During the original kickstarter for Brass the board game (
Brass Kickstarter link) which they were originally made for it was stated that they have a slug in them because the intricate design need a sug to help them cool when manufactured. They were actually supposed to be 14g chips but they reduced the weight to save on shipping and told everyone it was more casino like if the chips weighed 9-10g. Alot of the backers went crazy saying heavier is better and that they were getting bait and switched. here are some snipets from the updates:
We have unlocked Clay Money Chips!
Every copy of Brass backed through this campaign will come with Clay Money chips. That is a total of 140 money chips if you've backed for the two-game bundle. Yes, we are very excited about this.
What are the specs on these babies?
They have a calcium carbonate core. Calcium carbonate is a heavy material that is found naturally in organic hard material such as sea shells, rock, and is often referred to as as the building material: limestone. This is what the industry now refers to as "clay composite" chips. They will be 37mm and have a weight of 6-7g each.
These chips feel quite different than weighted ABS chips and have a very satisfying sound and feel to them.
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Introducing Iron Clays Gaming chips. Iron Clays is the brand label that we have come up with to sell our custom gaming poker chips under. The image above is a preliminary reveal of the Iron Clays logo, created by Chad Michaels. The mockup box the logo is shown on is conceptual, and will likely change quite a bit before production.
Why "Iron Clays"? We felt this name is not only a nod to the industrial revolution, but also tells what the chips are made from. After submitting preliminary sketches to the manufacturer, they felt that the only way to achieve the level of intricacy that we are are shooting for with the design of the chips, we have had to put an iron disc into the core of each chip. Yes... each chip will now weigh 14g. This weight increase will not affect your shipping rate. The iron core acts as a heat sink allowing the material to cool faster in turn allowing for more intricate patterns. The iron core is then surrounded with clay and other custom material in the two color insert mold process.
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Iron Clays Reveal
IMPORTANT NOTE: All images shown below are conceptual! The design of the Iron Clays are subject to change to meet manufacturing requirements.
As of right now, all of these designs have been approved by the factory. That said, it is important for everyone to note that we are in uncharted waters here. To our knowledge, what we are trying to do with Iron Clays has not been done before. A two color insert molded set of chips with this level of intricacy in their design is not something we or our factory has ever seen before. As such, please understand that the designs and / specs may change.
In fact there has been a change in the chips weight. Due to the intricacy of the designs, the factory has needed reduce the size of the iron core. This means a weight reduction from 14g down to 9g. There is no way around this weight reduction, but we are extremely happy with a 9g weight.
Without further ado, on to the Clays! Big thanks to Mr Cuddington for using Chad Michael's work to create the renderings below.
