Wanted Cash Game Set for my Buddy on a Budget (2 Viewers)

Hoping you guys can point me in the right direction here.

My friend has started hosting cash games and wants to get his own set of chips.

He has a budget of $300-$400 CAD so I'm gonna assume his options are pretty limited but he's relying on me to find him a nice set!

The cash game the set will be used for is a single table .25/.50 game but it plays alot more like .50/1.00. The standard buyin is $100. Lots of guys are rebuying 3-5x a night for $100-$200. On most nights, there is $3000-$4000 in play.

I currently provide the chips for this game and my set breakup is as follows:

I personally went a bit over the top with $1s but noticed in our last game that alot of guys don't manage their stack well and pretty constantly need to change $5s for $1s (ex: betting $8 with 8 x $1s).

Please help me find him a set and also suggest an optimal breakdown for him within his budget!

 

[Rhodeman77]

Is it safe to assume this is for a single table game?

 

[tentoesdown]

Yeah it is

 

[Jambine]

should be able to get a playable set under $400. Beware, shipping to Canada can be expensive.

Maybe China clays or ceramics would fit

 

[tentoesdown]

should be able to get a playable set under $400. Beware, shipping to Canada can be expensive.

Yeah shipping costs are definitely a concern.

 

[Rhodeman77]

Suggested break down:
100 quarters
200 $1's
400 $5's (minimum but I prefer a lot more)
100 $20 or $25
20 $100

As for a set, I'd keep an eye on the classifieds for a used CC set.

the players are being spoiled playing with your PCA's for sure! Anything is going to be a big quality drop off from them at his budget.

 

[tentoesdown]

the players are being spoiled playing with your PCA's for sure! Anything is going to be a big quality drop off from them at his budget.

Yeah, I don't think he realizes how great PCAs are. He's just really eager to buy his own set and I guess not have to rely on me all the time, in case there's a night where I can't make it to the game, etc.

 

[upNdown]

I guess for a table like that, you'd want at least 800 chips. You could get away with 600, and you'd rather have 1000, but with a limited budget, 800 is probably the number to start with. Which I guess puts you comfortably in the china clay range.

I'd prefer ceramics, personally, but the only decent ceramics I can think of in that price range are the veneratis, and I don't think they're available anymore.

 

[Lash]

I like to give my players 12-.25 and 12-1$ to start then rest 5$s and 25$ You can break down like
120-.25
120-1$
200-5$
100-25$
60-100$
600 chips
I ordered a 500 chip ceramic set from sunfly and it was 444$ CAD delivered to my door
There was a thread similar to this not too long ago https://www.pokerchipforum.com/threads/cash-set-under-200.19076/

 

[detroitdad]

I guess for a table like that, you'd want at least 800 chips. You could get away with 600, and you'd rather have 1000, but with a limited budget, 800 is probably the number to start with. Which I guess puts you comfortably in the china clay range.

I'd prefer ceramics, personally, but the only decent ceramics I can think of in that price range are the veneratis, and I don't think they're available anymore.

WOW, I didn't realize they were out of stock http://www.buypokerchips.com/Venerati-Poker-Chips-p/set-vnrti.htm The ones, five's, and twenty fives are available. No quarters or one hundreds. I guess you could substitute something else, but that isn't ideal.

For my .25/.50 I use the following starting stacks

12 x .25
17 x 1
16 x 5.

Then the first four rebuys are all fives. Then I move to twenty fives and one hundreds if necessary.

 

[tentoesdown]

WOW, I didn't realize they were out of stock http://www.buypokerchips.com/Venerati-Poker-Chips-p/set-vnrti.htm The ones, five's, and twenty fives are available. No quarters or one hundreds. I guess you could substitute something else, but that isn't ideal.

This sucks, it's a no go without quarters!

 

[upNdown]

Now that I think about it, I guess you could run this game with as few as 500 chips?

100 quarters
150 1's
150 5's
80 25's
20 100's
Gives you a bank of $4925
Again, not ideal by most people's standards, but it would work just fine, if it had to.

I think you need to figure out what chips you're getting first, to see how many racks you can afford. Then decide how many of each denomination to get.

 

[Lash]

Now that I think about it, I guess you could run this game with as few as 500 chips?

100 quarters
150 1's
150 5's
80 25's
20 100's
Gives you a bank of $4925
Again, not ideal by most people's standards, but it would work just fine, if it had to.

I think you need to figure out what chips you're getting first, to see how many racks you can afford. Then decide how many of each denomination to get.

Ya i couldnt imagine having 1000 chips on one table. Thats too much. You can have a big bank with less chips

 

[Rhodeman77]

Ya i couldnt imagine having 1000 chips on one table. Thats too much. You can have a big bank with less chips

1000 chips for a full table is only 100 chips per player. That is not that many chips in a deep game. And if you play limit that is the minimum needed per player.

And have you noticed this site is about poker chips?!?

 

[RainmanTrail]

You probably don't want a game this small to rely on $100 chips to make bank. Also, one rack of 25c and $1s means making change almost every hand. Is that what you want? If it were my game, the absolute minimum would be as follows (assuming 10 players max):

120 x 25c
180 x $1
300 x $5 (400 if you can)
80 x $25
20 x $100

Total of 700 chips

Same starting stacks as @detroitdad uses (12/17/16) with the rebuys in 5s then 25s. The 100s are only for making change from the big stacks if necessary after running out of chips.

You could pick up some Pharaohs, Majestics, or Dunes china clays from Apache for about $300.

You could probably also get some ceramics with your budget, but I'd rather pay with cash than ceramics... To each their own...

But in the long run, if your buddy ever chooses to upgrade, he'll lose money on those China clays, and they may end up flaking, in which case he'd lose a lot of money on them. The better option would be to stretch his budget a little and either label some old used roulette Paulsons or build a heavily used Paulson primaries mixed set, which he should be able to do for around $500, maybe less. It would be a better investment for sure. Those won't go down in value, and he may even be able to turn them for a profit should be ever decide to upgrade.

He could probably also find some Bud Jones roulettes to label for pretty cheap...

Keep in mind, $5s are the workhorse chip in this game. Don't go cheap on those in exchange for putting $100s in play unless you want to make change every hand. 300 is the absolute minimum for me, but ideally 400+ is what you'd want for this game.

 

[Lash]

1000 chips for a full table is only 100 chips per player. That is not that many chips in a deep game. And if you play limit that is the minimum needed per player.

And have you noticed this site is about poker chips?!?

That sounds great if youre not on a budget

 

[detroitdad]

You probably don't want a game this small to rely on $100 chips to make bank. Also, one rack of 25c and $1s means making change almost every hand. Is that what you want? If it were my game, the absolute minimum would be as follows (assuming 10 players max):

120 x 25c
180 x $1
300 x $5 (400 if you can)
80 x $25
20 x $100

Total of 700 chips

You could pick up some Pharaohs, Majestics, or Dunes china clays from Apache for about $300.

You could probably also get some ceramics with your budget, but I'd rather pay with cash than ceramics... To each their own...

But in the long run, if your buddy ever chooses to upgrade, he'll lose money on those China clays, and they may end up flaking, in which case he'd lose a lot of money on them. The better option would be to stretch his budget a little and either label some old used roulette Paulsons or build a heavily used Paulson primaries mixed set, which he should be able to do for around $500, maybe less. It would be a better investment for sure. Those won't go down in price, and he may even be able to turn them for a profit should be ever decide to upgrade.

He could probably also find some Bud Jones roulettes to label for pretty cheap...

Keep in mind, $5s are the workhorse chip in this game. Don't go cheap on those in exchange for putting $100s in play unless you want to make change every hand. 300 is the absolute minimum for me, but ideally 400+ is what you'd want for this game.

Great breakdown

 

[xxmurrxx]

I'd keep an eye on the classifieds here for a nice cc or ceramic set to pop up. There is a set of "the club" chipcos on ebay right now but no quarters and the bank might be shy...

You could check straightpokersupplies near TO for the CrazyHorse chips, they are a decent china clay same as milano i believe. Could get the 650 set within the budget and not worry about crazy shipping / exchange rates.

 

[softchewy]

possible options:

ceramic
http://www.americangamingsupply.com/Nile-Club-10-Gram-Ceramic-Poker-Chip.aspx

china clay
http://www.americangamingsupply.com/Milano-10-Gram-Clay-Series.aspx

or for less than 1/2 the price
https://www.discountpokershop.com/25pc-135g-lucky-horseshoe-clay-poker-chips-colors-p-606.html
https://www.discountpokershop.com/25pc-135g-monaco-casino-clay-poker-chips-colors-p-605.html

 

[Mike Wells]

Hoping you guys can point me in the right direction here.

My friend has started hosting cash games and wants to get his own set of chips.

Please help me find him a set and also suggest an optimal breakdown for him within his budget!

I'm trying to get rid of these Monte Carlo CCs. I'd sell them pretty cheap, but no idea what shipping to Canada might run.

 

[FCCDAD]

Milano blanks 30c/chip (or pull the original labels off yourself).
Gear custom labels 10c/ or 15c/ face (20c/ or 30c/chip).
Total 50c-60c/chip and people are unlikely to sneak in a roll of their own $5s.

 

[BGinGA]

Never fails to amaze me when folks are unwilling to provide at least semi-secure chips for a home cash game where thousands of dollars are in play.

The budget here should be at least $750 for a 1,000 piece set of chips that cannot be compromised by somebody walking in with a handful of their own. Custom or semi-custom ceramics or custom-labeled plastics/clays, at a minimum. Off-the-shelf chips? No way.

Using readily-available chips for a game this size is pure stupidity. It's an invitation for trouble and financial loss that will make the extra up-front cash expenditure seem trivial.

 

[MegaTon44]

Just wanted everyone to be aware that I presented @tentoesdown with an option of 1000 Riverside Chipcos. At $0.25 each for casino-grade ceramics (the heavily worn chips are $0.10 each), they are cheaper and more durable than many China clay and low/mid-range ceramic options. The security factor shouldn't be a major issue since they aren't off-the-shelf, and there is an option to add on with replica quarters from Psypher's sale (using $25 as quarters is also an option, as is switching the game to $1/$1 seeing how deep it plays). Plus, you get the history of owning chips from an actual casino.

The max budget of 400 CAD ($300) is a bit tricky, especially since it will cost about $92 to send 2 MFRB to Canada, but for 1000 chips plus shipping, I can get down to $342 (457 CAD). I personally feel like this is a solid option. I am not a huge ceramic fan, but I do host big poker games, and the durability and shuffle-ability (some players don't appreciate mint TRKs/Paulsons) makes Chipcos a favorite among my players.

 

[CdnBeerLover]

Just wanted everyone to be aware that I presented @tentoesdown with an option of 1000 Riverside Chipcos. At $0.25 each for casino-grade ceramics (the heavily worn chips are $0.10 each), they are cheaper and more durable than many China clay and low/mid-range ceramic options. The security factor shouldn't be a major issue since they aren't off-the-shelf, and there is an option to add on with replica quarters from Psypher's sale (using $25 as quarters is also an option, as is switching the game to $1/$1 seeing how deep it plays). Plus, you get the history of owning chips from an actual casino.

The max budget of 400 CAD ($300) is a bit tricky, especially since it will cost about $92 to send 2 MFRB to Canada, but for 1000 chips plus shipping, I can get down to $342 (457 CAD). I personally feel like this is a solid option. I am not a huge ceramic fan, but I do host big poker games, and the durability and shuffle-ability (some players don't appreciate mint TRKs/Paulsons) makes Chipcos a favorite among my players.

I would agree with this...I have Chipcos for our games, and they have been well-received. They are a great option.

The budget is a huge issue, though. Our dollar is horrible right now. Note that you will likely get hit with sales tax at the border (this is separate from duty), and there's no exemption unless the value is under $20 Cdn. In Ontario, the sales tax is 13%. There's also brokerage ($10 if USPS/Canada Post, $$$ if courier). I've had to pay those fees on just about every chip purchase I've made. For anyone on a budget, it's a nasty surprise.

 

[Mental Nomad]

If you or your friend have a friend/relative on the US side of the border, this is a great incentive to plan that meetup you've always been putting off...

Have the chips sent to them, and either they bring them to you, or you go visit them.

single table .25/.50 game

Are we talking 6-player table? Or 10-player table?

For a budget set, it makes a big difference.

 

[Mental Nomad]

Never fails to amaze me when folks are unwilling to provide at least semi-secure chips for a home cash game where thousands of dollars are in play.

Don't be silly; it's Canadian dollars.

 

[Mental Nomad]

I personally went a bit over the top with $1s but noticed in our last game that alot of guys don't manage their stack well and pretty constantly need to change $5s for $1s (ex: betting $8 with 8 x $1s).

They'll learn, over time... just make sure there are some people (like you and your friend) setting the right example.

When your stack of white is low... like, you have five of them, and you want to bet eight.... DON'T put up a $5 and three $1s.

Instead, put up two $5s and say, "make it eight," or, "call $8." And then calmly let it sit there. Don't take change (yet). And if your neighbor tries to make change, tell them to please leave the chips alone until the pot's right. If they try to insist, tell them you don't sweat being owed $2 for 30 seconds, it's really OK to wait. You can tell them being nervous about wanting your change back is a tell.

Then, when the pot is right, you'll nearly always find there are plenty of singles in the pot, and you can easily get your change as the bets are pulled in. (Or, if it's raised to $15 or $20 and it comes back to you, you can give them a knowing look when you call.)

In my games, I have absolutely never made change from another player to get small chips for myself, and have never been unable to bet. (I do, however, sometimes buy stacks of small chips from other players if they can't help inadvertently hoarding them; so I can push them into play... by doing things like calling a $5 bet in an all-red pot with four 25c and four $1... that way, whoever wins the pot is getting some small chips, too.)

On rare occasion, I'll see a pot building that's going to need change - and then I'll make change for one of the standing bets out of my own stacks really quickly so that the pot can make change for people - but when my players and I are paying attention, that's really, really rare.

 

[detroitdad]

I do, however, sometimes buy stacks of small chips from other players if they can't help inadvertently hoarding them

I do the same thing. Then if needed I disperse them to the guys around me. Usually by losing pots with them

 

[RainmanTrail]

Never fails to amaze me when folks are unwilling to provide at least semi-secure chips for a home cash game where thousands of dollars are in play.

The budget here should be at least $750 for a 1,000 piece set of chips that cannot be compromised by somebody walking in with a handful of their own. Custom or semi-custom ceramics or custom-labeled plastics/clays, at a minimum. Off-the-shelf chips? No way.

Using readily-available chips for a game this size is pure stupidity. It's an invitation for trouble and financial loss that will make the extra up-front cash expenditure seem trivial.

This, 1000x this!