Shuffle Tech Cart Build (3 Viewers)

[namsupak]

I pulled this over from an old post that I had on the other site, hope thats okay. I thought maybe someone might be interested in this type of build. I don't really have a full table build to put here. Chanman built my table, and it has been amazing.

I wanted to share with you this cart that I built for a Shuffle Tech Shuffler. After a lot of thought I bought an ST-1000 Shuffle-tech shuffler for our home game. IT is a great shuffler but it can be kind of loud. Also since I had a pre-fab table I didn't think that it would stand me cutting a hole in it for a flush mounting bracket. I Recently ordered a custom table but there were several reasons I did not want to put the mount in the new table either.

1. I didn't want to mar the custom graphic that we had decided upon.
2. I wanted the table to be easy to fold up and move so adding a drop box or a shuffler would just be one more item I would have to keep putting on or taking off every time we wanted the table out.
3. We are going try and use the table for other games too so the shuffler wouldn't always be needed

Additionally I had a lot of random stuff sitting around my house from Ikea and the only cart I could find was from shuffle tech itself for about $400. I decided that I could try and make something work.

First I ordered a flush mount off of eBay for around $100.

This summer we had done a kitchen remodel ourselves and one of the cabinets did not quite fit so we ended up with an extra and I figured we might as well use it for something. The cabinet is called an Akurum and it is about 12" x 24" x 30" (W x D x H). The cabinet and the drawers were about $75. But honestly had I known I was going to do this and I didnt already have the extra cabinet I would have just went to the AS-IS section and picked up one for half price.

However in the As-Is section I picked up a scrap piece of a table top and a drawer front that was discontinued for less than $5. I also picked up a set of casters called Rill for about $10 from Ikea.

After some slight modifications and cutting we had a finished cart.

Here is the overview Pic:

Here it is with the pull out:

Final cart with the chip racks in place - they were slightly too long to fit lengthwise so I used some leftover styrofoam to create a little cushion for them to sit on. Then they fit perfect.

The chips are Par-a-dice chips from Jim at the chip room. There is plenty of space to hold our poker essentials and the cart does seem to muffle most of the noise. I also thought about lining the inside around the shuffler with a little noise dampening material to make it silent, but its pretty unobtrusive now. Also as it is the shuffler cord is coming out of the back of the cart, but I may mount a surge suppressor somewhere on the outside or maybe cut in the side and flush mount some usb ports to charge iPhones and such while the main power goes to the shuffler.

Cost:
Shuffler - I got this in a trade so it didn't really cost me anything
Flush mount kit - $100
Ikea Cabinet - $75
Wheels/Casters - $10
Ikea As-is stuff - $5
Not cutting my hands trying to make the plunge cuts - priceless
Total = $200

So I saved myself about 1/2 of the pre-made cart cost. And I like my storage space better.

Also I considered cutting metal to make the flush mount myself because there is a template available with the dimensions for the cutout - I wouldn't recommend it unless you are somewhat experienced with cutting metal. I shelled out the money for it instead. This would have cut down the cost dramatically.

Well hope you guys like it, I will update when I make any changes, as well as making updates to the folding table chanman is building for me.

 

[Lars]

Very nice!

 

[mummel]

Wow amazing.

 

[Swift]

nice

 

[DJ Mack]

Nifty! Now if only I could get my $13 Walmart shuffler to mount under a table...

 

[Max D]

nice

 

[mashoo]

Do you have any reliability issues with the shuffler?

 

[namsupak]

Do you have any reliability issues with the shuffler?

I am not really having any reliability issues. Here is a little history on it. So I bought the shuffler from a friend and it was kind of a mess, dirty, never been cleaned etc. I opened it up and cleaned all the gears and little rubber wheels and belts. I also used compressed air and a computer vacuum to clean out all the dust and grime.

We play sessions that are about 8 hours long and the shuffler does really well I think. Often we won't have any problems for the first few hours, then as the night goes on about once every hour or two we have to manually clear the cards out. So let me explain this a bit.

The shuffler makes noise, its relatively loud but when we play our talking and the fact that it sits to the side of dealer the sound is kind of drowned out. Inside the machine the cards are just pushed to the right or the left then another wheel shoves the cards back into the middle elevator portion to simulate the riffle. When the machine does this if a card is stuck then a little wheel in the elevator will try to clear the jam for a few seconds, and usually it auto clears on its own does. Occasionally the jam is not cleared and the machine stops. This is the only time you need to manually take the cards out and then reset the machine. This is what I count as a real jam.

I prep the shuffler before each game by cleaning it from the top and making sure the rubber belts and wheels are clear of any dirt, takes about 5-10mins tops. Pretty much a surface cleaning, I don't actually remove it from the cart. This seems to make it run smoother.

Other than that I haven't had any problems with it in about 3 years.

hope that answers your question.

 

[mummel]

I've read these units have major flaws. Glad you got yours working right. Looks like a great setup.

Why can't a company make a consumer grade automatic shuffled that doesn't cost a testicle?

 

[namsupak]

I've read these units have major flaws. Glad you got yours working right. Looks like a great setup.

Why can't a company make a consumer grade automatic shuffled that doesn't cost a testicle?

Yeah I think I may have gotten lucky, and I am taking care of the machine, I could see how if you don't do some maintenance on it, the oil and dirt would build up and give the mechanism problems with the cards.

I think the machine itself is good but from what it seems like, the owner of the company is just too short handed or something and can't keep up with the requests and the service.

Honestly I am baffled some one hasn't come out with another one in this price range. The programming on it seems pretty simple and there are a few sensors in there to detect if a deck is in the elevator or not but other than that its just some little belts and gears to kick the cards. I am dreading when I have to take it apart again if something wears out like a little rubber grommet or plastic piece. Maybe thats an excuse for a 3D printer so I could machine the replacement parts myself.

I could see if you used this for a game that runs more than once a week that the wear and tear on this machine might be a problem.

 

[mashoo]

I am not really having any reliability issues. Here is a little history on it. So I bought the shuffler from a friend and it was kind of a mess, dirty, never been cleaned etc. I opened it up and cleaned all the gears and little rubber wheels and belts. I also used compressed air and a computer vacuum to clean out all the dust and grime.

We play sessions that are about 8 hours long and the shuffler does really well I think. Often we won't have any problems for the first few hours, then as the night goes on about once every hour or two we have to manually clear the cards out. So let me explain this a bit.

The shuffler makes noise, its relatively loud but when we play our talking and the fact that it sits to the side of dealer the sound is kind of drowned out. Inside the machine the cards are just pushed to the right or the left then another wheel shoves the cards back into the middle elevator portion to simulate the riffle. When the machine does this if a card is stuck then a little wheel in the elevator will try to clear the jam for a few seconds, and usually it auto clears on its own does. Occasionally the jam is not cleared and the machine stops. This is the only time you need to manually take the cards out and then reset the machine. This is what I count as a real jam.

I prep the shuffler before each game by cleaning it from the top and making sure the rubber belts and wheels are clear of any dirt, takes about 5-10mins tops. Pretty much a surface cleaning, I don't actually remove it from the cart. This seems to make it run smoother.

Other than that I haven't had any problems with it in about 3 years.

hope that answers your question.

I've read these units have major flaws. Glad you got yours working right. Looks like a great setup.

Why can't a company make a consumer grade automatic shuffled that doesn't cost a testicle?

Yeah I think I may have gotten lucky, and I am taking care of the machine, I could see how if you don't do some maintenance on it, the oil and dirt would build up and give the mechanism problems with the cards.

I think the machine itself is good but from what it seems like, the owner of the company is just too short handed or something and can't keep up with the requests and the service.

Honestly I am baffled some one hasn't come out with another one in this price range. The programming on it seems pretty simple and there are a few sensors in there to detect if a deck is in the elevator or not but other than that its just some little belts and gears to kick the cards. I am dreading when I have to take it apart again if something wears out like a little rubber grommet or plastic piece. Maybe thats an excuse for a 3D printer so I could machine the replacement parts myself.

I could see if you used this for a game that runs more than once a week that the wear and tear on this machine might be a problem.

I appreciate the replies from both of you. I run a card game two to three times a month in my house and looked into getting a shuffler. It's not a necessity but I wanted one for the coolness factor! I have a few friends who are card players and are the second dealer in my game but when we've some drinks in us it'd be cool to have a shuffler.

The price of shuffle tech is reasonable for me but reading about the owner and company issues gives me hesitancy. I agree that I wish there was another shuffler in that price range. Shuffle king and deck mate are just way too much.