Check this out. It looks almost exactly like N7031, except it’s not clay. It’s the same diameter and thickness as the clay chip, but it’s very light, and it makes a hollow, metallic sound when I tap it. It’s not magnetic. I believe it’s aluminum, and hollow. The detail is amazing. You can even see the crosshatching. It seems like the mold was made from a somewhat used chip. The “inserts” are painted on. The paint is glossy, and I can see and feel the “thickness” of the paint. You can tell it “filled in” the crosshatching. The inlay is coated paper like the real chip, and the recess is just right to make it flush. There is a fine, slightly raised line centered on the edge which I assume is where the two halves are joined. It’s a very precise joint.

So the question is, why would someone make this thing? Because it’s so light, I think it would be hard to pass it off at the cage or a table if the intent was to make a counterfeit, and why counterfeit the $5, instead of the $25 or $100? This was the first chip design that Harrah’s put a metal rim on, to create a “choken” for $5 slot play. My theory is that this was an earlier experiment to make a chip-like token for the $5 slot machines. Although I’m not sure why they wouldn’t have stamped it out of regular token material. Maybe the aluminum was easier to color, or maybe they thought a lighter token would make fill bags and drop buckets easier to carry. Or maybe I’m just clutching at straws. Here are the clay $5 and the choken, for reference.

Anyone have any ideas about why this was made or what it's purpose might be?