Same goes for the other Paulson home game chip lines..... so many were produced, it's crazy-stupid that they sometimes command prices in excess of of much nicer (and rarer) Paulson casino sets.
It's mostly a matter of new and naive collectors not really understanding the true nature and relative value of the marketplace.
Many seasoned collectors don't prefer Paulson fantasy sets because the real casino history isn't there (among other reasons). As
@BGinGA noted above (and he is an expert), some of these fantasy sets had millions of chips made, so they are not exactly rare. However, many newer hobbyists, along with many international chippers, seek out Paulson home market sets heavily. My personal hypothesis is that the international chip community hoards all the home market sets, Don't believe me? Look for the next 5 large sales of fantasy sets and see where the seller/buyer are from.
As I've gotten more involved with the community, my tastes have changed considerably, as will yours. You initially want fantasy sets, but they are expensive, so you settle for used casino sets. Then you want better casino sets. Then you want some TRKs. Then you want a place to live because you lost your house after buying TRKs (kidding...kinda). Most folks then transition to custom (
CPC) sets.
I feel like I need to chime in here, because there are other factors that are being completely ignored in this discussion, and that is chip "quality"/condition, and the fact that we're dealing with two very different personalities in the chipper world: A) "the collector" (who will pay any price for almost any type of chip), and B) "the host" (the guy/gal who wants to put on a quality game, and isn't always concerned with casino/chip nostalgia). Sometimes these people can overlap, which gives us a third, A+B, collector. These folks will spend $10,000 on a rare set, and have no qualms about putting them in play with nacho cheese dip being passed around the table at the same time.
I'm mainly a "host" collector. I want to put on a solid game and I take pride in doing so. I consider many things when looking at sets to buy, but I've found that "chip quality" - at least for me - is a significant factor, and I like putting high quality chips in play at my games. Personally, I'm willing to spend more on minty (or near mint) Paulson chips (real or fantasy), than used/worn casino chips. Now, this isn't a hard and fast rule, but it can apply for the "typical" casino chip set. For example, the Cleveland Horseshoes really didn't appeal much to me (even though they were incredibly affordable), mainly because 1) the low denoms were well worn (flea bites and rounded edges abound!), 2) the casino isn't really a famous one, 3) it was not a Vegas casino (not always a factor - but it came into play for me because the chips were so worn). These are factors that work into my personal pricing algo. On the other hand, the Grand Cardroom fantasy HS set I just obtained is minty fresh (
although slightly warped), has sharp edges, and the Paulson surface texture is still incredibly intact. These things can have a major impact on my in-head pricing exercise.
The kind of "perfect storm" for me was the Stardust Mansion chips... not only were they from a real casino, but all denoms were in minty/sharp-edge condition (aside from very mild surface dirt), and the pricing was (originally) reasonable, which was a win-win-win for me. The Canadian (non-Vegas) location wasn't a huge factor for me because the chips were so pristine, and that weighed a lot on my personal desire for those chips. Of course, as many of us know, the SDPMs quickly skyrocketed as certain denoms disappeared from the market.
Now... all of this being said, I can understand where quality is put to the back burner, especially where real casino chips can have their pricing affected by the nostalgia/rare-ness factor. This is common with old Stardust, Tropicana, Dunes, Mapes, etc. type chips. The history can make people ignore quality entirely - and I see that side as well. And for chips from some of those listed casinos, prices usually go well beyond what the "average collector" can afford due to the nostalgia/history and overall rarity of the chip(s).
But in general, I think the quality/condition of the chip needs to be factored in to whatever type of pricing algo you work with. It's not always casino vs. fantasy, total quantity of chips on the market, or chip/casino history... rounded edges vs. sharp edges can have a real impact on price to some collectors, flea bites can be factored in, some people weigh standard sized inlays vs. oversized inlays... and when it comes down to it, each collector prioritizes all of these things differently. So, before we go around calling people "naive" for investing in a certain collection, we need to realize that everyone's priorities (and personal tastes) in this unique hobby can vary significantly from one person to the next.
