Home game cheques timeline (1 Viewer)

[MeridianFC]

I know there are some histories out there but as an idle exercise was wondering about an actual time line of what quality chips spefically for the home market have been available when. I've been buying since the mid 90s and during the poker boom lots of things have come and gone, not all available for civilians. Can anybody help refine this:

US Playing Card Co. 1920s(?)-1940s(?) Paranoid, Emobssed, etc.
ASM 1988-2012 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy. Until 2007 only plain and 312 chips available for home market
ASM (Las Vegas) - 2013 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
Classic Poker Chips - 2014- Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
Paulson 1970s-2002 - Customs were apparently available till sometime in the late 80s/early 90s. Semi custom until late 90s/2000s. Fantasy sets 1990-2000s
GPI 2002-2014 - Fantasy only. All chips for home game end in 2014/2015?
TRKing 1956-2006 - Custom, Semi Custom and Fantasy
Blue Chip - 2002 (?)-2013 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy. Semi Custom & Custom available 2008-2012(?)
ChipCo - 1990s(?)-2013 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
GameOn - 2013-Present - Custom
RT Plastics - 1995 -???? - Fantasy, Custom - There was a short window where they did custom jobs, though fantasy seemed to be their primary mode. Not sure when they stopped making quality/custom home market chips
Abbiati - 1976-Present - Custom - IIRC Like Matsui below they do make customs but have a very high minimum. I believe this is only since around 1997.
Matsui - 1980(?)-present - Custom, Fantasy - Unsure of the date they started making chips. High minimums.
Nevada Jacks - 2002-2013- Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy - They seem to have been active, after a gap, as late as 2013
Palm Gaming - 2000s-Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
ABC Gifts & Awards - ????-Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy - I don't know when founded but ships started in the 2000s?
Old West Poker Supply - 2004-Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy

 

[Forty4]

Missing MSK

 

[BGinGA]

To the best of my knowledge, in chronological order:


T.R. King & Co. was founded sometime in the early 1920's, and produced chips on the large (king) crown and small crown molds. The company was sold to Paul Endy Sr. (a TRK salesman at the time) in 1956, who sold his interest to his business partner in 1970. T.R. King continued to produce chips until closing in 2006.

The Portland Billiard Ball Company began producing chips in the early 1930's. The name was changed to Burt Company in 1935. In 1947 they purchased the chip-making assets of the US Playing Card Company. Burt Company produced chips until the late 1980's.

US Playing Card Co. began producing chips in 1940.

Christy & Jones Co. sold chips (Horsehead Left, Diamond, and Top Hat & Cane molds) from 1952-1965 (all chips were produced by Burt Company).

Paul-Son Dice and Card Inc. was founded in late 1964 by Paul Endy Jr. (son of Paul Endy Sr. and former TRK employee). Initially, all Paul-Son chips were produced by Burt Company using C&J's Top Hat & Cane mold. Charles Endy (another son of Paul Endy Sr. and former TRK General Manager) founded the Top Hat and Cane Co. in 1970, and moved his company to Las Vegas in 1975, merging it into the Paul-Son Dice and Card Co. Paul-Son started making their own chips using the original mold plus their own slightly different THC molds (shorter canes) using a different process and new materials formula in 1975.

Bud Jones Company was founded in 1965 by Bud Jones as the Nevada Dice Company (renamed in 1975). Prior to introducing their classic injection-mold plastic BJ chips, Bud Jones Co. sold chips on the NEVADA and diecard molds produced by Burt Company until 1980.

Chipco was founded in 1985 and produced chips until 2013, when assets were acquired by Palm Gaming.

Atlantic Standard Molding (ASM) purchased the Burt Company assets in 1988 and produced chips until 2012.

Nevada Jacks opened in 2001, producing ceramic chips and later selling clay chips produced by Blue Chip Company. Now owned by (and ceramic chips produced by) ABC Gifts & Awards since 2010.

Blue Chip Company was started by Charles Endy and his son Mike Endy in 2002, following the merger/sale of Paulson/Bud Jones/Bourgogne-et-Grasset (creating Gaming Partners International Corp., or GPI). Blue Chip Company produced chips until 2012, when BCC assets were also acquired by GPI.

Following the creation of GPI, Paulson pulled out of the home market in 2002 until 2004, when several new home market chip lines were introduced. Paulson again withdrew from the home chip market in 2014.

Atlantic Standard Molding was sold, renamed American Standard Molding, moved to Las Vegas in 2012, and produced chips for about two years. Two very dark years.

American Standard Molding assets were purchased in late 2013, relocated to Portland Maine, reopened as Classic Poker Chips in 2014, and still produce chips today. Commonly referred to as the enlightenment or renaissance era.


Also missing from your list are ICON Poker, Gemaco (now acquired by GPI), Sun-Fly, Langworthy (predecessor to RT Plastics), Dolphin, MSK Gaming, and Bourgogne-et-Grasset, although I don't think B&G has ever sold to the home market. I'm sure there are more.


Interesting side-note: Bud Jones was a part owner of Christy & Jones (with Bill Christy), and they jointly designed the original Top Hat & Cane mold for Pat Sullivan in the mid-fifties. Paul-Son purchased the THC mold rights from Pat Sullivan in 1965.

 

[Thomacetti]

Stralka chips: http://www.stralka.de/

Not shure if they will start producing again...

 

[MeridianFC]

Thanks for the detailed info BGinGA. I was just wanting to refine the various makers time in the home market. A few, notably Paulson, have been in and out. ChipCo did make fantasy sets but I think only did any sort of home/customs starting in the 90s IIRC. As you note BJ and B&G have never to my knowledge made any home custom or fantasy sets. ASM did customs but only two types (plain and 312) until the mid 2000s.

 

[BGinGA]

All of the companies I listed (with exception of B&G) sold chips to non-casinos buyers, including Bud Jones/Nevada Dice. Plus Stralka (oversight on my part).

 

[MaxB]

T.R. King continued to produce chips until closing in 2006.

What was the reason behind this? It seems like their chips are considered the best by many here

 

[BGinGA]

Just educated guesses (a few others here may have firm insider knowledge), but a combination of nearing retirement age, government regulations (both gaming commissions and environmental organizations), and increased competition from GPI all worked together to seal the deal.

Most surprising (to me, anyway) was the insistence that no future TRK chips would ever be manufactured, hence no sale of mold/mfg assets.

 

[Thomacetti]

Just educated guesses (a few others here may have firm insider knowledge), but a combination of nearing retirement age, government regulations (both gaming commissions and environmental organizations), and increased competition from GPI all worked together to seal the deal.

Most surprising (to me, anyway) was the insistence that no future TRK chips would ever be manufactured, hence no sale of mold/mfg assets.

Fixed your post
Don't think Joe had anything to do with it....

 

[Psypher1000]

Most surprising (to me, anyway) was the insistence that no future TRK chips would ever be manufactured, hence no sale of mold/mfg assets.

Yeah, I'd love to fully understand this aspect of it.

 

[BGinGA]

I don't think he wanted any DROTT types f@cking up TRK's reputation...

 

[MeridianFC]

Where is Dennis nowadays?

 

[Poker Zombie]

I know there are some histories out there but as an idle exercise was wondering about an actual time line of what quality chips spefically for the home market have been available when. I've been buying since the mid 90s and during the poker boom lots of things have come and gone, not all available for civilians. Can anybody help refine this:

US Playing Card Co. 1920s(?)-1940s(?) Paranoid, Emobssed, etc.
ASM 1988-2012 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy. Until 2007 only plain and 312 chips available for home market
ASM (Las Vegas) - 2013 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
Classic Poker Chips - 2014- Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
Paulson 1970s-2002 - Customs were apparently available till sometime in the late 80s/early 90s. Semi custom until late 90s/2000s. Fantasy sets 1990-2000s
GPI 2002-2014 - Fantasy only. All chips for home game end in 2014/2015?
TRKing 1956-2006 - Custom, Semi Custom and Fantasy
Blue Chip - 2002 (?)-2013 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy. Semi Custom & Custom available 2008-2012(?)
ChipCo - 1990s(?)-2013 - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
GameOn - 2013-Present - Custom
RT Plastics - 1995 -???? - Fantasy, Custom - There was a short window where they did custom jobs, though fantasy seemed to be their primary mode. Not sure when they stopped making quality/custom home market chips
Abbiati - 1976-Present - Custom - IIRC Like Matsui below they do make customs but have a very high minimum. I believe this is only since around 1997.
Matsui - 1980(?)-present - Custom, Fantasy - Unsure of the date they started making chips. High minimums.
Nevada Jacks - 2002-2013- Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy - They seem to have been active, after a gap, as late as 2013
Palm Gaming - 2000s-Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy
ABC Gifts & Awards - ????-Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy - I don't know when founded but ships started in the 2000s?
Old West Poker Supply - 2004-Present - Custom, Semi Custom, Fantasy

Just found this thread, bumped from another thread...

We bought our first sets of customs (slugged ABS) from CustomCasinoChips.com, circa 2005, and then a second set (custom ceramics) around 2009. They're still active (at least the website is still there), and they do full customs (ceramics) as well as labeling what I believe to be nexgen chips. Since then I've discovered CT/PCF and only deal exclusively with supporters of those sites, so I no longer deal with CustomCasinoChips - but I thought you might want this low-profile company to be noted on the list.

 

[Taghkanic]

I believe this timeline begins well before the 1920s, because (as @BGinGA has noted) most if not all chip makers appear to have been willing to sell chips to anyone willing to pay.

This then led from what I’ve read to the nees for more custom options, to avoid people bringing chips from one game into another (whether a home game, underground game, private club, bar/saloon, casino, et al.

More relevant discussion and my draft timelines is at:

https://www.pokerchipforum.com/thre...-a-work-in-progress.70760/page-2#post-1433723

 

[shorticus]

This is an excellent thread! Loving learning the historical aspect of poker chips. Thanks for bumping this, guys.

 

[Taghkanic]

For example, Seymour’s Antique Gambling Chips cites Mason as beginning to sell customized chips c. 1900, in their Crest & Seal hub and plain inlay chips. And various outfits appear to have been selling non-custom “composition chips” for 10-20 years before that, to anyone who placed an order (home game, club, casino, etc.).

 

[BGinGA]

tagging @CrazyEddie in case he hasn't seen this thread....

 

[CrazyEddie]

tagging @CrazyEddie in case he hasn't seen this thread....

Always appreciated!