Improving one's practice

Hello people of the forum and happy 2023. This is my first post on a forum ever and this maybe an indicator of my determination, maybe it's just a coincidence.

Been into card counting for some months now, not in a rush to go in a casino, my bankroll is just not big enough yet and I also have a lot to learn still.

The reason of this post is that my practice became very stale and I am looking for ways to make it not only less boring but also more efficient. One aspect efficiency wise would be ways to  incorporate I18 and FAB4 into my game , something else would be pointers about record keeping.

Lastly , wonging; when I started learning I thought that I would never be able to bring myself to do it so I never gave it much thought , but having seen its efficiency a whole new world of possibilities opened up. Any advice on how to actually overcome my fear and start visualizing me doing it in an actual casino? Sometimes I think that a person in my position has just to do it once, see that the world does not collapse and live happily ever after. 

I would be very grateful for any feedback.

Apologies in advance if some of this feedback is too basic. It's not clear what your experience level is.

I assume you are practicing by dealing yourself hands from a multiple pack deck of cards. You could up your game by getting CVBJ and using the software to practice counting and doing deck estimation drills.  If you don't get the software, buy some chips and a discard tray and as you deal yourself hands (I'd say maybe four hands per round) practice betting with the chips base on the True Count, a hypothetical bankroll, and a planned ramp.  Your ramp and spread are major factors in driving your advantage and profitability 

I don't know how you can practice wonging without actually being in a casino. I recommend you go to a casino without the intention of actually playing, but spend the time back counting, trying to see the cards with people in the way, eyeing the discard tray, watching the dealer cutoffs and computing the True Count while you're watching from a distance and practice not looking obvious.  You'll also experience how far and few between hot shoes can be.

You may be getting ahead of yourself with the record keeping. Besides tallying your wins and losses, you will want to record enough about the games, the ramp/spread you achieve, number of players,  etc., to estimate your EV. The record keeping should be your way of evaluating your ability to execute your plan successfully, and point out things to do during your next session.

Good Luck. Keep practicing!  

First of all, thank you very much for taking the time to respond.

My experience is one time at a casino playing BS ( 600 won :D ). The last 4 months I have been excercising counting, betting and deck estimating by dealing hands to myself and and counting down decks as well as reading online as well some of the classic blackjack literature.

It never occured to me to deal more hands per round than heads up, will surely do it adding difficulty and bringing home conditions a step closer to real conditions.

Great idea!

About wonging , I was too intimidated by the idea of doing it when the time came that I  never used it , even in my home games. However after I've done it I realized its value and wanted ideas on how to approach it , at first mentally as I am not going to a casino for the next few months. When the time comes I will surely try to approach it in a way similar to what you said , unless the intimidation goes away.

About record keeping , I'll try to not worry about it ( won't be that difficult). I was just asking so I had something to do between the shoes I deal ( which is starting getting a little stale) that is going to be necessary at some point. Again your input is valuable.

Once again, thanks a lot about the advice and good luck to you too!

I use Slot Lady and Live:Blackjack on-line to practice the running count in an actual casino game. The players are ploppies with annoying chatter that simulates casino distractions. Slot Lady, as the name implies, is mostly about slots but occasionally has a blackjack game.

Hey, thanks for the input. Could you share a link ?

yyz:

Here is a Slot Lady episode at the El Cortez:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpL7qvT6XJQ

Here is another episode at the El Cortez:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvlCWPYpgls&t=515s

The El Cortez is a notorious sweat shop. They would probably be upset if they knew we were using videos of their games to practice counting.

Here is some amazing hands video, also at El Cortez:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvlCWPYpgls&t=541s

I tried Googling live:blackjack and could not find the web site I found the other day. If you Google live:blackjack you will find various on-line casinos that you can play for free. They would be good practice opportunities.

I also use flash cards I made on blank business card stock.

I hope this is useful. 

Of course this is helpful. Had the same issue with typing blackjack:live.

Spent some time creating flashcards for learning BS and I still use them everyday before start dealing hands as a type of a warm up. One of these days I am going to make flashcards for deviations form TC -2 to TC +5 . They are really a great way of learning.

yyz, I'm going to shamelessly plug the new book that Don Schlesinger and I have just finished. For a large variety of games and playing styles it ranks the Hi-Lo index plays in order of contribution to SCORE. It's a great tool for deciding how many and which indices to learn for your game.

Check out https://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/2022-holiday-catalog/

The book is called The Hi-Lo Card Counting System: A Complete Guide to Index Play and is on the 4th page at the bottom.

Gronbog thanks for the pointer.

When the time comes for me to invest some money on literature I'll have your book in mind.