Converting my Versa 500 chip case into a 600 chip case (1 Viewer)

RainmanTrail

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I recently bought a couple of the Versa 500 chip cases that are so popular here. I've seen enough people rave about them that I finally decided to take the plunge. I have a couple of the Pelican style cases with custom foam inserts as well, but those things are super bulky and I wanted something a little more convenient for traveling with sets. I also am not a fan of the 600 chip carrying cases that have racks stacked inside them as the bottom racks are very difficult to remove and they just seem awkward to me.

I bought these with the intention of converting them into 600 chip cases since 500 chips just isn't big enough for most cash games IMO. 600 chips is still less than optimal, but it's at least doable. I've reached out for some help from @alecnetwoodworks to see if he might be able to make me a nice custom hardwood insert for these to make them a little nicer than the solution I came up with below, but I figured I'd share my temporary solution below to show what I did here in case anyone else wants to do the same.

Basically, I just removed the center insert that is designed to hold cards, and replaced it with 2 more rows. I removed one of the row inserts from my 2nd case and trimmed it down to size using a razor blade (it cuts easily since it's made from some sort of particle board). Obviously, this requires you to "ruin" one of your Versa cases, but you could use something else for the rows if you wanted to (3D printed insert from @One Eyed Dollar perhaps)?

Eventually, I hope to have a nice hardwood insert in these that will hold 600 chips in evenly spaced rows. But for now, this is my new and improved Versa 600 chip case.


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very nice, I will hold those chips for you so you can work on the case more and really get it perfected.
 
the Pelican style cases . . . those things are super bulky
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I like what you've done here. I think 600 chips is the perfect amount for most single table big bet games and it's sad that there aren't more 600 chip cases on the market. If I had two of those versas, I'd do that modification today; it's just about perfect.
 
View attachment 613982

I like what you've done here. I think 600 chips is the perfect amount for most single table big bet games and it's sad that there aren't more 600 chip cases on the market. If I had two of those versas, I'd do that modification today; it's just about perfect.

Ya, I agree. 600 chip cases need to be more prevalent. Nobody needs these stupid sections for the cards.
 
If anyone else wants to get some wood inserts made for their Versa cases, let me know. Or let @alecnetwoodworks know rather. He's going to be making my inserts in a couple months, and if he gets a few more people interested in them, it would be easier on him to make them all at the same time.
 
If anyone else wants to get some wood inserts made for their Versa cases, let me know. Or let @alecnetwoodworks know rather. He's going to be making my inserts in a couple months, and if he gets a few more people interested in them, it would be easier on him to make them all at the same time.
I’m interested. What is the cost?
 
I recently bought a couple of the Versa 500 chip cases that are so popular here. I've seen enough people rave about them that I finally decided to take the plunge. I have a couple of the Pelican style cases with custom foam inserts as well, but those things are super bulky and I wanted something a little more convenient for traveling with sets. I also am not a fan of the 600 chip carrying cases that have racks stacked inside them as the bottom racks are very difficult to remove and they just seem awkward to me.

I bought these with the intention of converting them into 600 chip cases since 500 chips just isn't big enough for most cash games IMO. 600 chips is still less than optimal, but it's at least doable. I've reached out for some help from @alecnetwoodworks to see if he might be able to make me a nice custom hardwood insert for these to make them a little nicer than the solution I came up with below, but I figured I'd share my temporary solution below to show what I did here in case anyone else wants to do the same.

Basically, I just removed the center insert that is designed to hold cards, and replaced it with 2 more rows. I removed one of the row inserts from my 2nd case and trimmed it down to size using a razor blade (it cuts easily since it's made from some sort of particle board). Obviously, this requires you to "ruin" one of your Versa cases, but you could use something else for the rows if you wanted to (3D printed insert from @One Eyed Dollar perhaps)?

Eventually, I hope to have a nice hardwood insert in these that will hold 600 chips in evenly spaced rows. But for now, this is my new and improved Versa 600 chip case.


View attachment 613970
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How many chip racks can you fit in the case that you’ve “ruined”? Be interesting to see if you can fit 6 racks.
 
How many chip racks can you fit in the case that you’ve “ruined”? Be interesting to see if you can fit 6 racks.

I was just thinking about doing something like this. I exclusively use Versa cases and someone did that tutorial on stripping and converting a Versa 1000 into a 1100 or 1200 chip case with Pauslon racks (I forget who). I tried to lay out some Pauslon racks on one of my Versa 500s and it didn't seem to me that there was really any way to make it work. I could be wrong.

It seems like if you constructed a full new layout for one of these cases from scratch you can add one more additional row for a total of 650 chips.

@RainmanTrail I am potentially interested in two sets of inserts. But I think it is also worth inquiring about a full layout for 650 chips instead of just the two additional rows.
 
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I was just thinking about doing something like this. I exclusively use Versa cases and someone did that tutorial on stripping and converting a Versa 1000 into a 1100 or 1200 chip case with Pauslon racks (I forget who). I tried to lay out some Pauslon racks on one of my Versa 500s and it didn't seem to me that there was really any way to make it work. I could be wrong.

It seems like if you constructed a full new layout for one of these cases from scratch you can add one more additional row for a total of 650 chips.

@RainmanTrail I am potentially interested in two sets of inserts. But I think it is also worth inquiring about a full layout for 650 chips instead of just the two additional rows.
Could you fit a rack in here? If you remove the dividers that hold the dice.

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I’m interested. What is the cost?
I'm not sure yet. I think he will get back to us with options for that. Likely depends on the type of wood we want as well, I'm guessing.

How many chip racks can you fit in the case that you’ve “ruined”? Be interesting to see if you can fit 6 racks.

Could you fit a rack in here? If you remove the dividers that hold the dice.

Racks don't fit row wise, they're too long. Best you can fit in there would be 4 sideways racks with a lot of wasted space.
 
It seems like if you constructed a full new layout for one of these cases from scratch you can add one more additional row for a total of 650 chips.

@RainmanTrail I am potentially interested in two sets of inserts. But I think it is also worth inquiring about a full layout for 650 chips instead of just the two additional rows.

I looked at it, but it's probably too tight for that. The rows are routed to be 1.625" in diameter (that's the bit size that chanman uses with his racks for 39mm chips at least). The total width of the inserts inside the case is 20 7/8" wide. 13 rows @ 1.625" = 21.125" or 21 1/8". So you'd need another 3/8" of space to fit them in. You *could* remove the exterior frame rails that go outside of the inserts, there's one on each side of the case's perimeter, but I wouldn't want to do that. You'd then have to cut the corners diagonally and your outer two rows would be slightly shorter than the rest of the rows in the case (would probably hold 3 or 4 fewer chips than the other rows). Plus, you'd have zero room for error and each row would be butted up snug agains the one next to it. I don't really think it's feasible. I'd rather go with 12 rows evenly spaced. And a 650 chip set is sorta awkward anyhow.
 
My buddy was able to find me a 40mm core box router bit from Japan (they're not easy to find). That's actually a slightly better size for most chips than the 1 5/8" size that Chanman was using, which are 41.275mm by comparison. I don't have a router table though, and there's no way you're cutting these out by hand with a handheld router.
 
I agree. His work looks really good. This is a great idea for the Versa case. Are you thinking that the wood inserts would run the entire length of the case, replacing all rows?

Yes, I'm wanting to get one large drop-in insert to replace all the rows inside the case. Basically, fill up the entire space with a nice stained cherry wooden insert (or whatever wood you want).
 
Sounds like we'd have quite a bit of interest in these. I'd be in for 2 of them, possibly more, although I only have 2 Versa cases right now. We could try to group buy these as @alecnetwoodworks said his cost per insert would come down if multiple people wanted them since he could save on setup times.

So far, we have interest for at least 10 or so of these, depending on price. I assume once more people see the thread, and later the finished results, that we could have quite a bit of interest in these.
 
Sounds like we'd have quite a bit of interest in these. I'd be in for 2 of them, possibly more, although I only have 2 Versa cases right now. We could try to group buy these as @alecnetwoodworks said his cost per insert would come down if multiple people wanted them since he could save on setup times.

So far, we have interest for at least 10 or so of these, depending on price. I assume once more people see the thread, and later the finished results, that we could have quite a bit of interest in these.
Count me out if they are gonna be really expensive u would be better off murdering cases yourself u know thanks though I appreciate it
 
I don't know if it is relevant at this point, but my requirements are not for higher end woods. My desires are more functional over show. Although, yeah, I don't want compressed wood. I just mean I am fine with pine over mahogany etc.

And while I would rather support a PCFer, since I already inquired, the eBay guy says his two channel rails are 4" wide.
 
Sounds like we'd have quite a bit of interest in these. I'd be in for 2 of them, possibly more, although I only have 2 Versa cases right now. We could try to group buy these as @alecnetwoodworks said his cost per insert would come down if multiple people wanted them since he could save on setup times.

So far, we have interest for at least 10 or so of these, depending on price. I assume once more people see the thread, and later the finished results, that we could have quite a bit of interest in these.
Count me in for 1 please.
 
I don't know if it is relevant at this point, but my requirements are not for higher end woods. My desires are more functional over show. Although, yeah, I don't want compressed wood. I just mean I am fine with pine over mahogany etc.

And while I would rather support a PCFer, since I already inquired, the eBay guy says his two channel rails are 4" wide.
Ya, I'd probably be fine with pine as well. Not sure how much the difference in cost would be though. We'll have to wait until Alec gets a chance to run the numbers on these so he can figure out how much he can offer them for. I think I paid about $47 or so for the cases themselves after shipping. If I were to "murder" one Versa case and use the inserts from that like I did in the photos above, that would give me enough materials to convert 4 cases into 600 ct cases in the style above. So that's a fairly cheap solution at ~$12 per case to upgrade it. However, I'd rather have a nice wooden insert instead. I think it would look better, and I don't like the stock rows in the Versa. They're too narrow. The chips don't sit down into them, they actually rest on the rails, which could damage the chips if they're left in there for long term storage.
 
Those look awesome!
I plan to someday order a couple, the reviews are good and I believe several PCF members have already bought them. They look like a fantastic light weight option compared to
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Something nice for "in town" transport! Many of our sets are larger and need more space but we have few 1k or less sets that I think these would work well for.

I agree on the 500 assessment! I wouldn't feel comfortable covering a game with that breakdown.
 

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