[JediHog]

Played at a game last night (with the dice chips) and some crappy drilled casino cards and had a great time. Sure the chips suck, as do the cards.....but we still played poker.

So, my question is this:
How many at your home game notice that you have nicer chips than the dice?

Do they care?

Do you find yourself wanting to find new people to play with that appreciate the chips/cards as much as you do?

Getting into this "chip craze" (and table craze as I've built 3 tables) has cost me more than money...it's cost a bit of the spirit of the game. Anyone else share my sentiments?

[Double Eagle]

You buy quality chips and cards because YOU enjoy them. If your game is like most, including mine, the players could care less. All they want to do is play poker.

One group I play with prefers cheap paper cards that have been used way too many times. They complain the Copags and Kems are too slick.

[Wylecoyo]

Everyone who has ever played at my house has commented favorably on my cards, chips, timer, table covering, and overall setup and I have found once they experience it for themselves the bug bites almost immediately.

Due to a recent long distance move, for the last six weeks or so I have been playing with a group of about 12-15 guys who already had an established game. I didn't want to be pushy and tick anyone off by being the new guy who comes in with a bunch of high-minded notions and tries to take over the game, so I just laid low and played their game. Their game was perfectly fine, but it used a bunch of dice chip sets all thrown together, paper cards which normally saw about 6-10 games before being replaced, a weird kind of blinds schedule where the small blind was always about 90% of the big blind instead of the more common 50% level, and their payouts were set up so the 1st place finisher took 90% of the pot for them self.

Absolutely nothing wrong with the way they played or the implements they used. I dropped a few hints here and there when people asked, but again I laid low. A few weeks ago, several players were out of town on business, so I volunteered to host a pickup game at my place. When the guys showed up, I had my Instant Poker Table ready to go, stacks of Paulson Chips, a blinds schedule in my Poker Genie, some Dal Negro cards on the table, and the 2003 WSOP on the LCD TV. The questions started flying immediately and everyone loved my poker implements of destruction. By the end of the evening I had won the game, introduced everyone to the joys of ChipTalk, demonstrated the differences between the various chips in my samples collection, and collected a group of email address for dissemination of quality poker gear links. The questions continue to fly and a flurry of orders have hit the web. I feel so proud I was able to open their eyes to the wider world of home poker gear.

[seymour]

Everybody that plays in our games always comments on my chips and cards. Sure, my friends joke around about interventions for my poker chip buying, but they are really looking forward to my custom ASMs, too

Before, we used to play with dice chips (actually, those interlocking chips before that, even!) and paper cards - Bicycles, but still paper. At first, they mentioned that my Copags were a little slippery, but they just love them now. Even my 4-colour setup And of course, they love my ASMs and Chipco chips. Some of them like to stack them fairly high when we're playing, not much chance of doing that before.

And The Tournament Director, well that's just a hit with everybody. It's so much better than using a watch, and there isn't a new player that doesn't make some sort of good comment about it.

I don't think any of them are really to the point of buying their own sets of chips, but that's ok. They are appreciating the things I have (one of them is going to buy my plain ASM set when I get my customs at least, to replace his dice chips).

[hachkc]

Most the folks I play with don't really care. There are a few that know the difference and probably only a couple that really care.

The group I play with mostly uses Super Diamonds for tournaments and Olivia's Poker Hall Paulson's for cash games; kind of opposite ends of the spectrum.

[R Deckard]

Originally Posted by JediHog

So, my question is this:
How many at your home game notice that you have nicer chips than the dice?

The complete poker/gambling newbs do not notice. But it seems that anyone who has some poker or casino gaming experience notices that my Paulsons are different from the other home chips, with comments like "these are like real casino chips". Invariably though, I also get asked if they are 11.5g.

Do they care?

I think they care a little bit. Not like I do, of course.

Do you find yourself wanting to find new people to play with that appreciate the chips/cards as much as you do?

It would be nice, but I have a hard enough time just finding people interested in playing the game itself. Chip/table geeks are an even rarer breed.

Getting into this "chip craze" (and table craze as I've built 3 tables) has cost me more than money...it's cost a bit of the spirit of the game. Anyone else share my sentiments?

Of course it costs more money, most definitely. But by the "spirit" of the game do you mean that state of innocence (ignorance) we once all shared where literally "a chip and a chair" would do, and we would be perfectly content with our dirty Bicycles and interlocking chips? I agree that some of that has been lost. But that seems to be human nature with many things--once exposed to the "better", we are no longer content with the "good". But I believe that having better equipment is worth being "spoiled" by it because it makes the game easier and faster to play for everyone: less fumbling with chips, less confusion over chip values, faster shuffling, harder to cheat (marked cards/cold decking, "imported" chips). And I like the more "casino-like" professional tone that is set by good equipment. And I think people end up having more fun. Which is really what it should all be about, anyway.

Originally Posted by Wylecoyo

When the guys showed up, I had my Instant Poker Table ready to go, stacks of Paulson Chips, a blinds schedule in my Poker Genie, some Dal Negro cards on the table, and the 2003 WSOP on the LCD TV. The questions started flying immediately and everyone loved my poker implements of destruction. By the end of the evening I had won the game

[snip]
Obviously sir, all that equipment must be RIGGED.

[Wylecoyo]

Originally Posted by R Deckard

Obviously sir, all that equipment must be RIGGED.

Only when I play online.

[99%evil]

We played last night, mostly regulars and one new player. There was a bit of talk about the table at the beginning of the night, the new guy seemed concerned about the game rotating to his house after seeing the table. They commented on the Pharaohs, but only a few really cared about those, the new guy said that he only had cheap platic ones if we played at his house, the regulars that are into chips pretty much told him, you provide the venue we'll bring decent chips and cards. Actually I care more about decent cards than chips (I know, blasphemy), but playing with paper bicycles sucks, plain and simple. I told everyone that 500 of my Pharaohs were for sale and the new guy asked how much and everyone let him know they were about .90 a piece, he seemed mildly startled and said he could never see paying more than .10 for a chip. Imagine if he came here... I can't wait to get my custom stamped TR King solids.

[Captn_All_In]

No one in my area that plays at the levels that I do (low stakes) gives a crap about the cards, chips, or tables at all.

Everybody loves coming to the Garage to play and they always comment about all of my gear, but they never do anything to improve thier gear!!

That's why lately I have offered to bring my chips and organize/run the game. (Even if they are fauxs clays!)

[Wylecoyo]

Originally Posted by Captn_All_In

No one in my area that plays at the levels that I do (low stakes) gives a crap about the cards, chips, or tables at all.

Seems as if you and I are of the same mind: I would rather play for low stakes and spend the majority of my poker money on gear. That way even if I loose my playing money I still have the something to show for it.

Some people think I am crazy(especially my wife in the pre-liberator days), but I love to play for the strategy and camaraderie more than the money and by investing in great gear I have the best of both worlds.