Curiosity, Appeal of TRKs? (2 Viewers)

[RocAFella1]

And this page needs a BCC plug

You forgot a B

 

[Tonysquander]

I remember seeing this post some time back and wondering if it was accurate. Historically speaking, when they were all cranking chips, who did the market prefer?

TRK’s are a cool part of history, but if there was identical access to the major manufacturers (and if BCC still existed, and if it was ASM, not CPC) then the ranking would go:

Paulson
BCC
ASM
TRK

Proof this is true? Because it was true when all were available.

 

[MeridianFC]

I remember seeing this post some time back and wondering if it was accurate. Historically speaking, when they were all cranking chips, who did the market prefer?

TRK, at least for customs, was not as popular because of their MOQ (5000 pieces). The penalty for less than that quantity was severe. IIRC the 1000 piece set would have cost $1.8K and that's in 15 or 20 years ago money.

BCC varied widely. They didn't always offer customs and then when they did, what you could get changed greatly over time. So it really depends on the specific time frame.

 

[joeyshin]

Bcc also had quite a bit of qc issues. Spinners, misaligned inlays, split edgespots

They also offered a heavyweight option which cause the chips to weigh a-2g more. I believe it was an expensive of toons so many customs did not go for it. But they do feel better

My personal preference

Leaded scrown > leaded THC > heavyweight BCC > everything else

 

[UniLover]

I just started my first leaded TRK set. I'll report back here to weigh in once it's done in probably a decade.

Doesn't have to be a decade!

https://www.pokerchipforum.com/threads/trk-chips-mostly-leaded-price-drop.123366/

 

[Pinkdan]

Bcc also had quite a bit of qc issues. Spinners, misaligned inlays, split edgespots

They also offered a heavyweight option which cause the chips to weigh a-2g more. I believe it was an expensive of toons so many customs did not go for it. But they do feel better

My personal preference

Leaded scrown > leaded THC > heavyweight BCC > everything else

Interesting I didn’t realize BCC had different weights. Do you have examples of sets that are the heavier weight?

 

[Budha]

Hey I like TRKs too. I’m just not gonna stand there and pretend that their diminutive edge spots aren’t disappointing.

That’s actually a lot of their appeal for me. I don’t really like bear claw, 8V, V mixed, etc., edge spots. I like the well balanced simplicity of the old school TRK’s.

It’s subjective, of course - but the simplicity is their strength.

 

[joeyshin]

These might hit classifieds soon

Breakdown
$1 x 350
$5 x 450
$25 x180
$100 x 60
$500 x 20

 

[doublebooyah85]

These might hit classifieds soon
View attachment 1383020

Breakdown
$1 x 350
$5 x 450
$25 x180
$100 x 60
$500 x 20

Interested in high denoms

 

[joeyshin]

Interested in high denoms

No splits

 

[Split]

I remember seeing this post some time back and wondering if it was accurate. Historically speaking, when they were all cranking chips, who did the market prefer?

Preference varied by person, much as it does today. TRK had only recently closed up shop when I started chipping and were still reasonably available secondhand. Some people disliked their smaller diameter. Otherwise they were generally considered to be fine clay chips. We didn’t have as good of an understanding of leaded and unleaded chips back then, so individual perceptions may have been colored by which they handled.

ASM only offered 312 spots to home buyers (and not as many molds, although the Roman mold was still in service) for a good portion of their history and had slightly fewer colors to choose from. That limited their appeal. The current abundance of spots, “new” molds, and the addition of dayglo peacock and dayglo tiger significantly added to their appeal. We won’t talk about the dark days after BCC sold out/closed and ASM Vegas was a thing.

BCC was always a gamble. Misshapen inlays plagued them for years, certain molds produced spinners on some batches, inlay print quality was all over the place, and you couldn’t be sure which version of canary yellow you were going to get. Sometimes you got both versions on the same order (or even same chip). Their fantasy lines were generally well received, although even then chip diameter could vary. Split edgespots occur across all clay makers, so I won’t hold that against them. When they made good chips, they were some of the best. A CT/PCF user (that I won’t tag in case it’s still a sore spot) had BCC make what is easily one of the all time great custom sets and probably one of the all time great sets altogether. Their next custom set came out so poorly that they sent it back and I don’t believe they’ve ever shared pictures.

Paulson semi custom chips (hotstamps) were available through Apache on the suits mold. They were pricey and the mold had mixed reviews back then, but now it gets almost universal acclaim. If only we knew how good we had it back then.

There were pros and cons to each maker, and I don’t think there was ever a consensus on which was best. That debate continues today!

Interesting I didn’t realize BCC had different weights. Do you have examples of sets that are the heavier weight?

BCC was vague about what made them heavyweight, but BCC heavyweight chips just have a larger diameter. The Protege line is heavyweight (aside from some anomalies). The Riverboat web molds are not. Some lines like High Rollers were made in both regular and heavyweight production runs. The heavyweight option wasn’t available in BCC’s earlier days, so generally speaking their earlier sets are regular weight while the later sets were more often heavyweight if that’s what the customer wanted.

 

[Tonysquander]

Giving more thought to this discussion it also seems that comparing what I consider to be the very best of the TRK chips produced (which I consider to be Nevada Clubs, Money Tree, 1st Ed. Trops, Fitzgeralds and for fantasy, the King's Castle) to modern Paulson chips is not an apples to apples comparison. If you are going to throw feel, lead, weight and sound into the mix, then shouldn't the comparison be to top of the line Paulson's of the same era? I would say pound for pound that Paulson's greatest leaded hits meet and/or exceed TRK's. At worst, I think it is a wash but Paulson has far more chip sets that fit into that category than TRK, so I think it would be the winner on volume alone.

If modern Paulsons are to be compared, wouldn't the more appropriate comparison be to the current unleaded CPC offerings of the small and large crown molds? Not the same color palette, but would having those old colors really make a difference and result in rating them higher than a NAGB or other modern chip? Who wins the unleaded competition? I think it is Paulson by a long shot.

Just some food for thought/discussion.

It is all personal preference at the end of the day. I also do not care for the miniscule edge spot TRK chips nor do I care for the abbreviated looking spots currently being offered on the newer Angel/Paulson chips. That is my preference. Others like them and there is nothing wrong with that either. I am glad we all do not like the same thing or there would not be enough chips to go around.

 

[BarrieJ3]

A CT/PCF user (that I won’t tag in case it’s still a sore spot) had BCC make what is easily one of the all time great custom sets and probably one of the all time great sets all together. Their next custom set came out so poorly that they sent it back and I don’t believe they’ve ever shared pictures.

Oh man, grail custom sample! The one never released!

Giving more thought to this discussion it also seems that comparing what I consider to be the very best of the TRK chips produced (which I consider to be Nevada Clubs, Money Tree, 1st Ed. Trops, Fitzgeralds and for fantasy, the King's Crown)

This is apt.

"They just paid so much more attention to design and function back then, you simply can't recreate this". Proceeds to post pictures of only goated chips