Here is my saga: When I first started collecting, I had no idea what casinos had strike machines. My wife and I literally walked all over Las Vegas to look in each casino for a machine -- went to some really seedy dives that way. Many times we would walk 30 minutes or more (Hard Rock and the Stratosphere come to mind) and win a strike on the first pull! Some time later, I discovered Randy Mortimer's website (thank you, thank you, thank you!) and started narrowing down my search. I then decided to get one from each casino in Nevada, but only if I could get it myself.

For my 40th birthday, we decided to fly to Nevada and rent a convertible. Driving with the top down in July made us feel like microwave popcorn, so we drove late at night to Mesquite, the next day Primm, etc. We would visit the casinos with machines removed just to ask if any were at the cage.

So, at 2:30 a.m. we drag into Nevada Landing and look around for a moment. I go to the cage and ask, and nobody has seen one for forever... Slightly dejected we turn around to walk out when I see a woman talking to a lady pushing a change cart in the middle of a remarkably empty casino. The woman is trying to cash in a strike and is being told that "those things don't have any value anymore." I try not to act too stunned and offered $10 for it, which she very gratefully accepted. A very nice "Riverboat" in hand, we walked out of a dead quiet casino with goofy smiles on our faces.

A little later, I finally broke down and bought some to complete the one-per casino collection in Nevada, as I figured out I could stand in the Bourbon Street casino until Medicare age and never get that lucky again.

I've enjoyed everyone's stories, and hope to see a few more before this thread ends.