Custom Ceramic Set Help (1 Viewer)

Hairy_Crocodile

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Hey all!!

Hope you all well, COVID has me stir crazy, so I have been toying with the idea of a custom set of chips, and thinking of designs that could do.
I am buying a tournament and cash set relatively soon, and none of the production ceramic chip designs I have handled I like enough for a full 700 cash set and a 400 or more T25 set. Plus, it adds game security with customs.

I wanted to do a CPC set, but I don't wanna pay that much for chips just yet :vomit: :bigbucks:. So, I have decided upon ceramics for a lower cost (in relation to CPC Clays), the ability to have more complex art, and durability. I have a really awful mock-up of the art concept I want, and used CPC chip maker to see if I liked the art as an inlay, or if I should ditch the idea of edge spots on the front and back of the chip and make the image go almost all the way to the edge

So with all of this said, i have some questions, and would appreciate any feedback you have on the design of the chip itself and my image.
  • Where do you usually go to hire a Ceramic chip designer?
  • What is the average cost of doing so?
  • Do you like the edge spots and progression? Or should I scrap that and just put edge spots on the rims of the chips and make the art go almost to the edge of the chip with a border?
  • Who do you usually order from? I am thinking BRPro Poker
Here is my awful mock-up:
1610004228559.png


Edge Spot ideas.
1610004154734.png

Image draft as inlay
1610004187429.png


  • I will be using denoms, I just can't use anything other than paint, and don't know how to do the rest. Denoms would below the possum and possibly a few chips
    • 25¢, $1, $5, $25, $100, $500, $1000, $5000
  • I am considering text of some kind. Maybe something silly like "Awesome Possum Casino"
  • The circle in the mock-up is just from the button the original image is from, I'd like to center the possum and his chips/cards more and work on filling in dead space. If I go with no border, or a small one, I'd like the image to be blown up more and fill in more dead space on the chip
  • Should all my edge spots be the same on every chip? Or should I make them all different?
Any other ideas/suggestions? Thank you for your time!

-Cheers
 
You mentioned using BR Pro and you mentioned using ceramics for cost cutting measures. Have you considered going semi custom with one of their stock designs?



You can change colors, change wording, change denomination, and save time and money by using a semi custom design.
 
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@tabletalker7 I have ordered samples of alot of the stock designs and semi customs, and for whatever reason, they dont stand out as something I really really enjoy. I love some of the chips they offer, but I dont know if I would actually buy an entire set of them.

I mean heck, I'm selling my non denominated ceramic cash set because the lack of denoms now bothers me too much. I like the designs I have, but something else about them makes me not so attached to them. I think it's the "washed out" colors on some chips.

So basically going custom gets me a design I really like (I think a lot of poker chips are just ugly as heck), built how i want them in color and with the denominations I want, i get to choose my own edge spots, and offer security in events.

I think the closest I'd get to ordering another actual semi custom set would be if I could swap some of the art to other color chips (not just custom denoms....for example, being able to put the jester in a green $25 chip) on the Dia De Los Muertos chips at brpro. They were the only sample I liked more or less. The black betty sample i got was super faded btw, the colors were awful and it made me sad.

Also a lot of the chips that have a bunch of text with no images bore me a little
 
I like ceramics that take advantage of the added design possibilities compaired to e.g a Paulson chip, rather than trying to mimic inlays and edge spots. One of my absolute favorite custom ceramic sets is @detroitdad park and recs:

https://www.pokerchipforum.com/threads/parks-and-rec-pron.48380/

With the amount of creativity available to display on a set of custom ceramics why go with standard imitations of compression clay inserts? Seems a bit of a waste IMO.

Couldn't agree more, if going with ceramics might as well take advantage of that type instead of mimicking another type.
 
I wasn't sure if that was a rat, or an opossum....so I went with opossum because they're cooler :ROFL: :ROFLMAO:



View attachment 609415


*EDIT: I didn't read all of your original post, I now realize that it is in fact an "awesome possum"
Love the design, but can the poker chips in the background not look like dice chips please. That’s offensive :ROFL: :ROFLMAO:
 
Love the design, but can the poker chips in the background not look like dice chips please. That’s offensive :ROFL: :ROFLMAO:

LOL, Adobe Stock only has dice chip style, and I couldn't be bothered to make my own! :ROFL: :ROFLMAO:

I'm more offended by my complete lack of awareness to proportions of the chips to the cards. Apparently Opossums play with hockey puck chips, and those novelty miniature playing cards. Couldn't let that be, so I fixed it, but still dice chips

Asset 3.png
 
LOL, Adobe Stock only has dice chip style, and I couldn't be bothered to make my own! :ROFL: :ROFLMAO:

I'm more offended by my complete lack of awareness to proportions of the chips to the cards. Apparently Opossums play with hockey puck chips, and those novelty miniature playing cards. Couldn't let that be, so I fixed it, but still dice chips

View attachment 609590
I was not expecting to log in and see a mock up already, that looks fantastic :LOL: :laugh:
It's not the art style that I'm looking for, but man that is a sweet piece of work!!!!!
 
So it looks like I won't mimic clays, I tend to agree with the points made here in the thread, especially after seeing examples. I reaaally like the way @detroitdad did their borders, and has a background beneath the image as well
 
LINK to a thread talking about using the whole face for ceramics, with some great Pr0n.

Paymaster chips are one of my favorite sets.

That being said, do what makes you happy and what you want to play with. At the same time consider the advice as many of us have made mistakes, so you don't have to.
 
Biggest concern I would have is with centering. As I recently discovered, ceramic printing will not necessarily be centered, and the acceptable tolerances from the manufacturer may be noticable to the eye depending on the design.
 
Biggest concern I would have is with centering. As I recently discovered, ceramic printing will not necessarily be centered, and the acceptable tolerances from the manufacturer may be noticable to the eye depending on the design.
That is definitely a good point. Did you discover from personal experience? What was the centering difference like?
 
Im thinking it'll take up as much chip space as DetroitDad's design.
If that artwork is going to be that big, all your chips are going to look the same color. Only a tiny rim of color and the rolling edge will be different? Sorting out a pot will be a real challenge.
I would consider a different background color for each chip
 
If that artwork is going to be that big, all your chips are going to look the same color. Only a tiny rim of color and the rolling edge will be different? Sorting out a pot will be a real challenge.
I would consider a different background color for each chip
Oh, thats what you meant! The orange background and such on my drawing isnt part of the art, I just care about the possum, cards, and chips; I would want the image to be transparent (by transparent I mean its just those 3 things, no background so it can be placed on top of any color) and have the color be different in the background for each chip. My apologies if that wasn't clear. I dont know how to use photochop or anything, I just wanted to get my idea "on paper".
 
That is definitely a good point. Did you discover from personal experience? What was the centering difference like?
Recent personal experience with 47mm seating chips. I had a 3mm outer white ring bordered by a black ring on the common backs. As it turns out, the acceptable tolerances on the 47mm chips is 1.5mm, so an off-centre shift is very noticable when the chips are laid on the table for people to choose, and it may be possible to figure out which chips are which over time simply by looking at the backs. I will now have to use a Crown Royal bag (or something similar), and given that people will ask why, that will draw even more attention to it.

Chip_offcentre.png


I don't want to mention the manufacturer as they have been great to work with in every other regard, and I have had other products made in the past by them that were exceptional. That said, I had plans to have a custom matching 39mm 1000 chip tournament set made. At this time, they will remain as plans.

Live and learn. Make the design busy enough that you eye is not drawn to the drift if it occurs.
 
A benchmark ceramic set is Mr Tree's Paymaster:
View attachment 609866

You could do so much with your rat/possum idea - have them in different poses with cards, chips, drinks etc.
I was checking those out earlier! They are beautiful.

I think that if I do different designs, it'll be for a dealer button and a plaque design. I kinda wanna keep the full set the same art.
I am unsure how i feel about a different design on every chip, and am unsure how that would affect the cost if/when I hire someone to help me make the chips.
 
Recent personal experience with 47mm seating chips. I had a 3mm outer white ring bordered by a black ring on the common backs. As it turns out, the acceptable tolerances on the 47mm chips is 1.5mm, so an off-centre shift is very noticable when the chips are laid on the table for people to choose, and it may be possible to figure out which chips are which over time simply by looking at the backs. I will now have to use a Crown Royal bag (or something similar), and given that people will ask why, that will draw even more attention to it.

View attachment 609885

I don't want to mention the manufacturer as they have been great to work with in every other regard, and I have had other products made in the past by them that were exceptional. That said, I had plans to have a custom matching 39mm 1000 chip tournament set made. At this time, they will remain as plans.

Live and learn. Make the design busy enough that you eye is not drawn to the drift if it occurs.
Noted, thank you for the examples. I'll try to think of something to make the design busy if that occurs

Could you DM me the manufacturer? If it's who I'm thinking, I'll still use them. I'm just way too curious now to not ask.
 
If the tolerance is 1.5mm and the errors in the chip are within those tolerances, it’s not the manufacturer’s fault. Generally in an artwork template, there’s a bleed line, a “cut” line and a safe area. That safe area is so if there is any drift, it’s within the margin...
I would verify with whatever vendor you’re considering that the artwork will be ok, and plan even more space to avoid an issue.
 
If the tolerance is 1.5mm and the errors in the chip are within those tolerances, it’s not the manufacturer’s fault. Generally in an artwork template, there’s a bleed line, a “cut” line and a safe area. That safe area is so if there is any drift, it’s within the margin...
I would verify with whatever vendor you’re considering that the artwork will be ok, and plan even more space to avoid an issue.
I figured it was just a normal thing with ceramics to have a few not completely centered tbh, that makes me feel much much better
 

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