Switching between counting systems.

[Northbend]

If any of you have switched counting systems at some point, did you find that you would sometimes switch back and forth depending on what game you were playing, or was it too confusing to do so? Or do some of you switch between systems as a regular practice?

[21forme]

I started with KO, then switched to HiLo a few years later because I wanted to start playing Sp21 and didn't want to switch back and forth between systems.

[Northbend]

Did you/do you still use KO for counting blackjack shoe games? It seems like it could be a somewhat seamless transition between the two games, as Spanish 21 begins with a negative counts as well using hi low.

[21forme]

No, dropped KO completely. There really wasn't any point to continue using it.

[Northbend]

Gotcha, thank you. I’m in the same process of changing counts for the same reasons as you did. If you have any general advice that you found useful that you feel like sharing it would be appreciated. I can keep a running count accurately, but I have to confess that whole deck estimation thing is a little intimidating. Otherwise, thanks for the answer. Happy Friday.

[21forme]

No question deck estimation takes practice.

I haven't used it for many years, but in my closet I have something like 100 decks of casino cards, a discard tray, etc. Put 6 or 8 decks together and put 1 deck, 2 decks, etc. in the tray to see what they look like. Once you have an idea, grab a chunk of decks, make an estimate then count the cards to see how cllose you were. Rinse and repeat.

Don't forget that a Spanish deck is only 48 cards.

[Northbend]

Good advice, thanks!

[Freightman]

No question deck estimation takes practice.

I haven't used it for many years, but in my closet I have something like 100 decks of casino cards, a discard tray, etc. Put 6 or 8 decks together and put 1 deck, 2 decks, etc. in the tray to see what they look like. Once you have an idea, grab a chunk of decks, make an estimate then count the cards to see how cllose you were. Rinse and repeat.

Don't forget that a Spanish deck is only 48 cards.

Cards for 6 deck Spanish or blackjack - use felt marker and mark cards 1 thru 288 or 312 as the case may be. Put cards in sequential order - then practice practice practice.

Then understand that deck widths will vary - take that into account etc etc.

[Northbend]

Thanks Freightman. Good point about varying deck widths. I’m sorry, but I didn’t quite understand what you meant about marking the cards. So I’m marking every single card in the six deck shoe? Where should I mark them and what purpose does that serve?

[Freightman]

Thanks Freightman. Good point about varying deck widths. I’m sorry, but I didn’t quite understand what you meant about marking the cards. So I’m marking every single card in the six deck shoe? Where should I mark them and what purpose does that serve?

Cards marked in order 1 thru 312. You have a 1 deck cut. You estimate that 1.5 deck or 78 cards remain. Your deck estimation is great if you cut to card 234, or within 2 cards.

Put cards back and rinse and repeat with different deck estimation. Mark the back of the cards.

[21forme]

The hard part is keeping the cards in numerical order after doing that

But I have done that for other kinds of plays, such as bottom card steering.

[Northbend]

I get it, thanks again!

[BigJer]

I'm learning HiOPTII w/ASC. The nice thing about it is if you find a good SD then you can flat bet. But, applying it is the tough part.