Casino Chip of the Day
I always periodically look at this thread, but I have nothing really good to contribute unless I actually been to that casino. And Vegas was covered before I joined.
Perhaps this is because I am not a baccarat player. I'll admit that this series of Chinese New Year chips is also the first time I have seen the name of a game printed on the center inlay. There are, of course, chips with pictures of card hands, dice, Big 6 wheels, etc., but I don't think I have seen the name of the game included on the inlay or molding except for maybe a couple that mention "poker" in promoting the casino's poker room or from places with "poker" in the casino/card room name.
Quote: WizardState: Nevada
City: Las Vegas
Casino: MGM
Year: 2013
The vast majority of these $8 Chinese New Year chips are the large baccarat size.
Are there "large" size baccarat chips for "standard" denominations (e.g., $1, $5, $25, etc.)?
Quote: AyecarumbaQuote: WizardState: Nevada
City: Las Vegas
Casino: MGM
Year: 2013
The vast majority of these $8 Chinese New Year chips are the large baccarat size.
Are there "large" size baccarat chips for "standard" denominations (e.g., $1, $5, $25, etc.)?
I believe, at MGM, the large chips start at $100 and they use regular-sized chips for smaller denoms.
I may be misremembering though.
1/18/14 9:43am Hard Rock
1/19/14 8:59pm Aria
1/20/14 (Nothing at all)
1/21/14 (Nothing at all)
1/22/14 12:03am Bellagio
1/22/14 9:25pm MGM Grand
1/23/14 (Nothing at all)
1/24/14 Something nice yet to come
I know the Wizard is a busy guy with many other things on his mind, but should we perhaps discuss what is meant by "Chip of the Day"?
;-)
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Wynn
Year: 2013 (snake)
Sorry I haven't been daily with the chips. I'm going to be running very busy through late February so can't promise much better through then either. If you want to fire me, I would not be offended.
For what it is worth, I've skipped days lots of times in the Spanish Word of the Day thread.
About this chip, the Wynn always does good ones. Usually they are the most realistic in the depiction of the animal depicted.
Quote: WizardIf you want to fire me, I would not be offended.
I'm not of the Sands mold. Besides, I have more fun hassling you.
When I had lead role in the thread, I missed a fair number of days due to travel. Of course, I had anticipated that and said in post #1 that I would be posting "on roughly a daily basis when I am not in travel status." I later found rdw4potus to be a willing and capable stand-in during my travels. Even after taking over the "permanent" lead role, rdw4potus has missed a few days, but he has done an amazing job of keeping with it daily, considering his travel schedule.
So give us daily chips as best you can, and if you discover you will have to beg off for a while, let someone know so that we can cover for you with the other chips a few of us have left.
Quote: LVADo you know which casinos will be selling the Chinese New Years chips ($8) like last year? I will be in Vegas next week and would very much like to purchase some. Thanks.
Guess we'll get to see whether they know the story/details about the shift to $1 chips.
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Venetian/Palazzo
Year: 2013 (snake)
I'm going to combine these two into one entry because the chips are the same except for the casino name. They are also the same on front and back.
I have a personal story behind this one. My job was eliminated at the Venetian in August 2012. A year later I was asked to moderate a panel about blackjack at the Global Gaming Expo, which was held at the Sands Convention Center. After the session somebody with the Venetian, who knew I collected $8 Chinese New Year chips, gave me three each from the Palazzo and Venetian. I thought that was nice of them and these chips will always have sentimental value to me.
In other chip news, you may recall I said that the cashier at the cage at the Wynn said they would not have chips for 2014, per new Gaming regulations. I was at the MGM yesterday and they repeated that there would be no 2014 chip from there either.
Quote: sodawaterWiz could you bet a stack of 5 of those at tiles or what?
Yes. It would violate Gaming regulations to refuse them. It should be noted that these are the big baccarat style chips, so the dealer may not be too happy to take them, as they wouldn't fit into a rack for normal-sized chips.
Quote: WizardI'm going to combine these two into one entry because the chips are the same except for the casino name. They are also the same on front and back.
Depending upon whether the Venetian and Palazzo Chinese New Year chips for other years also match and are posted together, I might create two links to this post in the index.
Quote: WizardIn other chip news, you may recall I said that the cashier at the cage at the Wynn said they would not have chips for 2014, per new Gaming regulations. I was at the MGM yesterday and they repeated that there would be no 2014 chip from there either.
Whoa! I recall (and quote) that (here) you said:
Quote: WizardThe cashier said that ... this year they would be $1 chips.
So is it that "there would be no 2014 chip" or "they would be $1 chips"? I understand that the $8 denomination is an interesting feature, but a denomination change is not quite the same as no longer having commemorative chips.
Inquiring minds want to know!
A few days ago, I mentioned how differently the snakes appeared on the chips from Hard Rock and Aria. I think the snake on the Venetian/Palazzo chips looks like something Dora would have as a playmate for Boots.
bottom = 恭喜发财 Gung Hei Fat Choi (or Gong Xi Fa Cai [mandarin spelling]) Standard phrase to write and say on Chinese new year day (1/31 for 2014) and during the 1-2 weeks after. Basically means congratulations and may you have good fortune.
City: Las Vegas
Casino: MGM
Year: 2012 (dragon)
That is all the 2013 chips I have so let's go back to 2012, the year of the Dragon. You would think they would really make some fancy ones for the Dragon year, but they are generally more plain than the other 11 years. Maybe a little chip is too small to do justice to a dragon so they keep the dragon figures small and simple.
Regarding the new regulations, it is my understanding they can't make $8 chips because they are not commonly used in the casino. It is nothing against Chinese New Year (to be denoted as CNY from now on), but the amount. The Wynn is opting to make a $1 CNY chip and the MGM is not going to make any at all.
Thanks Konbu for the translations. Just to warn you, I'm going to be drive you crazy when we get to the year of the rat.
龍 = Dragon
So are the horse (2014) chips for sale yet??
And add my thanks to Konbu for the translations -- I'm sure we'll need more of them.
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Wynn
Year: 2012 (dragon)
Quote: KonbuSo are the horse (2014) chips for sale yet??
They generally don't come out until the exact day of Chinese New Year. As mentioned earlier in the thread, $8 chips have been outlawed by Gaming. All I know is I was told the Wynn will make a $1 chip and the MGM won't make any.
Quote: KonbuSo are the horse (2014) chips for sale yet??
As the Wizard mentioned, 2014 will provide some changes. I noted a little earlier that the LVA QoD for today was to address this topic. They had a very long answer, which included their entire QoD on this topic from last year plus an extensive follow-up. That column is still available to both members and non-members of that site until tonight.
I found some of the info seemed to be self-contradictory. I made a copy of the full answer, but I shouldn't/won't post it all here. I hope that this two-paragraph quote is acceptable to help those who might not see this referral in time. If someone tells me it is not, I will delete it.
Quote: Las Vegas Advisor QoD for 1/27/14 (exerpt)We looked up Gaming Control records for reports of new chip designs being approved, and found that back in July, Venetian/Palazzo had designs approved for NCV ["No Cash Value"] numeral 8 baccarat Year of the Horse chips, as did Gold Coast, the following month, for 25 and 100 numeral NCV chips. In October of last year, Wynn receive GCB approval for actual $1-value Year of the Horse chips and these will go "on sale" ... at the casino cage at one minute past midnight on February 1 (we were told this direct from the horse's mouth, so to speak).
From some calls placed, we gained confirmation that when it comes to Cosmo and Venetian, preferred players may be issued with souvenir chips this year, but Joe Public cannot purchase these at the cage. We will pursue this topic in the course of the next few days, since Gold Coast had no knowledge of what we were talking about, in spite of having had some chip designs approved, and we still would like to get an official statement from Gaming Control as to any change in policy. Still, as of time of this writing, it sounds like the only place to get Chinese New Year chips for the Year of the Horse will be the cage at Wynn, and only in $1 denomination, not the usual "lucky" 8s. We recommend you line up early to avoid disappointment.
Quote: DocAs the Wizard mentioned, 2014 will provide some changes. I noted a little earlier that the LVA QoD for today was to address this topic. They had a very long answer, which included their entire QoD on this topic from last year plus an extensive follow-up. That column is still available to both members and non-members of that site until tonight.
I found some of the info seemed to be self-contradictory. I made a copy of the full answer, but I shouldn't/won't post it all here. I hope that this two-paragraph quote is acceptable to help those who might not see this referral in time. If someone tells me it is not, I will delete it.Quote: Las Vegas Advisor QoD for 1/27/14 (exerpt)We looked up Gaming Control records for reports of new chip designs being approved, and found that back in July, Venetian/Palazzo had designs approved for NCV ["No Cash Value"]...
Perhaps the fact that they are "NCV" is the issue with Gaming. If they are indeed, "No Cash Value", I can imagine that it would be confusing.
BTW, do the casinos in Asia do special chips for CNY?
Quote: AyecarumbaPerhaps the fact that they are "NCV" is the issue with Gaming. If they are indeed, "No Cash Value", I can imagine that it would be confusing.
My understanding is that casinos were planning to issue NCV chips in order to satisfy someone at NGC. The full QoD answer indicated that when they researched and posted their 2013 answer they had found a difference/conflict of opinion within NGC.
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Venetian
Year: 2012 (dragon)
This one is the same on both sides. I'm proud to have this one because the Venetian did a very limited issue in 2012.
Nice design. Definitely my favorite of the Dragon Year chips.
OK, Konbu, does it say "2012" (or the equivalent) in any of the other characters? If not, would this design work just as well to commemorate any other Year of the Dragon?
Quote: DocSecond, it is a 2012 Chinese New Year Commemorative that doesn't say "2012" in characters that I can read, or in characters that I think most of the folks at NGC could read.
This is far from the only time a chip didn't say the numerical year. My collection spans about 15 years and in some cases I'm not sure what year a chip belongs to, just the Chinese year.
Quote: DocI find this Venetian Dragon Year chip doubly interesting. First, it appears to be a Paulson top hat and cane mold with the top hats and canes inverted from their normal orientation. Second, it is a 2012 Chinese New Year Commemorative that doesn't say "2012" in characters that I can read, or in characters that I think most of the folks at NGC could read.
OK, Konbu, does it say "2012" (or the equivalent) in any of the other characters? If not, would this design work just as well to commemorate any other Year of the Dragon?
The Venetian's Year of the Snake chip is also a Paulson IHC. I can't quite put my finger on why, but I think I prefer the way the hats & canes look when they're facing this direction.
Quote: DocI find this Venetian Dragon Year chip doubly interesting. First, it appears to be a Paulson top hat and cane mold with the top hats and canes inverted from their normal orientation. Second, it is a 2012 Chinese New Year Commemorative that doesn't say "2012" in characters that I can read, or in characters that I think most of the folks at NGC could read.
OK, Konbu, does it say "2012" (or the equivalent) in any of the other characters? If not, would this design work just as well to commemorate any other Year of the Dragon?
The Chinese zodiac repeats every 12 years, so producing a chip to distribute more than a decade from now doesn't seem to be very efficient; however I have seen some chips in action that looked decades old, so you never know.
It appears that there may be some writing in the light blue field behind the dragon on the Wizard's chip. Is it a Chinese character?
Ayecarumba: It says the same thing as Wiz's Palazzo/Venetian snake (2013) chip, except the word sname and denom switched place.
top = 新春佳市 lit. "Chinese new year good for the/lots of, business/market."
bottom = 恭喜发财 Gung Hei Fat Choi (or Gong Xi Fa Cai [mandarin spelling])
You can refer to the chart at wikipedia for the zodiac of the year
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_zodiac
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Palace Station
Year: 2012 (dragon)
Unless otherwise stated all my CNY chips are the big baccarat size. This is one of those exceptions. The Palace Station and Palms always make them the normal chip size.
龍= Dragon (traditional writing)
And ughh I just have a distaste for asian/oriental font. Especially when it's on asian (mostly chinese) restaurant signs. I won't even give them a chance.
BTW I'm reading LVA and seeing that no casinos are offering these special chips this year. I wanted to collect a couple but I guess it's no good to do some running around casinos.
Quote: djatcI'm reading LVA and seeing that no casinos are offering these special chips this year.
Well, the LVA confirmed what the Wizard reported, that you will be able to purchase a 2014 Chinese New Year chip at the cage at the Wynn. As I quoted they also reported NCV chips have been approved for several casinos and that some lucky people may even get chips from Venetian and Cosmopolitan.
Quote: DocWell, the LVA confirmed what the Wizard reported, that you will be able to purchase a 2014 Chinese New Year chip at the cage at the Wynn. As I quoted they also reported NCV chips have been approved for several casinos and that some lucky people may even get chips from Venetian and Cosmopolitan.
I've been reading a few of those posts. I don't get it. is there a trmendous amount of fraud going on involving Chinese New Year commemorative chips? If they can't be sold at the cage, could they be sold at the gift store? Could they be given away as souvenirs? It seems to me we just see another government agency exercising its power just because it can.
What's next? Forbidding the use of ships to tip waitresses?
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Bellagio
Year: 2011 (Rabbit)
That is all the 2012 chips I have so let's move back to 2011, the year of the rabbit. This Bellagio chip is the same on both sides.
Quote: NareedI don't get it. is there a trmendous amount of fraud going on involving Chinese New Year commemorative chips? If they can't be sold at the cage, could they be sold at the gift store? Could they be given away as souvenirs? It seems to me we just see another government agency exercising its power just because it can.
I agree with you. However, to play the devil's advocate, Gaming feels strongly that casino chips are only supposed to be used for gaming purposes and not exchanged between players. These $8 CNY chips are obviously intended as souvenirs and collectibles, which is outside of their intended purpose. So, Gaming is putting their foot down.
Personally, I see banning them as a lose-lose situation. Sucker collectors like me lose out on a little fun and the casinos lose out on making money on an $8 chip that will probably never get redeemed that cost them 50¢ to make. I could think of a host of things they could do to boost the integrity of the gaming business in Nevada.
Quote: NareedWhat's next? Forbidding the use of ships to tip waitresses?
How about forbidding the use of obese waitresses to tip ships?
;-)
Quote: WizardI agree with you.
Then that ends it :)
Quote:However, to play the devil's advocate,
I know it's just an expression, but in this case I'm taking it as a literal meaning.
Quote:Gaming feels strongly that casino chips are only supposed to be used for gaming purposes and not exchanged between players. These $8 CNY chips are obviously intended as souvenirs and collectibles, which is outside of their intended purpose. So, Gaming is putting their foot down.
Let them try to put their foot down consistently, then. COnsider, if chips can only be used for gambling and never exchanged between players, you'd have to outlaw the following:
1) Tipping the cocktail waitress with chips
2) Tipping the dealer with chips
3) Letting another player bet with your chips (it is an exchange), something you, Dan and someone else have kindly offered me on ocassion
4) Leaving the casino, or at least the state, carrying chips.
This last one requires some explanation. While you may hold on to a chip by accient, or may be planning to pay them on your next trip, the possibility exists they may be used for a non-gambling activity such as displaying them in a collection or holding them as souvenirs. Clearly the only solution is to search all flights, trains, buses, trucks, cars and bicycles leaving Nevada for chips.
At this point one can cry out "reductio ad-absurdum," with justification. But if all the items I've listed are harmless and pose no problem at all for anybody, then what harm or problem arise from the $8 souvenir chips?
Quote: DocHow about forbidding the use of obese waitresses to tip ships?
;-)
Hehe... Curse you Autocorrect!
I am reminded by Nareed's post that there are signs all over the place stating that chips and tokens cannot be used to pay for food or items in the gift shop. Is there a specific exemption for tips, or do the authorities just look the other way?
Quote: AyecarumbaI am reminded by Nareed's post that there are signs all over the place stating that chips and tokens cannot be used to pay for food or items in the gift shop. Is there a specific exemption for tips, or do the authorities just look the other way?
I do make it a habit of carrying several $1s in my purse, but mostly because there are no readily available chips in VP. At the table I usually tip with chips, and never has a waitress as much as raised an eyebrow. IMO if the practice were strictly banned tips would go way, way down.
Quote: DocHow about forbidding the use of obese waitresses to tip ships?
;-)
One can always trust Doc to find the bit of prose that is really important :)
Quote: WizardState: Nevada
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Bellagio
Year: 2011 (Rabbit)
運 = Luck
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Palace Station
Year: 2011 (Rabbit)
As mentioned before, most CNY chips are the baccarat size, but they are the standard size at the Palace Station.
BTW the character (word) is not very pleasing to look at due to the proportion and wrong placement of some strokes.
Quote: Konbu兔 = Rabbit/hare.
BTW the character (word) is not very pleasing to look at due to the proportion and wrong placement of some strokes.
I start Os at the bottom and R/P/T/F at the top when I write. Are there similar quirks to writing in mandarin? Is there an accepted and taught "correct" way to form the character?
Quote: AyecarumbaThere appears to be a "watermark" in the orange field behind the Palace Station logo. Can anyone tell what the image is supposed to be?
As a matter of fact, I can, though it took a little effort.
If you look closely, you will note that the "Pit 8" side of the Palace Station 2011 Year of the Rabbit chip is identical to the "Pit 8" side of the Palace Station 2012 Year of the Dragon chip. Identical to the point that the background image is of a Dragon! Now the Wizard used two different file names when posting the two images, but I rather suspect that somewhere along the line he mixed up his chips or his photos, and we have not yet seen the real other side of the Year of the Rabbit chip.
Either that, or Palace Station really put a dragon on one side of their Year of the Rabbit chips, which doesn't seem likely. Which is it, Wizard?
Quote: DocAs a matter of fact, I can, though it took a little effort.
If you look closely, you will note that the "Pit 8" side of the Palace Station 2011 Year of the Rabbit chip is identical to the "Pit 8" side of the Palace Station 2012 Year of the Dragon chip. Identical to the point that the background image is of a Dragon! Now the Wizard used two different file names when posting the two images, but I rather suspect that somewhere along the line he mixed up his chips or his photos, and we have not yet seen the real other side of the Year of the Rabbit chip.
Either that, or Palace Station really put a dragon on one side of their Year of the Rabbit chips, which doesn't seem likely. Which is it, Wizard?
Good eye Doc! I wouldn't be surprised if Palace Station just re-used the, "Pit 8" side, since the base and edge spot colors are identical on both the Rabbit and Dragon chips. It could also be the that the dragon is the most auspicious of the 12 animals, so maybe that is why it is Palace Station's, "watermark" (as opposed to the, "Rat", hehe).
Quote: rdw4potusI start Os at the bottom and R/P/T/F at the top when I write. Are there similar quirks to writing in mandarin? Is there an accepted and taught "correct" way to form the character?
Yes. As Chinese writing was done with ink and brush before fountain pens came along, each stroke that forms a character has its own way that's written (more like painted) and there's a system to determine the order to write the different strokes that forms a character. It is easy to tell something is not correct when reading brush writing.
Quote: DocAs a matter of fact, I can, though it took a little effort.
If you look closely, you will note that the "Pit 8" side of the Palace Station 2011 Year of the Rabbit chip is identical to the "Pit 8" side of the Palace Station 2012 Year of the Dragon chip. Identical to the point that the background image is of a Dragon! Now the Wizard used two different file names when posting the two images, but I rather suspect that somewhere along the line he mixed up his chips or his photos, and we have not yet seen the real other side of the Year of the Rabbit chip.
Either that, or Palace Station really put a dragon on one side of their Year of the Rabbit chips, which doesn't seem likely. Which is it, Wizard?
The alignment of the inserts and the inlay is slightly different on the two images. On the Year of the Dragon chip, the blue line on the insert is aligned with the top of the P in Palace. On the Year of the Rabbit chip, the blue is almost completely above the P. So I don't think they're two different images of the same chip. And, the Year of the Rabbit was before the Year of the Dragon. So it's not as though there were left-over dragon blanks that found their way onto rabbit chips. I think I've only been to Palace Station once - does the dragon fit with the general theme of the property?
As for any possible dragon theme at Palace Station, I am not aware of one. It started off as the Bingo Palace. On the other hand, I could have believed a dragon theme somewhere at the Imperial Palace.
City: Las Vegas
Casino: Wynn
Year: 2011 (Rabbit)
This is one of my favorite chips! I think it speaks for itself. At the risk of my masculinity being impugned, I give this one a 9.9 on the 0 to 10 cute scale.
I see there has been some discussion about the Chinese language in the thread, which I appreciate of course. I know a little Chinese, Shanghainese to be specific. One thing that I find annoying, to be honest with you, is whenever anybody says "rabbit" (tutse) they always precede it with the word for "small" (shao). You would think there is no such thing as a big rabbit.
