I know Norman personally and believe him to be a man of integrity. Whether you like his procedures or not, he has treated me and many other fellow collectors fairly.

Most collectors will acknowledge that it typically costs around $280-$300 to win a $200 silver strike. Rarely do they cost under $200 and sometimes they cost over $400, as most of us have experienced. It also typically takes around 45 minutes to one hour to win the 20 $10 strikes, not including travel time. I have never seen Norm charge over $300 to $350 for a new $200 issue (while they are still available), regardless of the number of strikes reportedly being produced. For those of you who feel like he is making an excessive profit, consider what your time is worth and for the fact that he is takeing an element of risk away by selling for a fixed price.

Even though I live in Vegas, I have still bought strikes from Norm on occasion either due to time constraints or just not wanting to take the "gamble" that I can win one myself for his price or less. From a purely financial standpoint, more often than not I would have been ahead by buying all the new strikes from Norm given my luck on the machines. However, I much prefer playing for the strikes if time permits because that is one of the things that attracted me to this hobby over chips where you simply pay a cashier for them.

Norm is also often criticized for monopolizing the machines. Many collectors including myself are sometimes guilty of the same thing as we are usually picking up some traders. Rather than blasting him on the board, try chatting with him for a few minutes. I have seen him step aside and allow out of town "collectors" to play for the strikes which is a courtesy I have not seen many other "dealers", or even some collectors extend.

Lastly, I agree with Dennis that too many strikes (especially the higher denominations) in a short period could be detrimental to the hobby. While we all like to see casinos coming out with new designs, I hear some collectors complaining that it is becoming too much of a financial burden to keep up. However, given a choice, I would rather be forced to pick and choose which ones to collect rather than see the hobby stagnate due to a lack of new issues.

Hope to see everyone at the next convention!!!!!