Vesper Clubs -- Old-School Large Crown Hotstamped Cash Set (4 Viewers)

Awesome set, congrats! I absolutely love the large crown mold, and the classic TRK denom stamp goes perfectly with the mold, well done sir!
 
This set is absolutely incredible. Feels like something they put in play on Mulberry St mid-century, genuinely phenomenal
 
Well done! Love seeing chip dreams come into fruition.

If you don't mind me asking, how much did it end up costing all things considered?
 
The journey to create this set was, to put it mildly, a bit of an ordeal.

I am, if nothing else, a TRK guy. Like many of my TRK fellow-travelers, I love scrowns. The truth is, many of us look down our noses at large crown TRKs, mostly, I suspect, because there aren't that many playable sets available. However, the scales fell from my eyes the day I met Glenn O'Neill at his home workshop in early 2016. He showed me the beauty that lcrowns possess--hotstamps in particular--and after spending time browsing the old-school goodness and vintage fonts of 1940s and 1950s hotstamps, I have been enamored with the idea of a playable set ever since. Hell, I even mocked up a daydream cash set of large crowns, just for sh!ts and giggles, using colors and spot patterns that would evoke a 1940s-era card club. I even had a name picked out--named for my daughter born in 2016. I envisioned the hotstamps with an art deco club name on one side, classic TRK denominations on the other. Period-appropriate fonts, colors and spots. My goal was a chip that could be mistaken for one from the 1940s/1950s.

Alas, my dream was for naught, as TRK had gone the way of the dodo. Or so I thought. But then a little birdie told me in late 2017/early 2018 that CPC had acquired the lcrown and scrown molds. I reached out to David Spragg, who gave me a non-denial confirmation, but wouldn't say anything more until October 2018, when he formally announced that he had the molds. I immediately called @Johnny5 and, using some classic TRK hotstamps as inspiration, commissioned him to give wings to my very specific dream. Which he did.

But only a month or so later, my dream was dashed, as David Spragg announced that, despite herculean efforts, there was no way for the lcrowns (or scrowns) to be stamped. My dream set was not to be. By then I had a fully formed set of mock-ups, with finished artwork, spot patterns and colors.

The artwork and mock-ups made for a great screen background on my iphone, since now, according to CPC, that was the closest I'd ever come to my dream set.

The better part of a year passed. And then along comes @AK Chip, and a casual little post on PCF about buying a hotstamping machine. I PM'd him to see if he thought he could stamp lcrowns. He said he was game to try, but that it would be some months before he could do so. He was as excited about the possibility as I was, and he didn’t even really know me. Little did I know, but this was the turning point in my quest—I cannot stress this enough: without Pat's dedication, enthusiasm, and insane willingness to make this set happen, it never would have been made. Pat, you have been a true friend, though we've never met, and I am extremely grateful. You drink for free whenever I'm around.

Pat had CPC send him some lcrown blanks to try stamping, and the results, while FAR from perfect, showed a tiny bit of promise. I asked Pat for his honest assessment about whether he could stamp the lcrowns, and he said he thought maybe he could, but he was honest--it was a risk and I'd need to buy many more blanks than I needed, due to stamping problems. So, I emailed CPC and pulled the trigger in November 2019...on a maybe.

It took the better part of a year, with many unforeseen bumps in the road, but Pat (and J5) brought my dreams to reality. I cannot stress enough how hard it was for Pat to stamp these chips, and the amount of work involved. Each chip stamped, by hand, then hand-scraped, then resetting the machine and repeating. Again: without Pat's unbelievable dedication, this set could not exist. Thank you, Pat.

I also want to thank several folks who gave me sage advice and encouragement along the way: @Psypher1000 (my design guru), @AfterTheFact, @bentax1978 and @PAZ. My sincere gratitude to all of you.

=============================
tl;dr:

My fellow degens, I present to you my 1940s-cardroom-inspired large crown set: the Vesper Clubs.

100 x 25c
200 x $1
400 x $5
200 x $20
100 x $100

(Pictured is the bulk of the set--Pat is still working feverishly on the remaining chips.)

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My god.......... that set is so awesome haha! I've liked Large Crown chips but now I think I'll have a new way of thinking about them. My appreciation for them will definitely be higher because of this good job man! Made my jaw drop not gonna lie...
 
Some additional background on design influences. As I mentioned, I wanted the set to have period-appropriate colors, typography and look/feel. Chips that make aficionados do a double-take and head straight for the ChipGuide. I'd like to think my set is pretty close to that goal (hell, it's what gave me the idea for the Craigslist ad troll). I've always loved the Pioneer 25c, and I knew my frac had to be Retro Lavender. Likewise, the El Rancho $100 is a favorite. I was certain I wanted a navy $1 with yellow edgespots, and I love the idea of a brown chip. The most controversial decision was the color of the $5. I really liked the idea of an orange chip, but wasn't sure how it would fit into the set. Yes, the obvious thought here is the Mapes $5, but I wasn't sure about orange large crowns. The Caanda Club and Airway Club disabused me of that notion.

Some real-world chips that guided my progress:

Typography:

29550.jpg
73456.jpg
52869.jpg


Colors and edgespots:

55865.jpg
66141.jpg
36857.jpg
96588.jpg
38549.jpg
40540.jpeg


Results:

C78F0550-C541-458E-B875-E4EBF7204DAD.jpg



Pics borrowed from the ChipGuide.
 
Is there a font/setting you can use to replicate that look?

I have a longer, three-word name in mind, but it would be helpful to see how you got there as I play around.
 
And wow... seeing that shaped inlay on the $20 is really jarring against the hot stamps...
 
What makes them a truly exceptional set is the replication of the old school TR King fonts. The rounded and block like script on the obverse is amazing. Great attention to detail and great work to all those that participated in creating these.

John
 
Eliott, thanks for the nod in your write up! It has been fun working with you on this project, so far it is my hot stamping highlight!! As hard as it was to get these stamped it was even harder not showing or talking about this set for months. I knew right away if it could be pulled off this set was going to be special.

Crazy hobby we have were a guy buys $$$ worth of chips and has them shipped to someone you dont really know, only to wait what seemed like a year to get them started. Thanks for the trust and having the patience to wait it out.
 
Is there a font/setting you can use to replicate that look?

I have a longer, three-word name in mind, but it would be helpful to see how you got there as I play around.
Not really--just get in touch with @Johnny5...he's a wizard, Harry!

A470823C-1EB6-473F-A87C-38356F2CC6F1.jpeg

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[Edit: Pat beat me to it on the Gold Nugget Club]
 
Eliott, thanks for the nod in your write up! It has been fun working with you on this project, so far it is my hot stamping highlight!! As hard as it was to get these stamped it was even harder not showing or talking about this set for months. I knew right away if it could be pulled off this set was going to be special.

Crazy hobby we have were a guy buys $$$ worth of chips and has them shipped to someone you dont really know, only to wait what seemed like a year to get them started. Thanks for the trust and having the patience to wait it out.
Pat, it wasn't a nod...it was a debt of gratitude that I can only hope to one day repay. :tup:
 
The journey to create this set was, to put it mildly, a bit of an ordeal.

I am, if nothing else, a TRK guy. Like many of my TRK fellow-travelers, I love scrowns. The truth is, many of us look down our noses at large crown TRKs, mostly, I suspect, because there aren't that many playable sets available. However, the scales fell from my eyes the day I met Glenn O'Neill at his home workshop in early 2016. He showed me the beauty that lcrowns possess--hotstamps in particular--and after spending time browsing the old-school goodness and vintage fonts of 1940s and 1950s hotstamps, I have been enamored with the idea of a playable set ever since. Hell, I even mocked up a daydream cash set of large crowns, just for sh!ts and giggles, using colors and spot patterns that would evoke a 1940s-era card club. I even had a name picked out--named for my daughter born in 2016. I envisioned the hotstamps with an art deco club name on one side, classic TRK denominations on the other. Period-appropriate fonts, colors and spots. My goal was a chip that could be mistaken for one from the 1940s/1950s.

Alas, my dream was for naught, as TRK had gone the way of the dodo. Or so I thought. But then a little birdie told me in late 2017/early 2018 that CPC had acquired the lcrown and scrown molds. I reached out to David Spragg, who gave me a non-denial confirmation, but wouldn't say anything more until October 2018, when he formally announced that he had the molds. I immediately called @Johnny5 and, using some classic TRK hotstamps as inspiration, commissioned him to give wings to my very specific dream. Which he did.

But only a month or so later, my dream was dashed, as David Spragg announced that, despite herculean efforts, there was no way for the lcrowns (or scrowns) to be stamped. My dream set was not to be. By then I had a fully formed set of mock-ups, with finished artwork, spot patterns and colors.

The artwork and mock-ups made for a great screen background on my iphone, since now, according to CPC, that was the closest I'd ever come to my dream set.

The better part of a year passed. And then along comes @AK Chip, and a casual little post on PCF about buying a hotstamping machine. I PM'd him to see if he thought he could stamp lcrowns. He said he was game to try, but that it would be some months before he could do so. He was as excited about the possibility as I was, and he didn’t even really know me. Little did I know, but this was the turning point in my quest—I cannot stress this enough: without Pat's dedication, enthusiasm, and insane willingness to make this set happen, it never would have been made. Pat, you have been a true friend, though we've never met, and I am extremely grateful. You drink for free whenever I'm around.

Pat had CPC send him some lcrown blanks to try stamping, and the results, while FAR from perfect, showed a tiny bit of promise. I asked Pat for his honest assessment about whether he could stamp the lcrowns, and he said he thought maybe he could, but he was honest--it was a risk and I'd need to buy many more blanks than I needed, due to stamping problems. So, I emailed CPC and pulled the trigger in November 2019...on a maybe.

It took the better part of another year, with many unforeseen bumps in the road, but Pat (and J5) brought my dreams to reality. I cannot stress enough how hard it was for Pat to stamp these chips, and the amount of work involved. Each chip stamped, by hand, then hand-scraped, then resetting the machine and repeating. Again: without Pat's unbelievable dedication, this set could not exist. Thank you, Pat.

I also want to thank several folks who gave me sage advice and encouragement along the way: @Psypher1000 (my design guru), @AfterTheFact, @bentax1978 and @PAZ. My sincere gratitude to all of you.

=============================
tl;dr:

My fellow degens, I present to you my 1940s-cardroom-inspired large crown set: the Vesper Clubs.

100 x 25c
200 x $1
400 x $5
200 x $20
100 x $100

(Pictured is the bulk of the set--Pat is still working feverishly on the remaining chips.)

View attachment 579496View attachment 579502View attachment 579501View attachment 579500View attachment 579499View attachment 579498View attachment 579497
View attachment 579506View attachment 579507View attachment 579505
Beautiful work. Congratulations to all involved.
 

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