Chip suggestions (3 Viewers)

I have a bunch of sample sets if you're interested I can get pics/prices.
Sell them again when done finding what you like.
There's a vast assortment of just about every type of chip.
 
Do the Sample Dance, Do the Sample Dance!

dancing GIF by AFV Babies
 
A few more questions:
How often does apache restock? 1s are out of stock for a few options
Are there any sites where I can get a cheaper case? All the ones I can find seem pretty expensive (upwards of 100 dollars)
How long does oiling take? Are there any good guides on this?
Any comments on color choice for cards? I know it doesn't really matter but just wanted to see if anyone had any opinions
Regarding stocking, if an item you want is out of stock then they should have listed in the description of the item when the next restock is.
VERSA case on amazon is really sturdy.
Theres a good thread on oiling on here:
https://www.pokerchipforum.com/threads/oiling-chips-done-right.14343/
 
Hi!
It's been a while since I responded, but apache recently restocked so I'm shopping for poker chips again. I recently had opportunity to shuffle royals, which I really liked.

I see a few options for what I should buy, and I'm not sure. Royals look the most appealing to me, but are more expensive and I'm also not sure where to find a case for 43mms.

An order would probably be:
150 1s
200 5s
100 25s
50 100s
2 pack of copag cards
Dealer Button

All of this totals to 337.50, including shipping, which is kinda high for my budget. I also would still need to find a case. If I instead switch to 49 cent chip, (used majestic for example) the total cost is 287.50, still without a case.
 
If I read your OP correctly, you're currently not playing for money, only fun?

If you do decide to play for cash eventually, that setup you're looking at is for some pretty high stakes for beginners. You're looking at a $1/$1 at the minimum which would call for upwards of $100 buy-ins.

If you're just starting out with your friends with cash games, depending on all of your financial situations, I would look at something that would support a .05/.10 game or, better yet, a .25/.25 game.

A $10-$25 dollar buy-in (10 for .05/.10would cover those stakes relatively well with starting stacks of 100 big blinds each. If you really want to start out with small stakes, you could even play .05/.05 with a $5 buy-in. At those low stakes, however, you may get a lot of "oh what the hell" calls because of the low amount of money involved.

Again, it all depends on your group. Come up with a buy-in that is comfortable for everybody, isn't going to cause hurt feelings, and makes winning feel good while minimizing how bad losing feels. You don't want people losing car payments in a night, you want everybody (even the losers) saying "That was fun, when's the next game?"

After typing all this it just hit me that I'm not sure if you're playing NL or limit games (I may have missed it), so just so it's clear I'm talking NL games in the above.


Oh, and...

...get samples.
 
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If I read your OP correctly, you're currently not playing for money, only fun?

If you do decide to play for cash eventually, that setup you're looking at is for some pretty high stakes for beginners. You're looking at a $1/$1 at the minimum which would call for upwards of $100 buy-ins.

If you're just starting out with your friends with cash games, depending on all of your financial situations, I would look at something that would support a .05/.10 game or, better yet, a .25/.25 game.

A $10-$25 dollar buy-in (10 for .05/.10would cover those stakes relatively well with starting stacks of 100 big blinds each. If you really want to start out with small stakes, you could even play .05/.05 with a $5 buy-in. At those low stakes, however, you may get a lot of "oh what the hell" calls because of the low amount of money involved.

Again, it all depends on your group. Come up with a buy-in that is comfortable for everybody, isn't going to cause hurt feelings, and makes winning feel good while minimizing how bad losing feels. You don't want people losing car payments in a night, you want everybody (even the losers) saying "That was fun, when's the next game?"

After typing all this it just hit me that I'm not sure if you're playing NL or limit games (I may have missed it), so just so it's clear I'm talking NL games in the above.


Oh, and...

...get samples.
I dont think we're going to play for money anytime soon, and also we play NL.
 
Are you playing tournament format (i.e. keep going until one player has all the chips)? I would think that would make more sense for a no-money game. Tournament sets can start at any value, but typically the smallest chip is 25 or 100. Also you typically need fewer chips for tournaments which would help your budget. On the other hand, once a player is out they're out (re-buys don't make much sense when no one's buying in to begin with...)
 
Are you playing tournament format (i.e. keep going until one player has all the chips)? I would think that would make more sense for a no-money game. Tournament sets can start at any value, but typically the smallest chip is 25 or 100. Also you typically need fewer chips for tournaments which would help your budget. On the other hand, once a player is out they're out (re-buys don't make much sense when no one's buying in to begin with...)
Before, we were just playing quite casually, ending whenever we felt like it, and allowing people to just get more money when they ran out, but we hope to do something a little more serious than that. Our current plan is tournament style, across a few weeks, and you don't have to buy-in with all of your chips every session.
 
Tbh, I think I'm done with CCs. I'm on my second set that's 3-4 years old and all my $5 chips have become dull and extremely brittle. You can snap them with two fingers. My first set did exactly the same thing with the quarters and the $25s.
 
Before, we were just playing quite casually, ending whenever we felt like it, and allowing people to just get more money when they ran out, but we hope to do something a little more serious than that. Our current plan is tournament style, across a few weeks, and you don't have to buy-in with all of your chips every session.
Tournament style is not playing over multiple weeks. It’s paying an entry fee, each player getting a specified amount of chips, and each player playing until they’re gone. Once they’re gone, you’re out.
It doesn’t even have to be money. It could be, winner doesn’t need to chip-in for beer this week. Anything, really.

I will say, if you play a standard ring game instead of tournament, I highly recommend playing with some cash instead of nothing.
When it’s nothing, there’s no risk involved. Even a penny game is better than zero, it changes the game entirely. That’s why so many people love tournaments, because when you lose, your out, and that risk/consequence has important value in the game.
 
Before, we were just playing quite casually, ending whenever we felt like it, and allowing people to just get more money when they ran out, but we hope to do something a little more serious than that. Our current plan is tournament style, across a few weeks, and you don't have to buy-in with all of your chips every session.
Maybe instead of doing the tournament across weeks, have a leaderboard. Make each session it's own tournament and award points based on how people finish then tally up the eventual winner. You can even come up with a non cash prize for the winner so people have a little extra motivation.

On the other hand, don't let other people tell you how to have fun. If your group enjoys playing poker their way that's what's important.
 
After more consideration, I might get a tournament set instead with higher values. A starting stack I've seen thrown around a lot is 12/12/5/6 for 25/100/500/1000 for 10k total. Are there better distributions? Also, is there a problem with having 500s and 1000s?
 
I recently got my hands on a Tina sample set and was impressed despite my pre-existing Paulson snobbery. They’re not Paulsons, obv, but they feel like a step up from other budget options.

I play a couple of times a month in a game where the host upgraded from dice chips to Majestics, and that is a definite improvement.

I hate all the weighted/slugged chips. I’ve played with them in too many small stakes games. They are way too heavy for long-term shuffling, and attract chip boogers like crazy. Of course no one who owns these ever cleans them.
 
After more consideration, I might get a tournament set instead with higher values. A starting stack I've seen thrown around a lot is 12/12/5/6 for 25/100/500/1000 for 10k total. Are there better distributions? Also, is there a problem with having 500s and 1000s?

This is a good go-to distribution. It's also likely most reasonable acquisition from a cost POV if planning to use ex-casino or fantasy cash chips to run tourneys.

No inherent problems with 500/1000. A few brave souls have ventured into 500/2000 territory.
 
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Update again: I feel like nicer chips probably won't make my life ~$350 better
 
Fair warning:

If you don't block this site, you have 3-9 months before 500pc becomes 1000pc, 1 set becomes 9 sets, and $0.50 per chip becomes $7.5 per chip.
Lol.. true statement. Group buy from @justincarothers is a good place to start. Decent chips well within your budget. Be careful lol.
rabbit hole.jpg
 
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Worse thing you could ever do is ask this bunch of savages!!! LMAO Honestly I think the best option for someone like you is the group buy options with Justin. At that price I don't know how you beat that with virtually unlimited options.
 
That's a good price, but the Tina chips have much more custom type designs to pick from for the same $$.
There are even group buys available where you can add your own design for less than $.50 per chip.
There are many options available on this forum.
True, but you could table these chips a day or two after buying them!
 
True, but you could table these chips a day or two after buying them!
That is indeed a fact. I went the same way with Cash Club chips, but I had to get the group buy chips. I sold the cash club chips at a 50% discount once I received my other chips. The cash club Chips were OK, but not as nice as the Mirage chips that matches my poker room theme.
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This is what I am picturing when reading the thread.

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I understand what your saying. It takes SO MUCH time to really understand the chip world that when a new person joins its almost impossible for them to understand everything that's being said so its hard for them to take in all of the advice. Its a slightly complicated hobby for beginners.
 

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