[ebae]

Manufacturer: ”Made in China”
Retailer(s): 5stardeal, discountcasinogear
Average Price: $12 - $13
Material: ”Oak”



Member Review by: ebae

I purchased 102 Pharaohs as a travel set for when I am away from home on business. Being a member of this site requires that I travel with chips, right? Finding a travel friendly case for ~100 chips proved to be relatively difficult. There were a few other options available, which I objected to on the grounds of cost, principle (requiring the purchase of 100 7.5g plastic chips) or practicality.

I think everyone is familiar with the first case I looked at, which was the 100-ct mahogany case included in heads-up sets sold by HPC.com and by Ten here on this site. I considered that case, but after some consideration I rejected it as a potential travel case. What deterred me first was the finish. That case looks very nice, and would continue to look very nice…sitting on my desk. I just couldn’t imagine that the case would look good after being abused during air-travel for several months. The thought of having to carry it in a cardboard box as has been suggested by a CT member was just not appealing. The second reason I did not choose that case was because it does not have a closure, but uses a magnet to hold the case closed. The third strike against the case was the lack of a padded interior.

You would think that there would be an aluminum case solution to my dilemma. There are numerous aluminum cases available including the Caesars Palace Case with chips at chipsandgames.com, or the case without chips at PC.com. Both of these solutions came at a relatively high cost and were quickly ruled out. There was an aluminum case available on ebay as well, but I ruled it out, because it included 100 7.5g plastic chips. In retrospect, this is probably the best solution and I may purchase this case down the road. I did inquire to the ebay seller about buying the case alone, but never received a response.

Finally, the case I purchased…the “oak” case sold by Trademark…seemed to answer most of my concerns with the other cases. This case has a clasp closure, padded interior to protect the chips, has a relatively plain exterior that I felt would not look terrible after some abuse, and in the end was a very inexpensive solution.

Price

This case is pretty inexpensive. It can be had for $12 or $13 depending on which site you buy from. I certainly would not pay more than that based on the construction. Shipping costs may kill this deal for some people. It was not an issue for me as I combined it with the purchase of other items, resulting in a nominal incremental shipping cost.

Looks / Construction

The pictures available on online retail sites for this product are not too flattering. The pictures make the box look quite pale and unattractive. In reality, the case is a bit darker, and looks much better in person. It is understated and simple in design. The wood grain is very visible, adding to its attractiveness. One thing to note, is that the top of the case is obviously multiple pieces of wood glued together. The top piece is not quite the same color as the sides as can be seen in the attached photos.
The interior of the case is green velvet, glued in to the wood frame. The velvet in the top piece was not quite cut straight and so the finished look is not really top notch, but also not really that noticeable. The bottom tray interior did not have any defects. I would say that the case is certainly more attractive than the pictures portray online, but for my tastes the mahogany case is a bit more attractive.
The case is relatively light. It weighs less than the chips it is designed to carry. The wood itself does not feel like oak and the bottom of the case is definitely not oak. After some experience with the case, I can say that the wood is far too soft to be oak. The finish on the case is smooth with no defects. Like the mahogany case it was obviously designed to sit on a table. Overall, the case “feels” like a $10 case. After carrying it around for a week, I can say that the case with 100+ chips can feel heavy, especially with a laptop in tow. After 3 weeks of carrying the case around with my laptop, the extra 4 pounds of weight from case and chips combined may make this option less attractive. For surface protection, it would be advisable to apply little felt tabs or feet to the bottom of the case.

Capacity

The case offers a nice velvet-like interior, to protect the chips. One thing to note is that the case will hold 102 Paulson Pharaohs. This number is perfect for a small travel set for up to 6 players in the following denoms and breakout: 8x $25, 8x $100, $1x$1000, for a T1500 tourney. It is possible to squeeze in an additional chip per row for a total of 104 chips, but only after the chips have been broken in.

One other issue with the way the chips sit in the case is that with 51 chips per row, the chips lean a little, and if you are not careful the top of the case when closed will catch on a chip and potentially damage the chip if enough force is used. This is not an issue with 104 chips in the case.

The case will also hold dice and 2 decks of poker sized cards, but the cards must be kept separate. I used a couple of Copag cardboard boxes for the cards. I tried to use the plastic card cases you can find at baseball card stores or through Caragail’s, but they are just a little too big for the enclosure provided in the case. The two enclosures were not the same size either, so I assume it would be hit or miss on the card case fit.

Security

As you can see form the photo, the latch on the case does not lock, rendering the security of this case relatively low. More of a concern is whether the latch will stay closed when carried in a bag during travel. As you can see from the picture below, the latch is designed with a spring loaded catch that prevents the latch from simply swinging open. After traveling with the case for 3 weeks, including air travel, concerns over the case opening are unwarranted because my case never came open unintentionally. For those that intend to travel with a small set like this, I would recommend that you pull the case out and place it in a security tray at the airport to avoid a search of your entire carry-on baggage.

Durability

Right off the bat, the case showed some signs of weakness in durability. Right out of the cardboard box, still wrapped in plastic, the case had a 3-4 inch scratch in the lid. This can be seen in the photo below.

Once unwrapped from the plastic, I replaced the case in the cardboard box. The process of removing and reinserting the unprotected case from the cardboard box several times (5-6 times) caused slight streaks and scratches across the top of the box, as can be seen in the photo below. This was an early indication that the finish on the box would probably not last. Surprisingly, after carrying it around for 3 weeks, the case sustained very little additional damage. What damage did occur was very unnoticeable and hidden by the grain of the wood finish. The case hinges and latch do not show any signs of fatigue.

Reviewers Comments

After 3-4 weeks of carrying the case around, including 2 weeks of air travel, I would rate the case a “solid” 3.5-4.0 on a scale of 1-5. Considering the fact that I am using the case for a purpose for which it was not designed, I would certainly rate it a 4.0.

The Good...
· low price
· carries 102-104 chips
· compact
· somewhat attractive
· secure for travel

The Bad…
· not designed for travel
· wood is always susceptible to damage
· no lock
· will not take card cases
· could be a bit heavy once loaded with chips

A lighter alternative would be an acrylic chip box, which would also be significantly cheaper. This would not carry cards and limit you to 100 chips. I am sure to some the weight or cost will be a more important consideration.

The aluminum case that I spoke of earlier is definitely a good option, but is not as compact as this case. From what I can tell it is larger by ~1inch in all three dimensions, but would offer a higher level of protection.

For my purposes, the case works well. I do not plan on carrying it all the time, only when I travel, so I will deal with the extra weight. Based on 1 months experience I would not hesitate to recommend this case…

Chip Pictures
Fully Loaded...



Top View of Case


Bottom of Case


Interior


Case Hardware


Scratches to the finish from repeated insertion into shipping box


More Scratches...bottom right scratch was present upon delivery...

[Jambine]

Originally Posted by ebae

Manufacturer: ”Made in China”
Retailer(s): 5stardeal, discountcasinogear
Average Price: $12 - $13
Material: ”Oak”
Member Review by: ebae

.......... Being a member of this site requires that I travel with chips, right?

Great review ebay. And yes, you are required to have chips with you at all times. But remember, you must also be ready to use them on a moments notice, without hesitation. CT is always on duty.

[KYBill]

Nice job on the review.

[ebae]

Thank You.