Are chip collectors, and particularly roulette chip harvesters, heathens of low moral character? Or dedicated preservationists serving a higher cause? Or maybe just a bunch of fun loving and slightly misguided limo-types who are otherwise fine decent upstanding members of society? Just why do casinos frown on this seemingly harmless activity? I don't pretend to have all the answers, but I have thought a lot about the issue, talked to several dealers, pit bosses, and shift managers about it, and I think it would make a fun, interesting subject for discussion, if we don't take it TOO serious.

Why would a casino object to just selling some roulette chips?

1) Depending on the minimum buy in, the face value of the chip may be less than the cost of manufacture. The casino would rather not sell chips for 25¢ when they cost 40¢ to 60¢ to make. (This same principle holds true for the fractionals on the craps table.)

2) The casino buys the chips for use on the roulette tables, not as a resale item. If too many chips walk out the door, they have to go buy more. This is potentially a more significant issue for a small, struggling casino.

3) Roulette chips do not have a fixed face value. A color may be purchased for $1 per chip one time, and $100 per chip another. The casino has a very strong interest in preventing a chip that was purchased for a $1 from being played later as a $100 chip.

4) In support of reason 3, many casinos keep the chips in fixed size stacks with a fixed number of stacks per color, so when a player is done they can see they have the same number of chips as when he started. If a player leaves with chips, that color cannot be reused until the unevenness has been corrected. If they have insufficient spares, or are sufficiently concerned about the improper return of those chips, they must retire that color. All of this interferes with the real business of the casino.

In the grand scheme of things, I would suggest deliberately attempting to reintroduce roulette chips at higher value than originally purchased for is a crime on a par with bootlegging software. As for pocketing a few souvenirs with no intent of ever bringing them back...