How many decks of cards do you own?

[jay28]

I was wondering how many decks of cards the average counter/AP owns?

I currently own 14xdecks of casino grade cards, 6 used for practice games and 6 used for practicing deck estimation and cutting and also 2 spare. I also have many lower grade decks, which are used for counting drills.

I would like to own 24 discard trays, the first with a 1/4 deck in, second with 1/2 deck, third with 3/4 deck, fourth with 1 deck in, etc. etc. etc. to view regularly and really hammer home deck estimation.

Does anybody else have this kind of set up?

 

[Lonesome Gambler]

Discard trays are expensive. My advice: rubber band multiple decks (7, 6 1/2, 6, etc.) and then play practice games. Stop at various points to convert to TC and then check your estimation with one of the pre-stacked decks. That way, you don't have to spend $250 on discards! Personally, I have about 68 decks.

 

[shadroch]

I own hundreds of decks.keep them all over the place, so I can practice at will.

 

[johndoe]

Discard trays are expensive. My advice: rubber band multiple decks (7, 6 1/2, 6, etc.) and then play practice games. Stop at various points to convert to TC and then check your estimation with one of the pre-stacked decks. That way, you don't have to spend $250 on discards! Personally, I have about 68 decks.

Expensive? The first hit on Google was a $7 6-deck tray. Ebay has 8-deck trays for $10.

 

[Slick Vic]

I own 11 decks- an 8 deck stack bound together with a rubber band which I practice counting and deck estimation on, 2 decks in a pouch I use for other card games, and a deck I got for High School graduation that I just can't seem to part with.

 

[QFIT]

Threw out 16 decks a couple of months ago. No idea how many left. Five discard trays, one shoe and four layouts. Sounds a bit obsessive now that I think of it.

 

[21forme]

Threw out 16 decks a couple of months ago. No idea how many left. Five discard trays, one shoe and four layouts. Sounds a bit obsessive now that I think of it.

Especially with your virtual decks

I have 50+ decks. I ordered them in bulk from a casino supply store in LV, along with a discard tray, cut cards, etc. when I first started counting. A number of them now have colored edges, from tracking drills, and some decks are numbered from deck estimation practice.

 

[Blue Efficacy]

I have a few various single decks, two sets of double decks, one 4 deck pack and one 6 deck pack. No need for 8 deck pack since I don't have any of those hideous games near me, except one large casino has them on a couple tables as a novelty.

 

[sagefr0g]

probably about fifty decks, or more. i'm kind of collecting them lol.
leave them laying around so as to ingrain how they look sort of thing.

 

[Lonesome Gambler]

Expensive? The first hit on Google was a $7 6-deck tray. Ebay has 8-deck trays for $10.

I would like to own 24 discard trays

$7-10 + shipping is standard, hence my $250 figure. Very - EV when you consider that you can honestly do with one!

 

[johndoe]

Oh, I understand. Seems to be way overkill; I'd expect swapping between a couple of trays would be more than adequate.

 

[Mimosine]

vegas cards one set of 6D, one for DD, and two or three loose single decks floating around in my office at work.

I didn't ever need to learn deck estimation, but used the 6Decks for practicing KO with no errors. Once I could go through 3 shoes routinely with no errors, I stopped practicing.

 

[Blue Efficacy]

Discard Trays

I use the part of the fridgepacks of pop you tear off to open them as discard trays. Fits 6 decks pretty well, a little room left over.

 

[Cherry7Up]

I use the part of the fridgepacks of pop you tear off to open them as discard trays. Fits 6 decks pretty well, a little room left over.

Clever, thank you for this idea.

 

[Beefcake]

North of 100; good for deck estimation and miscellaneous drills. Probably have too many, but bought in bulk.

 

[jay28]

Wow, you guys own lots of decks!

Thanks for the tips on discard trays, I live in the UK and for some reason discard trays seem to be hard to get hold of, unlike other BJ equipment, the one I have was posted from the US but still cost me less than $10 with postage and it's identical to the ones used in my local casinos. I'm not to bothered about the price as I see it that any BJ equipment I purchase pays for its self (eventually! - lol).

Mr Frog, was do you use that wall chart for? Is it just for decoration or some kind of drill ??

 

[Lonesome Gambler]

Don't overestimate the profit from your blackjack ventures. A couple of bucks (well, "quid" in your case, eh?) here and there might not seem like much, but when you actually figure out your EV, you'll see it differently, to say the least. Unless you're a high roller, a couple hundred in books and supplies can take a big chunk out of your expected gain.

I still like the 1 discard, many decks approach because you can play a game and drill yourself with pre-made stacks. For example, you're playing out a 6-deck shoe and you have a friend (dealer) say, "stop." Estimate the decks, calculate the TC, then have your friend hold up the pre-made stack corresponding to your estimate to see if you're over/under. Then go back to the game at hand. It's cheap and efficient.

By the way, if you buy multiple decks, buy them in bulk. I got 64 decks for about $27, which included shipping. Most are Caeser's, but there's some Planet Hollywood and Palace Station ones in there. The disclaimer said that they should make at least 60 complete decks (they're unsorted), but I got exactly 64 complete. Good luck!

 

[jay28]

Don't overestimate the profit from your blackjack ventures. A couple of bucks (well, "quid" in your case, eh?) here and there might not seem like much, but when you actually figure out your EV, you'll see it differently, to say the least. Unless you're a high roller, a couple hundred in books and supplies can take a big chunk out of your expected gain.

I still like the 1 discard, many decks approach because you can play a game and drill yourself with pre-made stacks. For example, you're playing out a 6-deck shoe and you have a friend (dealer) say, "stop." Estimate the decks, calculate the TC, then have your friend hold up the pre-made stack corresponding to your estimate to see if you're over/under. Then go back to the game at hand. It's cheap and efficient.

By the way, if you buy multiple decks, buy them in bulk. I got 64 decks for about $27, which included shipping. Most are Caeser's, but there's some Planet Hollywood and Palace Station ones in there. The disclaimer said that they should make at least 60 complete decks (they're unsorted), but I got exactly 64 complete. Good luck!

Hey Lonesome, sound advice but don't worry I'm fully aware of the money to be made from blackjack, I'm certainly not a high roller but the top end of my spread is far more than the advanage punter where I play. I run sims and am fully aware of my EV.

How long did it take you sort all those decks out? I have 6 decks that I use for practising cutting and also estimations, they are kept in order so that I know immediately how many cards I am out by or have cut at a glance. I've dropped them a few times and sorting them out is a pain, sorting 64 decks must have been a nightmare! I guess it's worth it for the cheap price though.

 

[Lonesome Gambler]

It probably took me a couple of hours. I just did it while sitting with some friends in the living room, chatting and watching TV. Not too bad.

 

[callipygian]

Wow, you guys own lots of decks!

Doesn't anyone here play poker? Usually I open two decks (one red and one blue) every time I have people over for poker. I have ~20 decks of cards lying around my house and I'm not even a hardcore counter.