I’ve been in Vegas 30 years this year, and there is some etiquette that I stand by. If I see a chair propped up against a machine, I pass, as that is the (definitely old-school) way of letting passers-by know the machine is occupied while someone goes to the bathroom or gets more money from the cage or ATM. For me, if I know the machine is occupied, I don’t think it’s worth the drama of upsetting another player, especially if you’re in a casino known to be unfriendly to advantage players, to try and take a play from a ploppy.
That said, if a player really wants to be sure that nobody takes the machine, that player should flag down a slot floor (e.g., turn on the service light) and ask that (s)he watch the machine. I haven’t seen a slot floor yet who won’t do this, and it’s proper etiquette to give a small tip on your return. This is what I do all the time, no matter how long I’m going to be gone, because there are plenty of people nowadays who will disregard the propped-chair technique if something is good enough on the screen. If you’re going to take a really long break, like to grab a bite to eat in the middle of a really long playing session (this typically will be video poker rather than slots, like chasing a RF progressive), then you should again flag down a slot floor and ask him or her to lock the machine; most casinos allow this for a specified timeframe, usually 1 or 2 hours. People who aren’t aware that this can be done, however, also tend to rely on the propped-chair technique.
If a play is good enough, and the chair is propped, I will camp at least until the player returns so I can see how much money (s)he is going to feed the machine. If it’s a lot, I’ll move on at that point. If it’s not, I’ll keep camping until the play vanishes or the ploppy gets up without propping the chair (usually because the player has already gotten all the money (s)he is willing to spend that day when the chair was propped before). This way, nobody gets their feelings in a knot, and I don’t draw any unnecessary unwanted attention.
My 2c, fwiw
King of Hearts
