[JM]

At work I have access to all manner of laboratory equipment, including some Mettler Toledo scales, so I decided to see what my recently delivered sample set of Trademarks weighed in at compared to my JB2005s. I zeroed the scale between each measurement and compared color to color. See the table below, there were some VERY interesting results. Some TM chips were 1/2 gram heavier or more than their JB2005 counterpart! The entire 7 chip stack was 2.5 grams heavier than the JBs. One even came in at over 10 grams.

Color JB TM

Blue 9.3898g 9.8830g (big differential)
Red 9.6464g 9.8862g
Green 9.8583g 10.1368g (wow)
Black 9.2923g 9.9619g (another huge difference)
Purple 9.4972g 9.8200g
Orange 8.7319g 9.0188g

White* 9.5180g 9.8532g

*=this chip has gotta be lighter than a typical JB as I used it to experiment with removing one of the labels. Probably 50% or so of the label is gone on one side.

JB stack weighed 65.9334 total, TM stack weighed 68.5602 (about 2.5g difference).

I'm searching around the building for a micrometer so I can check the thicknesses, but haven't found one yet, if I do, I'll post results.

[Dimes]

It seems like the weight difference between the chips has become smaller (with the exception of the orange chip) but the thickness difference possibly has become larger.

If the mold design and the thickness issues have disappointed some people, at least the heavier weight of the chips is a step forward. I think the JB 2005s feel a bit on the light side.

TT

[CaptLego]

JM,
Could you please weight several individual chips? I'm curious how much the weight varies among "identical" chips. Take a stack of the Trademarks -- all of the same denomination -- and weight each individual chip. How much do they vary?

Also, if you could measure the thickness of those same chips, that would be fantastic. I'm interested to know how correlated the thickness and weight are. (I'm speculating that for a given color, the thickness and weight will be highly correlated.) Make sure you measure the thickness at sevaral points around the chip. While you're at it, if you could also measure the diameter of those same chips....

[jtr]

Yeah, but, you know, they're still not the full 11.5 grams, are they?

[Wooderson]

Originally Posted by jtr

Yeah, but, you know, they're still not the full 11.5 grams, are they?

+1

[JM]

Originally Posted by CaptLego

JM,
Could you please weight several individual chips? I'm curious how much the weight varies among "identical" chips. Take a stack of the Trademarks -- all of the same denomination -- and weight each individual chip. How much do they vary?

Also, if you could measure the thickness of those same chips, that would be fantastic. I'm interested to know how correlated the thickness and weight are. (I'm speculating that for a given color, the thickness and weight will be highly correlated.) Make sure you measure the thickness at sevaral points around the chip. While you're at it, if you could also measure the diameter of those same chips....

Well I only bought a sample set of the trademarks, and I definitely won't be getting more. I find them fugly in person, less so than in the pictures, but still fugly when side by side with my JBs (except for the $10 chip, that's about the best of the bunch). So doing multiple chips of the same color isn't a real possibility right now. I'm still looking for the micrometer too so I can get some thickness measurements, but not sure if we even have one. The diameter does seem to be the same on all 7 chips, just from stacking them up and running my fingers along the edges. Feels pretty smooth from chip to chip.

Seems like the ones that have the highest differential in weight are also the ones that have the height issues. Makes sense that they would be thicker to account for 1/2 ounce extra weight. Looking at the amount of clay that was filled in from the JB to the TM design, its a large area, but the depth is miniscule (human hair width maybe) so the volume can't be significant, certainly not 5+% of extra mass from that filled in area.

[R Deckard]

Now THIS is the kind of sweet, detail-oriented, interesting, and informative posting that I LUUUUV. JM, just make sure you don't quit your job for a while yet. Between Lego's calipers and your balances, we have an awesome technical analysis/QC team here, probably better than the manufacturers have!

[jojobinks]

Originally Posted by R Deckard

Now THIS is the kind of sweet, detail-oriented, interesting, and informative posting that I LUUUUV. JM, just make sure you don't quit your job for a while yet. Between Lego's calipers and your balances, we have an awesome technical analysis/QC team here, probably better than the manufacturers have!

woohoo! deckard approves!

[JM]

Originally Posted by R Deckard

Now THIS is the kind of sweet, detail-oriented, interesting, and informative posting that I LUUUUV. JM, just make sure you don't quit your job for a while yet. Between Lego's calipers and your balances, we have an awesome technical analysis/QC team here, probably better than the manufacturers have!

LOL! I think it was actually the QC department's scale that I used! Just had to wait till everyone went home before I went in to play in their lab with a bag full of poker chips.

[R Deckard]

Originally Posted by jojobinks

woohoo! deckard approves!

ops:

Originally Posted by JM

LOL! I think it was actually the QC department's scale that I used! Just had to wait till everyone went home before I went in to play in their lab with a bag full of poker chips.

Better make sure everyone is gone first, and that there are no surveillance cameras. Can you imagine the comical situation if you had to explain to somebody just what-exactly-the-hell you were doing with poker chips and precision balances? We are definitely a seriously sick bunch of pups here.