Poker chip case with Chip-O-Racks (or similar)? (1 Viewer)

[TriforceLegend]

Hey folks,

I’ve been researching cases for my poker chip set (Apache bank chips w/ custom labels) and I’m not quite finding exactly what I’m looking for so figured I’d try asking here.

I’m using the chips primarily for 18xx games. Usually these games have a fixed bank size so you set up the bank and keep the extra chips in the case so they don’t get mixed in. Because of this I’d like to store my chips in racks that are set up for different bank sizes for different games so I can just set them on the table and go. I really like racks like the Chip-o-racks, which are slanted and have an open front to make it easier to take chips from the rack.

Can anyone recommend a case that would fit these racks (I have about 450 chips in my set)? I’ve seen all the Apache and Nanuk case posts, but I’m curious if anyone has tried this specifically. The racks don’t have to be Chip-o-racks. Anything that has similar features to what I described would work. Covered for transport. would be even better.

Thanks in advance!

-Johnny

 

[CrazyEddie]

I'd never heard of Chip-o-racks before, so I looked them up. Interesting! I may have to get a few and try them out. I like vintage stuff...

I have a set of 200 chips for board gaming, and I wanted to put them in racks in a case, so that I could set out one rack at one end of the table and another rack at the other end, letting people make their own change using whichever was close to them. I had a very hard time finding a case that came with internal racks that was only 200 chips; there were a lot more options for 300 or 500 chips. All of them used flat racks (not slanted) that hold 4 rows of 25 chips, unlike the racks most people here use which are 5 rows of 20 chips.

Cases like Apache and Nanuk and photography gear cases and so forth should be flexible enough that you can store and transport anything in them, but I can't speak to them personally. Sorry I can't be more helpful with your quest, but thanks for posting about it. Maybe someone else here will know more.

 

[Jambine]

I'd never heard of Chip-o-racks before, so I looked them up.

Me too, but I got this

What is a chip-o-rack?

 

[CrazyEddie]

Slanted chip racks, for holding and dispensing one person's chips at the table instead of making stacks. Holds 75 chips in three rows of 25. Open at one end so you can easily take chips out or put them back, and slanted so they stay neatly stacked even if the row isn't full.

There's a bunch of them on eBay. Appear to be vintage, made over a few decades (?) from a few different types of plastic (?).

 

[kaimat]

Do the racks stack into each other when empty?

 

[Darthhoodie]

I wonder if @One Eyed Dollar can 3d print you something like racks similar to the chip-o-racks that will fit in regular bird cage type case and stack?

 

[allforcharity]

A carousel would probably work well as a bank for board games.

 

[CrazyEddie]

A carousel would probably work well as a bank for board games.

Tastes vary, of course, but I'm skeptical of carousels... they seem like they would take up a lot of counter/table space. Such a space-inefficient shape.

... but on the other hand, making things spin is fun!

 

[One Eyed Dollar]

Tagging @Amish Rabbi because he's the man when it comes to custom stuff for 18XX games. Maybe he can help.

 

[TriforceLegend]

That’s a name I recognize! The carousel would definitely be too big for my purposes. Streaming game is hard enough with the amount of space 18xx takes up on the table and ideally I like to split the bank so everyone is within reach of chips.

As far as customization goes, I’m hoping the most customization I’d need is the pick and pluck foam from one of those hard cases. Otherwise I’ll probably just settle for either the Versa 600 with the regular racks or a briefcase with the Chip-O-Racks packed separately.

Do the racks stack into each other when empty?

I don’t think so

 

[CrazyEddie]

If you go with a briefcase, note that most of them have cut-outs intended for storing decks of cards and dealer buttons, all of which is just wasted space for you. If you look you can find some that just hold chips; George and Company have a line of them in various sizes, but you may find others as well.

 

[TriforceLegend]

Yea not a big fan of the wasted space of the card well, although I have heard some people use them for handy vacs and/or calculators. I’ll have to check out the George and Company ones.

 

[Amish Rabbi]

One of the versa cases with the slanted racks would work well. Either pick and pluck foam or something out of balsa wood to contain them

alternately have you tried tipping a standard rack up at 10 degrees or so and seeing if they stay put like you are thinking? Making something to tip a rack would be way easier than making entire tipped racks. They wouldn’t be open at the back but I don’t see that at a huge downside.

 

[Amish Rabbi]

I never thought about the mess from chips tipping over with a partly empty row... it does happen pretty easily now that I think about it