ADS Aviator
Flush
Las Vegas Mixed THC Cash Set (last updated Jan 2021)
I love Las Vegas. My parents brought me for the first time when I was 18. While I did go a few times in the 90s, I've been going to Vegas every year for the past 15+ years, and recently it's been more like 2-4 times per year. Here is my attempt at a Las Vegas mixed THC cash set.
Fitzgerald’s $0.25 - Almost immediately after joining this site, I was in @Spinettis Gaming and asked Chris about the availability of Las Vegas fracs in quantity. He showed me a rack of these that he had available, and I bought them on the spot. When my parents brought me to Vegas for the first time, we stayed at Fitzgerald’s, so this casino has a special place in my heart. Thanks to @AWenger , a few other members, and the chip show, I was able to acquire second full rack.
El Cortez $0.50 - This was actually the last piece of the puzzle. I never dreamed that I'd be able to pull together 2 rack of these chips. El Cortez is an old school downtown casino that is still open. So much Vegas history here. Bugsy Siegel, Meyer Lansky & Jackie Gaughan were all former owners. This casino is such a touchstone to the past, that I go out of my way to visit on every trip. 140 of these chips were sourced in just 2 places: @David Spragg & @Spinettis Gaming. The rest came from eBay and many helpful PCFers that responded to my wanted ads.
Paris $1 - Almost everybody loves the Paris $1, but I really love this casino too. Seems like this would be the most obvious choice for my $1. I've spent a lot of time here and become pretty proficient at harvesting.
Flamingo $5 - What is not to love about this chip. Flamingo is a classic Vegas name. The bird. The color is great. Some people would oil these to make that color pop, but I like the slight fade after an ultrasonic bath. Makes me think of real flamingos. This chip is a modern classic.
Stardust $20 - Fitzgerald’s fracs are my foundation, but they’re green. I felt like having a green $25, even a dark green w/ edge spots was not quite right. So I looked at alternatives, talked it over with Chris @Spinettis Gaming, and decided to go big with the Stardust $20. Stardust is a classic Vegas name. A lot of Vegas history here. Frank Rosenthal & Anthony Spilotro connection. The color & shaped inlay make for an amazing looking chip.
The Mint $100 - For my $100, I looked around for what was available & this checked the boxes. Old Vegas name. THC. Different shaped inlay. The purple edge spots match the Stardust's base color. The blue edge spots are darker than Paris, probably more like Flamingo $1s. But its close enough that I think it works really well.
Horseshoe Club $500 - Based on my review of the chipguide, there were only about 10-11 possibilities of not-live, not-purple, THC Vegas $500’s. I immediately was drawn to the HC $500. It fits the color palette, it's an old-school Vegas casino, and it has Benny's face on the inlay. What more could you ask for? Unfortunately, the THC mold are pretty hard to find. Horseshoe mold are much more common. I had almost given up hope & Chris @Spinettis Gaming came through again. He heard a rumor of someone in Vegas that might have the THC version that I was looking for & passed along the tip that led to this acquisition.
Inventory (as of Jan 2021)
200 - $0.25
200 - $0.50
500 - $1
500 - $5
160 - $20
30 - $100
10 - $500
1600 - Total chips
$14,350 - Total bank
Dunes Tournament Set (last updated Apr 2020)
This set began in Oct 2018 with the purchase of a 300 Dunes uncirculated chip set from @Spinettis Gaming. This was my first set...where it all started. I loved them, but as soon as I got them home, I realized that I wanted to eventually make it a truly playable heirloom tournament set. About a month or two later, I was able to make a deal with @vapourtrail1 for his Dunes set (Thank you Vapor!), and overnight the size of my set almost quadrupled. Then over the next 10 months, it was monthly orders to Chris at Spinetties, either over the phone or in person. I added another rack of $100s, a rack of $1000 Bacs, 4 barrels of $5000 Bacs & 1 barrel of $20 Bacs. All were ordered 1 or 2 barrels at a time, as my budget permitted. Thanks for your help & patience Chris! The $25000s were purchased one at at time here and there, as they became available. The last major piece of the set fell into place when I was able to acquire a second rack of $500s from @alittlemessi. Not quite as epic as @ovo or @Jackstraw Dunes sets (Respect), but this one is mine & I'm pretty sure that I'll be its steward forever.
Inventory (as of Apr 2020)
400 - $5
400 - $25
400 - $100
200 - $500
100 - $1,000 Baccarat
80 - $5,000 Baccarat
5 - $25,000 Baccarat
20 - $20 Baccarat (envisioned as bounty or rebuy chips)
1605 - Total
Eventually, I'd like to add 15 more $25Ks to complete a barrel. A couple of racks of $1s would be nice, but those opportunities are very few and far between.
Paris Set (last updated Jun 2021)
I love the Paris casino in Las Vegas, and have been working on this set for almost a couple of years. All chips have been harvested by me personally. Those of you that have harvested Paris chips know how difficult and time consuming it is. Additionally, I'm VERY picky when is comes to condition. I would estimate that only 20% of the $1s that I've harvested actually made the cut. The other ~80% were returned to the cage. I've sorted through a lot of Paris $1s. At the very bottom is a photo of a random rack of $1s to show the average condition of the $1s & $5 in the set. Until the casino re-orders $25, I will have to be content with 1 rack of 20yr old, fairly rough RHCs.
Along the way, I also picked up a barrel of various pin-up LE $5s here & there. Why? For me, the pin-up girls and Paris seem like a really natural fit, plus what's life without whimsy.
Inventory (as of June 2021)
2000 - $1
220 - $5
100 - $25
2320 - Total
I love Las Vegas. My parents brought me for the first time when I was 18. While I did go a few times in the 90s, I've been going to Vegas every year for the past 15+ years, and recently it's been more like 2-4 times per year. Here is my attempt at a Las Vegas mixed THC cash set.
Fitzgerald’s $0.25 - Almost immediately after joining this site, I was in @Spinettis Gaming and asked Chris about the availability of Las Vegas fracs in quantity. He showed me a rack of these that he had available, and I bought them on the spot. When my parents brought me to Vegas for the first time, we stayed at Fitzgerald’s, so this casino has a special place in my heart. Thanks to @AWenger , a few other members, and the chip show, I was able to acquire second full rack.
El Cortez $0.50 - This was actually the last piece of the puzzle. I never dreamed that I'd be able to pull together 2 rack of these chips. El Cortez is an old school downtown casino that is still open. So much Vegas history here. Bugsy Siegel, Meyer Lansky & Jackie Gaughan were all former owners. This casino is such a touchstone to the past, that I go out of my way to visit on every trip. 140 of these chips were sourced in just 2 places: @David Spragg & @Spinettis Gaming. The rest came from eBay and many helpful PCFers that responded to my wanted ads.
Paris $1 - Almost everybody loves the Paris $1, but I really love this casino too. Seems like this would be the most obvious choice for my $1. I've spent a lot of time here and become pretty proficient at harvesting.
Flamingo $5 - What is not to love about this chip. Flamingo is a classic Vegas name. The bird. The color is great. Some people would oil these to make that color pop, but I like the slight fade after an ultrasonic bath. Makes me think of real flamingos. This chip is a modern classic.
Stardust $20 - Fitzgerald’s fracs are my foundation, but they’re green. I felt like having a green $25, even a dark green w/ edge spots was not quite right. So I looked at alternatives, talked it over with Chris @Spinettis Gaming, and decided to go big with the Stardust $20. Stardust is a classic Vegas name. A lot of Vegas history here. Frank Rosenthal & Anthony Spilotro connection. The color & shaped inlay make for an amazing looking chip.
The Mint $100 - For my $100, I looked around for what was available & this checked the boxes. Old Vegas name. THC. Different shaped inlay. The purple edge spots match the Stardust's base color. The blue edge spots are darker than Paris, probably more like Flamingo $1s. But its close enough that I think it works really well.
Horseshoe Club $500 - Based on my review of the chipguide, there were only about 10-11 possibilities of not-live, not-purple, THC Vegas $500’s. I immediately was drawn to the HC $500. It fits the color palette, it's an old-school Vegas casino, and it has Benny's face on the inlay. What more could you ask for? Unfortunately, the THC mold are pretty hard to find. Horseshoe mold are much more common. I had almost given up hope & Chris @Spinettis Gaming came through again. He heard a rumor of someone in Vegas that might have the THC version that I was looking for & passed along the tip that led to this acquisition.
Inventory (as of Jan 2021)
200 - $0.25
200 - $0.50
500 - $1
500 - $5
160 - $20
30 - $100
10 - $500
1600 - Total chips
$14,350 - Total bank
Dunes Tournament Set (last updated Apr 2020)
This set began in Oct 2018 with the purchase of a 300 Dunes uncirculated chip set from @Spinettis Gaming. This was my first set...where it all started. I loved them, but as soon as I got them home, I realized that I wanted to eventually make it a truly playable heirloom tournament set. About a month or two later, I was able to make a deal with @vapourtrail1 for his Dunes set (Thank you Vapor!), and overnight the size of my set almost quadrupled. Then over the next 10 months, it was monthly orders to Chris at Spinetties, either over the phone or in person. I added another rack of $100s, a rack of $1000 Bacs, 4 barrels of $5000 Bacs & 1 barrel of $20 Bacs. All were ordered 1 or 2 barrels at a time, as my budget permitted. Thanks for your help & patience Chris! The $25000s were purchased one at at time here and there, as they became available. The last major piece of the set fell into place when I was able to acquire a second rack of $500s from @alittlemessi. Not quite as epic as @ovo or @Jackstraw Dunes sets (Respect), but this one is mine & I'm pretty sure that I'll be its steward forever.
Inventory (as of Apr 2020)
400 - $5
400 - $25
400 - $100
200 - $500
100 - $1,000 Baccarat
80 - $5,000 Baccarat
5 - $25,000 Baccarat
20 - $20 Baccarat (envisioned as bounty or rebuy chips)
1605 - Total
Eventually, I'd like to add 15 more $25Ks to complete a barrel. A couple of racks of $1s would be nice, but those opportunities are very few and far between.
Paris Set (last updated Jun 2021)
I love the Paris casino in Las Vegas, and have been working on this set for almost a couple of years. All chips have been harvested by me personally. Those of you that have harvested Paris chips know how difficult and time consuming it is. Additionally, I'm VERY picky when is comes to condition. I would estimate that only 20% of the $1s that I've harvested actually made the cut. The other ~80% were returned to the cage. I've sorted through a lot of Paris $1s. At the very bottom is a photo of a random rack of $1s to show the average condition of the $1s & $5 in the set. Until the casino re-orders $25, I will have to be content with 1 rack of 20yr old, fairly rough RHCs.
Along the way, I also picked up a barrel of various pin-up LE $5s here & there. Why? For me, the pin-up girls and Paris seem like a really natural fit, plus what's life without whimsy.
Inventory (as of June 2021)
2000 - $1
220 - $5
100 - $25
2320 - Total
Last edited:
