[ky70]

Please see note regarding standard Dal Negro's at the bottom of this post.

Poker Width Cards - Ratings:

Reference#	Decks	Manufacturer	Style	Width	Index	Rating (1-10)
1	2	Copag	4 colour	poker	Jumbo/4 PIP	8.0
2	2	Copag	Export	poker	Jumbo	8.5
3	2	Dal Negro Acetate	Net	poker	Jumbo	9.75
4	2	Dal Negro *	Freedom	poker	Jumbo	9.25
5	2	Dal Negro *	Freedom	poker	Regular	9.25
6	4	Dal Negro *	Royal	poker	Jumbo	8.75
7	2	Dal Negro *	Superstar	poker	Jumbo	9.25
8	1	Dal Negro *	Torcello (Blanco)	poker	Regular/4 PIP	9.0
9	1	Desjgn	Paisley	poker	Regular	8.75
10	2	Desjgn	Paisley	poker	Jumbo	8.75
11	2	Fournier	2818	poker	Jumbo	9.25
12	4	Modiano	Bike Trophy	poker	Regular/4 PIP	8.0
13	2	Modiano	Poker Club	poker	Jumbo	8.5
14	2	NTP	Black Jack	poker	Jumbo	8.5
15	1	NTP	Floreale	poker	Regular/4 PIP	9.0

Poker Width Cards - Comments:
1 - Copag 4 coIour Jumbo/4 PIP - I really wanted to like these cards but they feel too flimsy and slick for my taste. The blue and green cards could be a deeper color but don't look nearly as bad as the color on the 2 pip decks. On a good note, the 4 pip jumbo index (not too big) are really a nice feature and I would like to see this feature on a Dal Negro card Rating = 8.0

2 - Copag Export Jumbo - I was pleasantly surprised with these Copag's as these Poker width cards don't seem to be slippery/flimsy as some other Copag's. The Exports are great all around cards that have just enough texture on the back, just enough thickness, great flexibility (without feeling flimsy) and durability to make these a winner. The design on the back of the cards makes me dizzy if I look at them too long but I really like the full bleed backs. Rating = 8.25

3 - DN Acetate Net Jumbo - These cards listed as being intended for card rooms and commercial use…that got my attention. I first put them through the usual torture tests by bending the cards width wise end to end, length wise end to end, and opposite corner end to end. I also lift up and pull back (way back) the corners of the cards (as you would with your hole cards) while the majority of the card stays on the table. I violently scratch the face paint to see if I can chip the paint and do the same to the backs to see if I can remove any paint there. After 10 minutes of torture, the cards were still in perfect condition. I really like the diamond design on the card backs and they do have a casino/professional look to them. The face design is the same as the standard DNs. So these cards are very similar to standard DNs but I did note a difference. The new cards have that great DN texture and thickness but there is something different about the texture. It’s hard to describe but these DNs have more “glide” to their feel than the standard DNs. They still have the great texture but my fingers glide across these DNs with more ease as compared to standard DNs. My guess is that this difference is because of the acetate used for these cards. The only other card I can recall that is also made of acetate is Kem’s. So after messing with these cards for over a week the light bulb went on. I took out my Pre USPC Kem’s along with my standard DNs and the new acetate Dal Negro’s. My fingers also glide across the Kem cards and after short time I concluded that the feel of the DN acetate cards is like a cross between standard DNs and pre USPC Kem (imagine that). So these cards deal and handle like a dream and I have a hard time reaching for any other cards with these on hand. I am very impressed with these cards and will be interested to see how long these cards will last. Time will tell if the cards are worth $32 (right now I say they are), but these are now my favorite cards and my standard Dal Negro's (and my other plastic cards) haven't seen much of the poker table since the acetate's showed up. If you're looking to buy just 1 setup of cards, you won't find anything better than these (IMO). Rating = 9.75

4 - DN Freedom Regular * - These are great cards and if you prefer regular index poker width cards, you'll be hard pressed to top these. The feel on these are at the top of my list (along with NTPs & Modiano) as some players have mistakenly assumed these to be paper cards (a good thing). They also have the security ink for the diamonds and hearts (deep dark red) which is a feature intended to make it more difficult to sneak a peak and determine the suits of another players' hole cards (I like the dark red). These cards have just the right amount of flexibility and a nice thickness to the cards that also contribute to the paper card feel. I like the way these cards shuffle and handle and you'll be hard pressed to find better cards than these Rating = 9.25

5 - DN Freedom Jumbo * - These are some of my favorite cards...all the attributes of the Freedom regular index cards (less the security ink) with Jumbo indexes and bright graphics. Rating = 9.25

6 - DN Royals Jumbo * - Really nice cards but I can't say I like them as much as the DN Freedom Jumbo cards as there is a texture difference between the two cards (I did a blind feel test and was able to identify the Freedoms from the Royals). I believe the noted texture differences may have more to do with the batch of cards these were printed with than the actual style. I would expect a newly purchased set of DN Royals to have the same texture as other Dal Negros. But as it stands, these DN Royals are very similar to the Copag Exports in texture as I was not very succesful in telling them apart with a blind feel test. Same thickness and flexibility as other DNs and unlike the Exports, these full bleed backs don't make me dizzy if I look at them for too long. Rating = 8.75

7 - DN Superstar Jumbo * - To start with these card have great texture. I compared them to the Freedoms and I actually noted a difference (edit: I think any noted difference is due to one set being new...over time they have a similar texture to the Freedom's). The graphics on the front are similar to the other DN jumbo index BUT they do not have as much yellow tint in the center of the face cards as the other jumbo index DN's do. The beige tint on these cards is understated and not that noticable. Another plus for these cards are the full bleed backs which I'm a big fan of. The back designs between the Superstars and Royals (both full bleed) are hard to tell apart from a distance but the Superstar is a better looking playing card. Initially it looked like these didn't have any floating top card issue at all but as I played with them more I started to notice it happening once in a while. Some of the bests cards out there. Rating = 9.25

8 - DN Torcello Regular/4 PIP * - These cards appear to be identical to the Freedom's in feel and thickness. They do not have the security ink and the Torcello's only come in regular index 4 pips. Cards are just as good as Freedom's so if your preference is 4 pips, these are for you. I have full bleed all white backs (Blanco) which look really nice on different color poker felts (if you care about that kind of thing). Torcello's seem to have more of a problem with the "floating" top card than the Freedom's (for whatever reason). Rating = 9.0

9 - Desjgn Paisley Regular - These cards are a winner in my book. The card faces really jump out at you with a very white background and great looking fonts on the lettering helping these cards to stand out. They may have the most impressive faces I've seen on a plastic card. I abused the facepaint on these cards as much as possible but these cards showed absolutely no sign of wear. There is also a nice thickness to these cards. Not as thick as Dal Negro or Modiano but thicker than Kem and Copag. Cards also have a great flexibility to them without being "flimsy". I bent these cards every which way and they recovered every time. The texture on them is just ok as they are a bit slippery but they handled pretty well in actual game play (with a rotating dealer). The cards shuffle nicely and I really like the way these things glide across the table. Rating = 8.75

10 - Desjgn Paisley Jumbo - All the benefits of the regular index cards but with a perfect sized "medium" jumbo index much like the Modiano Poker Club Jumbo index. Rating may go up on these cards over time. Rating = 8.75

11 - Fournier 2818 Jumbo - I had no idea Fournier’s were this nice and I’ve missed out by not trying Fournier brand cards before now. The cards have a nice textured feel to them but it’s a different feel than Dal Negro/Modiano/NTP cards. I can’t describe the difference in feel but I like the Fournier texture just as much as I do the others. I also like the simple/classic back design and I’m pleased to report that the red on the face of the cards are a darker brick red (probably Forunier’s version of “security ink”) as I think the cards look classier with a darker red. The faces of the cards remind me a lot of Dal Negro’s and these cards play/handle very similar to Dal Negro as well but I would say that the Fournier’s shuffle with more ease (slightly) than the Dal Negro’s. The cards also handled my stress test well (bending, scratching face paint, etc…). The Fournier’s do not appear to recover from bends as quickly as Dal Negro’s, BUT they do eventually return to flat. At this point, these cards belong in the same conversation with Dal Negro’s for great plastic cards. Rating = 9.25

12 - Modiano Bike Trophy Regular/4 PIP - When I first received the Bike Trophy's I rated them nearly identical with Dal Negro's (actually ahead of DNs at the time because of the 4 pips and I only had the Freedom regular index from DN), but over time I have noted differences in texture (edge going to DNs) and the Modiano's are just a bit too stiff as these cards do not hold/recover from a bend as good as other plastic cards. They have the good texture and the paper appeal that the DN's do but DNs seem to be better all around cards. The face of the Bike Trophy's seem to pick up dirt faster than other cards. Rating = 8.0

13 - Modiano Poker Club Jumbo - These are really nice looking cards (I have the Green/Brown Setup) and the texture on these things are great and definitely up there with the DNs and NTPs. I can't recall if the Bike Trophy's felt this good when I first received them and lost texture over time so I don't know if these Modiano's are just better or if this is how they all start. The Jumbo indexes on these things are the best I've seen. I like them because they're the smallest Jumbo index of any card I've seen (I don't like the Jumbo too big...imagine that) and the suit underneath the index appears to be regular index size (perfect). It's easy to take a peek at your hole cards without bending up too much card. The red on the diamonds and hearts is a nice rich color red peferctly situated in-between bright red and security ink red. These are some of the best looking cards out there but as I was afraid of, these cards have started to hold a bend over time (they no longer lay completely flat) But if you're already a Modiano fan, then definitely check these out. Rating = 8.5

14 - NTP Black Jack Jumbo - These cards are a winner out of the box. The feel/texture is very nice with that slight sandpaper texture that NTP cards have. The red suits on these cards are a dark red color which may be NTPs version of security ink but the red is not as dark as the red on the security ink DN Freedom’s. Modiano’s are often mentioned as being similar to DNs but I would say that NTPs are closer to DNs than Modiano’s are. The flexibility of these cards is nice and similar to DNs. They’re a hair stiffer than DNs but not by much and they are not as stiff as the Modiano’s. I noted on the 4 pip poker width NTPs that the cards were wider and taller than other plastic poker width cards (DN, Modiano and Copag) and that it was noticeable. Well these cards are the same width as the other plastic poker width cards and are a hair taller (apprx 1/32nd of an inch) than other plastic poker width cards. The size difference is not noticeable to me. And just like the other plastic poker width cards, the NTP Blackjack cards are smaller in height and width when compared to the NTP 4 pip cards. The Blackjack index is large. If you’re not a fan of Jumbo index these cards definitely ain’t for you. They’re close in size to the Jumbo index on DN cards but the NTP index is taller and the suit underneath the number is also bigger (The DN index may be wider). The new Kem Arrow Jumbo indexes are the only cards I’ve seen with a larger index. One negative is that the backs of the cards are pretty boring. On the booklet that comes with the cards it makes mention of some special printing process that helps make these cards long lasting…I hope that this is referring to the ink on the face and that the faces will not fade. Another card junkie (Captn All In) noted issues with the backs flaking or being marked...after several sessions, I too noticed some flaking on my card backs. I spoke with vendor and they were unaware of any issues regarding the card backs so I'm hoping these were exceptions but until I can get several sessions out of the replacement cards without issue, their score is dropped by .75 (rating w/out any back fading/wear issues would be 9.25). If replacement cards hold up well, NTPs will return to/near the top of my favorites list. Rating = 8.50

15 - NTP Floreale Regular/4 PIP - These cards are also really good. The perimeter of these cards is apprx. 1/16th - 1/32nd of an inch bigger than the other Poker width cards. If you can barely stand the size of poker width cards, then you definitely won't like these as I do notice that I have bigger cards in my hand. The feel/texture is great (slight sandpaper feel) on these and in terms of stiffness there somewhere in-between Modiano and Dal Negro. The durability of these cards is unknown at this point but if you like big cards and 4 pips, these are for you. Rating = 9.0


Here are my Top/Favorite 5 Poker width cards:
1 DN Acetate Net
2a DN Superstar *
2b DN Freedom *
2c Fournier 2818
5 Desjgn Paisley



Bridge Width Cards - Ratings:

Reference#	Decks	Manufacturer	Style	Width	Index	Rating (1-10)
1	2	Copag	Master	bridge	Regular	7.5
2	2	Copag	1546	bridge	Regular	7.5
3	6	Copag	Signature	bridge	Jumbo	9.0
4	2	Dal Negro Acetate	Net	bridge	Regular	9.0
5	2	Dal Negro *	Grand Slam	bridge	Regular	8.5
6	2	Kem	Arrow (USPC)	bridge	Jumbo	8.0
7	2	Kem	Paisley (Pre USPC)	bridge	Regular	8.5
8	2	Modiano	Bike Trophy	bridge	Regular/4 PIP	7.5
9	2	NTP	N/A	bridge	Jumbo	9.0

Bridge Width Cards - Comments:

1 & 2- Copag 1546/Master Regular - I grouped these 2 cards together because to me they are identical in every way except the back design. I think these cards are too flimsy and these particular cards are my least favorite of the quality plastic cards I've tried. If you like very flexible cards and bridge width, you may like these. Rating = 7.5

3 - Copag Signature Jumbo - These are one of my favorite decks and the texture on these things are great and I have not run into another Copag card (or any card) that had this same feel. The Jumbo pip size on these cards are a nice medium and these cards have the great Copag flexibility without feeling flimsy. I made the mistake of rating another bridge width card above these but after I gave them another go, it was clear that the other cards (NTP Jumbo) could only be equal but not higher. There are negatives about these cards: 1) the graphics on the face of the cards do not pop and wear like many other cards and 2) these cards were discoutinued some time ago and are no longer available. I have an unopened setup of these that I may never open since they can not be replaced. If these cards had the same face as the Kem Arrow Super index or the NTP Jumbo index (and they didn't fade), I would rate these cards even higher. Rating = 9.0

4 - DN Acetate Net Regular - See review of poker width Acetate cards above. Bridge version receives a lower rating than poker verison because I do not believe that the thickness of these cards play as well in bridge width, but they still tie for my highest rated bridge card. Rating = 9.0

5 - DN Grand Slams Regular * - These are really good cards and if I had them in Jumbo index I would rate them higher. They have nice somewhat sandpapery feel that gives these cards a really good texture and the cards are thicker than the Copag and Kem bridge cards. I've had them for quite some time but they haven't been in play all that much so I'm uncertain of their durability. These cards do seem to attract dirt so you may have to clean these more than others. If you're a Dal Negro poker width fan and want to try bridge size, check these out. Rating = 8.5

6 - Kem Arrow (USPC) Super index - The graphics on these cards really "pop" with bright colors. The size of the index on these super index cards may be the biggest out of all the cards I have...so you may have to lift up the corner of the cards more than you would like to see your hole cards. I'm not in love with the feel of these cards but they do play very well and may be the easiest cards to shuffle. These cards have actually started to show a slight bend in them and I hardly ever use them (kept with all other cards at room temperature and other cards are fine). I like these cards (minus the bowing) because of the Jumbo index and great graphics on these cards. I also really like the back design of these cards. Rating = 8.0

7 - Kem Paisley (Pre USPC) Regular - The feel of these cards are in-between the Kem Arrows and the DN Grand Slams (closer to the Grand Slams). Very nice cards with nice backs but hardly ever get into play because they are regular index cards. The old Kems are not as flimsy as the new Kems. If I were a standard index bridge card guy, I would really be into these cards. Rating = 8.5

8 - Modiano Bike Trophy Regular/4 PIP - I really liked these cards when I first received them, but I have since cooled on them after having them for awhile. Stiff cards are not a good thing when combined with a slick feel and the bridge Modiano cards do not feel as textured as the Poker width Modiano's. The 4 pips are a nice bonus but these cards do not play great (to me). Rating = 7.5

9 - NTP Jumbo - These cards surprised me as they have more of a sandpaper feel (a good thing) than the poker width NTP does. This is the first time in a long time that a bridge width card has better texture than a poker width card from the same manufacturer. The cards are the same width as other bridge cards but the height is apprx. 1/8th - 1/16th inches more than other bridge cards. I do not notice the size difference when handling these cards. The thickness of the cards are very similar to DN Grand Slams and I could easily mistake these cards for one another (with my eyes closed) but the NTPs feel more sand papery. What I also like about these cards is that the Jumbo index is the 2nd smallest oversized index that I've seen (Modiano Poker Club Jumbo index are the same height but have less width and smaller suits). You won't mistake them for regular index but they seem to be a nice compromise between Regular index and Jumbo index. It's a great option for guys that don't like lifting too much card off the table to take a peek at their hole cards but yet want a larger index. The red on the diamonds and hearts is a nice rich dark red which is close to Dal Negro security ink but not quite as dark. The only negative (at this point) on these cards is the backs are boring. The durability of these cards is unknown at this point. Lastly, the floating top card syndrome does not appear to happen as much with these cards. Rating = 9.0

Here are my Top/Favorite 5 Bridge width cards:
1 Copag Signature Jumbo
2a DN Acetate Net
2b NTP Jumbo
4a Kem Paisley (Pre USPC)
4b DN Grand Slams *


And here is how I would describe my perfect cards:
Width: Poker
Index: Jumbo
Texture: DNs/NTP/Modiano
Stiffness/Flexibility: DNs with Kem/Copag bend recovery
Thickness: DNs/NTP/Fournier
Backs: Green/Brown Modiano Poker Club's but with full bleed backs
Face (Pip Design): Desjgn Paisley
Face (Background Whiteness): Desjgn Paisley
Durability: Pre USPC Kems/Copags

* Note (8/18/06): It was discovered that many recent Dal Negro cards were shipped from the factory missing protective coating resulting in the face paint easily being scratched off the face of the cards. details can be found here.

Update (11/21/06): The defective DN issue has been addressed by the manufacturer and the current stock of DNs are good but it is possible that vendors unaware of the problem may still be carrying defective DNs in their inventory. Here are vendors that I know of that are aware of the DN issues and currently have "good" stock: Tridentcards, Caragails, Holdempokerchips and Gameroomsupply (Dal Negro's US Distributor).