I run a little candle-and-honey booth at the Saturday market in Austin. I also help my sister close out the register at her salon two nights a week. Lots of cash. Lots of late nights counting, rubber bands in my hair, calculator app glowing at 10 p.m. You know what? I got tired. Before I took the plunge, I read a field test over on Pretty Fakes about a similar unit, “I Tried a Currency Counter With Counterfeit Detection—Here’s What Actually Happened.” It convinced me a counter could save real time.
So I bought a Cassida 6600 with UV/MG/IR counterfeit detection. It was about the price of a decent cordless vacuum. A quick scroll through user reviews on Staples confirmed shoppers were happy with its speed and counterfeit-detection accuracy. I’ve used it for four months now. Here’s the real story—good, bad, and a bit sticky from honey.
Why I bought it
- I needed speed. A busy Saturday means a shoebox full of ones, fives, tens, and twenties.
- I wanted a fake check. Nothing fancy. Just a smart screen and a loud beep.
- I didn’t need a bank-grade vault robot. Just a steady machine that counts fast and doesn’t fuss.
I also combed through their guide, “How I Spot a Fake Bill (and the Gear I Actually Use),” to make sure the machine’s sensors backed up the manual tools I already trust.
Quick heads-up: this machine counts pieces. It does “value” if you tell it the bill type, but it won’t sort mixed bills by value. So you still need to sort by $1, $5, $10, $20. I knew that going in.
Setup in real life
It came well-packed. I set it on a flat IKEA table, plugged it in, and that was it. No software. No Bluetooth. The screen is big and clear. The buttons are obvious. Batch, Add, Start. Even my sister, who hates gadgets, got it in one try.
The unit is about 12 pounds. I can carry it to the truck, but I don’t want to hike with it. It fits behind my booth sign next to the square mints jar.
First big test: Saturday market
We had a record day. I sorted bills by type into four stacks. Then I used Batch mode set to 20, because my bank straps are 20 per stack.
- Ones: 1,860 pieces. Yes, tips and change add up.
- Fives: 340 pieces.
- Tens: 140 pieces.
- Twenties: 108 pieces.
The machine zipped through each pile. It took seconds per batch. I loved Add mode. It kept a running count while I made neat little bricks. When I told it “$20” for the $20 stack, it showed a dollar total. Handy when my brain was mush.
The counterfeit check, for real
Two stories here.
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At the salon, a $100 bill tripped the alarm. The machine spit it out with a beep. The screen showed a code, and the UV/MG light flicked on. In plain talk: the bill’s ink and strip didn’t read right. I took it to our bank the next morning. They confirmed it was fake. My stomach dropped, but I was grateful. That would’ve been a big loss. Funny enough, Pretty Fakes once put a simple felt-tip tester through a similar scare in “I Tried a Counterfeit Bill Pen—Here’s What Happened.” Worth a read if you still rely on pens alone.
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On a rainy market day, two old $20s got flagged. Both had tape on the edges. The machine did not like that. We checked them under a handheld UV light, then asked the bank. They were real. So yes, this thing is strict with beat-up bills. I’m fine with that; I’d rather a false alarm than a bad bill. That mini heart-attack reminded me of Pretty Fakes’ write-up, “I Learned to Spot Fake $20 Bills the Hard Way,” where even seasoned cash-handlers get burned.
If you’d like a quick visual refresher on how genuine notes should look, Pretty Fakes hosts a crisp side-by-side gallery that taught me a few extra tells.
Speed, jams, and noise
- Speed: It’s fast. Around 1,000 to 1,400 bills a minute, give or take. It eats a stack before I can sip my coffee.
- Jams: Worn bills cause hiccups. Fan the stack. Square the edges. That fixes most issues.
- Noise: Sounds like a box fan. You can talk over it. I wouldn’t run it during a quiet yoga class, but a salon or booth? Totally fine.
- Heat: After 20 minutes it gets warm on top. Not hot. I give it a little break between stacks.
Quirks I learned the hard way
- New, crisp $100s sometimes pause the feed. I fan them like a deck of cards. Then it’s smooth.
- Old, soft ones? They like to stick together. A quick flip of the stack helps.
- Power flickers reset the count. I added a surge protector after a summer storm. Problem solved.
- Mixed bills: you still need to sort by denomination. If you don’t, the total is just pieces, not dollars. That’s not a bug. It’s how most counters in this price range work.
- I keep a marker clipped to my apron for walk-up sales when the counter isn't handy—Pretty Fakes field-tested one in “I Carry a Counterfeit Currency Marker—Here’s How It Really Went.”
Batch mode is the hero
For deposits, Batch 20 is perfect. I make a row of $1 straps, then $5s, and so on. It stops right at 20 every time. I don’t have to think. My hands just move—count, strap, slide. It cut my close-out time by more than half. On a big day, I save 30 to 40 minutes. That’s a whole sink of dishes at home.
Cleaning and care (learned with sticky honey fingers)
Dust and tiny fibers build up fast. I clean it once a week:
- Blow out the path with a little can of air.
- Wipe the sensors with a cotton swab and a drop of rubbing alcohol.
- Keep the rollers dry. No oils.
If it starts to miscount or beep more, it’s usually time for a clean. Also, don’t feed it wet bills. Ask me how I know. Honey spill. Not my best moment.
What I love
- It caught a fake $100 and saved me.
- It’s fast and simple. No app circus.
- Batch mode plus Add mode feels like magic.
- The screen is bright and easy to read.
What bugs me
- False flags on taped or very dirty bills.
- No mixed-value counting. Sorting still takes time.
- It warms up on long runs. Not scary, just warm.
- It resets on power blips without a surge strip.
Real numbers from a Monday close
At the salon, we had:
- $1 bills: 116
- $5 bills: 48
- $10 bills: 27
- $20 bills: 39
Sorting took 5 minutes. Counting took 3. Total time: under 10 minutes. Before the machine, that was 25 minutes, easy, and we still made math slips. Now, the bank totals match what’s on the screen. Clean handoff. Less stress.
By the way, the extra time I save each night has freed up whole evenings for a social life again. If closing out quicker leaves you itching to connect with locals after hours, consider visiting this Austin-based casual meetup site—you’ll find no-fuss tools for meeting new people right in your neighborhood and turning that reclaimed time into something fun. If your travels ever take you closer to Chicago and you’re looking for a similarly streamlined way to meet people, check out One Night Affair’s Lombard listings where thoroughly vetted ads let you skip the sketchy classifieds and dive straight into planning a fun evening.
Who should get this
- Market vendors, food trucks, church fundraisers, small shops. If you count cash a few times a week, this pays for itself.
- Not for you if you need mixed-value sorting or euro/yen support. That’s a different price tier.
Final take
This currency counter made my close-outs boring—in the best way. It’s fast, clear, and a bit fussy with crusty bills, but that keeps me safe. I still check big notes by hand with a UV pen, out of habit. Trust but verify. If you’re curious which pen