Consistency of plastic chip trays |
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Posted Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am GMT by The_Manimal
Hey All:
Coming out of constant "lurk" mode to run something by this community. I'll say up front this may sound rather silly and nit-picky, but in my case it's turned into something important to me to track down if I can.
The problem I'm having is with different size plastic chip trays. (yes, the basic clear acrylic/plastic ones that usually hold 100 chips). I've bought them in 3 separate lots over the past year from different vendors, and have discovered some subtle but important differences amongst them in size. There are two area's I'm concerned with:
1) The "outside" width of the base of the tray (ie: the true width of the tray, which is important when trying to fit the tray into an existing molded table design I made)
2) The "inside" width of the chip area of the tray (ie: the true width of the chip area which affects how many chips it will hold in each row)
Here is what I found in my different purchases (note: Lot#1 came from a smaller vendor who is no longer in business, and Lots 2&3 came from 5StarDeal about 6 months apart).
Lot#1: (outside width: 2&15/16 inches, inside width: 2&11/16 inches) The best of the lots, as I have found them to be the most accurate. Each one holds 20 dice chips nice and snug, or 20 ASM/Paulson chips with a tiny bit of play in each rack of chips. There is no chance of cramming more than 20 of any type of chip into these trays.
Lot#2: (outside width: 3 inches, inside width: 2&11/16 inches) The only difference is the outside width, but even this 1/16 difference caused the problem as these trays would not fit into my existing table, which was built around/using the trays from Lot#1. The inside width is the same as Lot#1, so there are no problems with that aspect of this tray.
Lot#3: (outside width: 3&1/16 inches, inside width: 2&3/4 inches) Basically, this lot is a full 1/16 bigger all the way around over Lot#2. Not only do they not fit into my table due to the larger outside width, the increased inside width really caused me a problem the first time I used them - they hold 20 dice chips rather loosely, but they easily hold 21 ASM/Paulson chips! (that caused some cashout problems until we figured out what was going on)
My question/dilemma:
Does anyone know where I can find some of the older Lot#1 type trays? Chances are I'll need a customer-friendly vendor willing to go the extra mile a bit. I'm hesitant to deal with a large mass vendor (again), as I don't think I'll be able to convince them to accurately measure the trays as needed to ensure I'll get what works for me (and only to face a return of them if they don't). I realize I may pursuing something that isn't going to be too easy to find.....so many different manufacturers making a simple, basic tray is bound to have some variance between them, but if I can find just one good set of them (about 10 or so), I should be able to have enough of the trays with the same consistency I'm looking for.
I appreciate any feedback that can be offered...thanks in advance.
-The Manimal
(note: Michael at HPC.com is on top of my list to run this by.....I know he's super to deal with from past expierience....)
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Posted Tue May 31, 2005 12:28 pm GMT by tomb1
I have no idea what racks you got in your Lot #1, so I can't help you there.
I use only Paul-son racks now, after some similar problems to what you've described. I keep one "other" rack for a few chips that are too thick to fit 20 in a Paulson row.
I'm sold on having just one brand of rack. Having only one type means that they will always stack on top of each other and fit in the same carriers/places on the table/etc. Costs more, but worth it IMO.
But Paulson racks are hard to find, so if I were buying at retail I would use Chipco racks. They're just as good as Paulson, and I think you can get those at HPC. Buying any racks on eBay or other online sites is a crap-shoot as to quality, size, brand, consistency, etc.
Maybe some Chipco or Paulson racks would fit the space on your table.
Posted Tue May 31, 2005 12:44 pm GMT by PocketRocket
Your best bet is going to be to get the racks from the chip manufacturer of whatever chips you're trying to fit. Since you want to be catered to a little more, it would probably better to deal with a local merchant so that you can examine the items before you buy them though your best bet would be to deal with the chip manufacturer where possible (Chipco used to send the chips in the racks instead of cardboard boxes.) And ASM does have chip racks on their web site. Another possibility might be a casino or cardroom supply dealer if there is one in your area.
Trademark is probably getting the wider racks to accomodate the import chips that is the bulk of their business, a lot of those chips will not fit 20 into the 2 11/16" racks.
The tradeoff is that you'll probably have to pay a little more for the extra attention that you are seeking, but in the long run it will probably mean a bit less frustration.
| The_Manimal wrote: | | Chances are I'll need a customer-friendly vendor willing to go the extra mile a bit. |
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