get rare chips, you would have to keep tabs on-chip auction shows. Here you will see the rare, unique, and intricately designed chips. To keep tabs on buying and selling chips, especially those outstanding ones, you need to find a marketplace for chips. Search for a network of fellow chip collectors where chips are bought and sold. You can buy chips from trade shows for collection, and of course, you can also sell chips in such trade shows.

Confirm Authenticity of Chips

Ensure that the chips you are buying are genuine. Determine that they are from a real casino. This is very important because if you purchase fake chips, they would have no value. To ensure this authenticity, you must study the details and designs of casino chips and understand the differences between them before venturing into chips collection. With the proper knowledge, you would decipher which chips are real and fake as a collector. Collection of valuable and rare chips can fetch a huge collector sum of money over time.

Tips to Know as a Collector

Determine What Collection You Want to Have

This is an initial rule you must build. As a beginner, you may want to end up with any type of chips. It might be okay at the start, but it will prove unnecessary to you as you grow. Consider a niche for yourself from the start.

Clean Your Stash

Cleaning your chips is part of your duties and must be taken seriously. Unfortunately, it is a great ground for germs, with thousands of hands touching those chips before getting to your collection. Keep yourself safe with regular cleaning of your chips.

Show Them off

What’s the point of being a collector if no one knows your collection. Find step is to get them a display slot within your home with as much protection as possible. Then use the right channels and platforms to establish yourself as a collector.

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