[maniack]

I didn't want to threadjack nygiantsfan3342's thread, but I have a very similar question and have poured through old threads and various other resources but am still a little confused on exact pricing, etc. and have yet to find anything that really addresses this specific query. So here goes:

I'm looking to put together a large-ish cash game set (~2000-3000 chips) that needs to meet the following requirements:

• Good security
• Low price
• Long life

I think the front-runner right now are labeled Chinese Clays from palmimports/pokerchiplounge (at $.55 ea.), but I haven't ruled out ceramics (SunFly from PI/PCL/Nevada Jacks, ABCs, or ?).

So, ChipTalk, what are the best inexpensive, secure custom chip options? Thanks in advance for the help.

[Matthew]

Originally Posted by maniack

I'm looking to put together a large-ish cash game set (~2000-3000 chips) that needs to meet the following requirements:

• Good security
• Low price
• Long life

2000-3000 chips for cash is not a typical home game. Either way, it sounds like security is the most important.

One option - on the more economic side:
2500+ solid ASM with custom inlay are $0.75 each.
Security - get a unique mold that can't be purchased as a blank and have a unique inlay on it. Long life isn't a problem.

Ceramics will be your only other real option for security.

Labeled chips are not a good idea, someone could take a chip out, duplicate the label and then where would you be.

[JM]

Originally Posted by Matthew

Ceramics will be your only other real option for security.

Labeled chips are not a good idea, someone could take a chip out, duplicate the label and then where would you be.

As we've seen, ceramics don't solve that problem either. Someone can have your custom ceramics copied as well. Clay is really your best bet for security.

[maniack]

Originally Posted by Matthew

2000-3000 chips for cash is not a typical home game.

The game is usually $1/3 NL with a $100/500 min/max and the game can run for 10 or 12 hours. By the end of the night (er, morning) there can routinely be 1500 $5 chips on the table. We prefer to stick with $5s to make it easier for the dealer, although we could cut the number of chips greatly by introducing $25 and $100 chips...

Originally Posted by Matthew

Labeled chips are not a good idea, someone could take a chip out, duplicate the label and then where would you be.

With mostly $5 chips on the table, this is less of a concern for us... we're just trying to limit the barrier to entry. At some similar games they play with easily available home-market chips and I've always thought how easy it'd be for someone with lax morals to sneak chips in.

[mykl316]

Why not just use your custom hotstamps? You went through enough trouble to get them right, why not put them to good use? There's no better security than that.

[maniack]

Originally Posted by mykl316

Why not just use your custom hotstamps? You went through enough trouble to get them right, why not put them to good use? There's no better security than that.

Well, its a good idea but that set is for my personal $.25/.50 game.

These chips are for a game that isn't mine (I'm just helping a friend 'cause I want to play there--and not with dice chips ) and we'd need A LOT more chips. That, and at ~$.85 each including die fees, we're talking $2-3k in chips, where we're hoping to spend $1k or so (thus the "cheap" part of this thread's title). Also, chips from BCC would probably take months to get made and my friend is hoping to start his game up ASAP.

[A-Ro]

Originally Posted by maniack

Also, chips from BCC would probably take months to get made and my friend is hoping to start his game up ASAP.

This comment alone lends me to recommend Sunfly's. Both for cost and speed.

Solid ASM's would be good too; however, you have a longer turnaround time there too.

[palmimports]

what about our inlays on whatever chip you decide UV marked then bonded to the chip. THe UV security is on the inlay BEFORE the lamination- you cannot remove the lamination without destroying the image

We can also do either UV ink on ceramics or rfid on ceramics but you will need to buy a reader from us to read the chips
also- our RFID ceramics are NOT Sunfly blanks-

[jon_1van]

By the end of the night (er, morning) there can routinely be 1500 $5 chips on the table. We prefer to stick with $5s to make it easier for the dealer

You seriously need a higher denomination in place.


It will speed up the game because your dealers won't have to spend so much time verifying bets like $80. (Is that a stack of 15,16, or 17 5s??)


The chips will also become a "status" symbol to players in the game...ohhhh you have a stack of green. Hell just having a $10 dollar chip in play will help bets like 40 / 50 / 55 be eyeballed very quickly.




This will also allow you to save money on chips / have a much more secure "high denom" chip as well as more secure low denom because you you can spend more money per chip.

[MeridianFC]

I agree with Jon above. You need some high rent checks in there if for no other purpose than to have a bank. The stakes you seem to be describing seem serious enough that you want to get decently secure cheques. As cheap as labeling is it does not seem ideal.

BTW approximately how many players are you talking about. If this is a single table you can definitely get away with a little over 1K chips. If it's more you need to go higher but you can still get away with ~ 2K I bet.

I'd go with some stripe of custom ceramic or ASMs. Ceramics are the quickest, clay probably the most secure, though the odds of anyone going to the effort to copy your ceramics is pretty low. They'd need some pretty good copies of your actual art.

Since you said you usually have about $7,500 in fives in play I'd guess you could do something like:

250 X$1($250)
600 X$5 ($3000)
100 X$25 ($2500)
50X$100 ($5000)
1000 chips/total bank = $10,750 (21 max buyins)

Starting stack (max buyin $500 per your post)
25X$1
55X$5
4X$25
1X$100
85 chips/player to start (at max). Just shy of a whole rack for each player at normal 10 person table.

The Ones you'd only need enough for the blinds and 250 chips will give everyone at a full table a stack+ to start with. There's plenty of fives and you just color up to quarters when you need. Since you were looking at an even greater number you could up any of the quantities (probably the Fives & Quarters) and still be under 2K chips.

So depending how much your looking to spend and how quickly you need them I'd do:

NJ/ABC ceramic (very quick turnaround)
ASM inlay non spotted
ASM inlay spotted
Blue Chip custom hot stamp (your stamp on one side, denom on the other)

Personally I wouldn't do lables for a cash game, certainly not with any chip above $5.

Plan on spending a little over a grand for a set, not bad when you consider the value it's representing.