I think what we’ve seen with these Silver Slipper diecars is a perfect example of why we need an on-line price guide in our hobby. As it will probably be at least 10 months until another issue of The Chip Rack is published (just a guess, of course), and at least 2 years until another issue of C&W’s “The Official…” is published (another guess), the only price references on these two chips will appear in hard print as follows:

The Chip Rack:

$1 red diecar – “W” ($500 - $599)
$5 black diecar – “X” ($600 - $699)

The Official U.S. Casino Chip Price Guide

$1 red diecar - $300 - $450 - $600 (R-9 --- 4 to 7 known survivors)
$5 black diecar - $600 - $900 - $1,200 (R-10 --- 2 to 3 known survivors)

It has been established that not only are these two chips from Canadian casinos, but that they are LIVE Canadian chips… being used TODAY in casinos. With today’s exchange rates, a more accurate reflection of their values might be:

$1 red diecar - 83¢
$5 black diecar - $4.16

Now, while no one would claim that the pricing discrepancies are the fault of the authors, the mere fact that they exist in print will have a financial impact on many individuals within our hobby. With the lack of an on-line reference, unscrupulous or unknowledgeable sellers will have at least 10 months, and maybe more like a couple of years, to point to the reference books (the only sources of pricing information in the hobby) and continue to receive upwards of $300 for each of these chips.

This is, of course, only one example showing the hobby’s need for an on-line price guide, but it’s a damn good one. By the time the next round of price guides are published, I’m sure they will include a LOT of changes that would be worthy of instant recognition by the collecting community.

So, c’mon, authors… think of a solution!