Party Casino Tokens

Casino Tokens are used in lieu of money in casino's and gambling establishments all over the world. They are also commonly referred to as Casino Chips. They can be made of metal, plastic, or a combination of both and often have the Casino name engraved on them.

There are many different denominations of Casino Tokens. They are often color coded so that gamblers know the value of what they have and what they are betting. There are gambling tables set up in different gambling ranges. The minimum bet is always posted so you are sure before you sit down to play.

There are 2 main types of party casino tokens used in casinos: metal token coins, used primarily in slot machines and multicolor tokens of various denominations also known as chips, used primarily in table games; Some casinos also use some gaming plaques for high stakes table games $25,000 and above.

Plaques differ from table chips in that they are larger, usually the shape is rectangular and contain serial numbers. Money is exchanged for the casino token coins or chips in the casino at a cashier station name the cage, at the gaming tables, or at a slot machine. The party tokens are also interchangeable with money at the casino, but have no value outside of the casino or establishment.

After the vast increase in the value of silver stopped the circulation of silver dollar coins around 1964, casinos now rushed to find a substitute, as most slot machines at that time used some particular coin. The Nevada Gaming Control Board consulted and talked with the US Treasury, and casinos were soon allowed to start using their own money or tokens to operate their slot machines.

The Franklin Mint was the focal or main minter of casino tokens at that time. In many jurisdictions, casinos are not allowed and permitted to use currency in slot machines, necessitating tokens for much smaller denominations. Tokens are being bought and phased out of many casinos in favor of coin less machines which accept banknotes and print receipts for their payout.

The vast majority of authentic casino chips are made up of clay chips but can be more accurately described as compression molded tokens or chips. Contrary to popular and known belief no gaming chip going as far back as the 50s have been 100% clay. Modern clay chips are a composition of materials stronger and durable than clay alone. At least some percentage of the casino chips is of an earthen material such as chalk, sand and or clay similar to that found in cat litter. The process used to make these casino chips is a trade secret, time consuming, very expensive and varies slightly by manufacturer.

Additionally, the edge inserts or spots, as they are sometimes called, are not painted on as they can sometimes appear to be. In fact there are some specific areas where the clay has been punched out of the chip and then interchange or replaced by hand with a new piece of clay of an alternate color; the casino token is then placed under extreme heat and pressured, approximately 10,000 psi 70 MPa at 300 °F 150 °C, hence the term compression molded Chips. The nice and printed graphics on clay token is called an inlay. Inlays are commonly made of paper and are then carefully covered with a thin film of plastic which is applied to the chip before to the compression molding process.

Vintage Metal Casino Tokens can be worth a lot of money. Some chips or tokens are worth over $100,000 each! Collecting tokens and chips is referred to as exonumia collecting. The older the token the more it can be worth. The earliest tokens were made from clay and could be broken easily.

You can find vintage casino tokens listed for sale online or in antique stores. Many times you can find them for sale by stamp collectors. You might be surprised to find some tucked away in your attic and even more surprised when you find out their value. If you have any made of clay or are vintage metal casino tokens then you are in luck! Be sure to ask for several appraisals before you think about selling them so you are sure that you are getting the very best deal possible.