There are some strange things about these very cool chips. I've got about 170 of them now, and I may have to go through and start sorting them. Because there are 3 three different versions of this chip, according to the chip guide, and I'm not convinced that is all. In going through mine, I noticed the occasional yellowed inlay, which happens sometimes when people display a chip in the sun for too long. Or so I thought. But I just hit the chipguide page for these for the first time and learned that one version has white inlays, one has the browish inlays, and one version has one of each. How bizarre. So I started flipping though my chips, and sure enough, it's true. Although the pictures on chipguide aren't perfect because from what I've sorted out so far, the chip that has two yellowed inlays are the lighter yellow, and on the chip that has one of each, the yellowed one is darker, more brownish.
Another oddity is that the inserts are slightly different colors - one version has inserts that are a darker, more purplish blue. I don't know if those are actually a different Paulson color or just a color variation due to batch. And from what I've seen, the purplish ones weigh almost a gram less. Normally that would indicate unleaded clay, but the chipguide says that version is from 1990. But maybe the date is wrong, or maybe more were produced later? Who knows. This is why I want to sort through mine.
Oh, and finally, why are there so many of these chips that appear mint or near near mint? I know you'll come across a lot of mint chips when you're going through singles, because collectors will save a mint chip and keep it mint. But the percentage of these that are truly minty is way off - there are just too many of them. I'd be surprised to hear that collectors were harvesting mint chips in the '90s. Maybe these were sold off before the nevada chip destruction law (when did that law go into effect?)
Anyway, if anybody has any knowledge or speculation, lets hear it!
Another oddity is that the inserts are slightly different colors - one version has inserts that are a darker, more purplish blue. I don't know if those are actually a different Paulson color or just a color variation due to batch. And from what I've seen, the purplish ones weigh almost a gram less. Normally that would indicate unleaded clay, but the chipguide says that version is from 1990. But maybe the date is wrong, or maybe more were produced later? Who knows. This is why I want to sort through mine.
Oh, and finally, why are there so many of these chips that appear mint or near near mint? I know you'll come across a lot of mint chips when you're going through singles, because collectors will save a mint chip and keep it mint. But the percentage of these that are truly minty is way off - there are just too many of them. I'd be surprised to hear that collectors were harvesting mint chips in the '90s. Maybe these were sold off before the nevada chip destruction law (when did that law go into effect?)
Anyway, if anybody has any knowledge or speculation, lets hear it!