Still very oily after 48 hours... should I wash them with soapy water? (1 Viewer)

[Moxie Mike]

So after oiling about 3000 chips over the weekend (2500 brand new CC Pyramid Casinos + 500 Paulson cash game set) using a combination of the oil/water & compression methods, there is still a significant amount of oily residue on all the chips, especially the inlays/stickers. This is after a full 48 hours in an air conditioned office with good air flow. The side that was down against the paper towels isn't as bad, but after handling a couple stacks, my hands are greasy as if I'd just eaten a half-bag of potato chips. I couldn't imagine playing for hours on with chips in this condition. Luckily, my next game isn't for a couple of weeks so I have a little time to solve this problem.

Is this normal? Have I just not waited long enough?

I don't feel as though I used a ton of mineral oil (standard Walgreens bottle visible in the 3rd picture) - just a splash in a 4 qt Pyrex bowl of water, but I'm not super optimistic that they're going to 'dry' any more than they already have. There is a clear layer of residue that appears when you shine the chips in the LED lighting. The clay chips seem to have absorbed as much oil as they're going to.

I have them all laid out in on conference tables in my office, so you probably imagine that leaving them lying around for too much longer isn't an option.

Best case scenario is I will box them up temporarily and then wash them off with blue Dawn and water next weekend. But after oiling them all day Saturday, I'd rather not waste the effort. Any advice you can dispense would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Klobberer]

I always wipe them off with a cloth. Should take off the excess, but leave them clean and bright...

 

[Psypher1000]

Whelp, my first suggestion would have been to not oil the CC's at all - they don't take the oil nearly as well. At a minimum wipe off as much oil as possible. Not sure if a soap bath is warranted, but it might be depending on how much oil was applied.

For the paulsons, just wipe off the excess, particularly from the inlay.

 

[Trihonda]

Just wipe them with a towel.

 

[superchromix]

Oiling chips is a bit overrated imho.. My advice would be to take clean, dry towels to those chips and wipe them down individually to remove the excess oil, rather than washing in dishsoap which would defeat the purpose of oiling in the first place.

 

[links_slayer]

Go back in time and use less oil.

 

[Moxie Mike]

I wiped about 100 of them with a towel which took about 50% of the residue feeling off but they still don't feel like casino chips. Will that just evaporate over the next week or so?

Is there an time-economical way to wipe all these down? I don't have 5 hours to do this.

 

[Psypher1000]

Is there an time-economical way to wipe all these down?

Not that I've found.

 

[Lemonzest]

also they wont ever feel like casino chips.

 

[gopherblue]

Don’t oil chips. You want them oiled? Host a game and serve Lays.

 

[Klobberer]

Mmmm, rancid potato chip oil...don't forget the hooker juice.

 

[Klobberer]

Oh, and boogers. Lots of boogers...

 

[RowdyRawhide]

Oil won't evaporate. The oil on the side of the chip that was on the towel was absorbed by the towel, hence the better 'feel'. You'll have to wipe them down by hand. Personally i would have just oiled the edges lightly with a lightly oiled towel

 

[Highli99]

[insert gif of zoolander gasoline fight scene]

 

[hdgeno]

Oil won't evaporate. The oil on the side of the chip that was on the towel was absorbed by the towel, hence the better 'feel'. You'll have to wipe them down by hand. Personally i would have just oiled the edges lightly with a lightly oiled towel

All I ever do is wipe the edges with a very lightly oiled towel, if I even do that. There is no need for this much oil on a poker chip imo

 

[allforcharity]

Definitely too much oil the first time. China clays don't do nearly as well with oil as Paulsons or CPCs. One little squirt of oil on a J-cloth should do 100 chips, easy.

 

[davin]

Reason i never oil my chips, the oils from hands will eventually rub onto chips during play.

 

[BGinGA]

Reason i never oil my chips, the oils from hands will eventually rub onto chips during play.

Yeah, and that's nasty.

One of the very reasons to oil chips is to protect them from absorbing organic oils and liquids (that spoil, discolor, and turn rancid) that come from hands, sweat, beer, and foodstuffs.

 

[Moxie Mike]

Thanks for all the replies.

Personally i would have just oiled the edges lightly with a lightly oiled towel

While I appreciate the retroactive advice, telling me what I should have done isn't particularly useful at the moment. Hopefully someone who runs across this thread in the future will benefit from your remarks, but right now I've got a different problem to solve.

I don't regret the path I took. I oiled up a couple barrels a week ago at home and got a great result with the exact same method - all I had to do was wipe the excess oil off the label/inlay and they've dried nicely and held their sheen. I'm just not sure why I haven't gotten the same results this time around when the only variable is the environment. These were done in my air conditioned office, which shouldn't have made a difference IMO.

 

[RowdyRawhide]

Well I didn't mean to sound snarky if that's how you took it.....

Thanks for all the replies.
- all I had to do was wipe the excess oil off the labell/inlay.

looks like another variable to me. Unless you're a hell of a lot more meticulous than me your not just wiping that inlay off with getting the rest of the chip too.

 

[Moxie Mike]

Well I didn't mean to sound snarky if that's how you took it.....
looks like another variable to me. Unless you're a hell of a lot more meticulous than me your not just wiping that inlay off with getting the rest of the chip too.

No worries dude - it's just as if I went to a pharmacist for a 'morning-after' pill and instead was offered a condom

I'm pretty sure I have little choice but to wipe them down thoroughly. I think I have an idea of how to do this quickly... we'll see how it goes.

 

[RowdyRawhide]

No worries dude - it's just as if I went to a pharmacist for a 'morning-after' pill and instead was offered a condom

I'm pretty sure I have little choice but to wipe them down thoroughly. I think I have an idea of how to do this quickly... we'll see how it goes.

Seriously though I'd wipe em down before I'd wash em. Washing them sounds like an even bigger PITA

 

[ReallyGoodUsername]

Don't fret Mike! I think the compression method is the best method however you do have to wipe them down after letting them air out. I also think there's benefit in oiling new CC's since they still often come with dust on. Yes you could wait to have them playing in dozens of hands or you could spend some time and make a great impression the first time your group sees them. I did this for my Pharaoh CCs and they came out looking great!

 

[abby99]

If you don't like the results after wiping the chips in an attempt to remove the oil, then washing them is probably your best option. Sorry.

Test a few barrels first to make sure you're getting the results you want.

 

[ReallyGoodUsername]

Test a few barrels first to make sure you're getting the results you want.

^^^ Probably the best advice for oiling. Like staining or painting always try to do a sample first to see how it comes out. Hindsight I know but incas anyone else see the thread.

 

[SendThatStack]

I’d try a microfiber or terry cloth before washing with soap.

 

[SendThatStack]

Don't fret Mike! I think the compression method is the best method however you do have to wipe them down after letting them air out. I also think there's benefit in oiling new CC's since they still often come with dust on. Yes you could wait to have them playing in dozens of hands or you could spend some time and make a great impression the first time your group sees them. I did this for my Pharaoh CCs and they came out looking great!

I totally agree, just look at this before/after.

 

[hod]

Go back in time and use less oil.

Whilst not overly helpful to your precise situation, this is the best piece of advice for anyone looking in.

Oil can get under or into inlays/stickers and ruin them too. A light (very, very light) oiling on a rolling edge is all I've ever done. I've just finished doing some CPC solid hotstamps, and only did the rolling edges in stacks of 10 using about a drop on each stack, and even then I wiped them down with kitchen roll afterwards.

 

[Trihonda]

Reason i never oil my chips, the oils from hands will eventually rub onto chips during play.

Exactly WHY I oil my chips...

Oh, I see BG beat me to it (and was more detailed)

 

[Wils]

Somebody should put this thread title in the "Out of Context" thread already.