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Favorite Paulson Fantasy Set? (2 Viewers)

upNdown said:
Do you know this to be true?
I wasn’t chipping when Paulson was cranking out these sets, so I don’t know the dates. But I’ve always assumed that many/most/a lot of the Paulson fantasy chips were produced post lead.
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I believe that Paulson starting phasing out lead starting in 1998 but actually took some time to do, so many Paulson fantasies were fully leaded and some were reduced-lead, like CDI98. By the time of the 2005 and the Paulson House mold, formulae were lead-free in line with government regulation.
 
upNdown said:
As far as i can tell, fantasy just means a set sold to the public, with a theme, that aren’t actual casino chips.
Personally I wouldn’t consider Big Tops or Tigers or any other NAGB sets to be fantasy sets. They’re similar, but they’re something different. Paulson didn’t sell these to the public.
The Paulson fantasy chips all used (or shared) a very limited number of base colors + spot patterns and colors. Which explains why some larger sets like casino de Mexico actually have duplicate chips with different denominations in the same set. And this is another reason why NAGB chips don’t fit into the Fantasy category.
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I'd agree to some extent, but not completely.

In my view, original Paulson chips (excluding re-labeled or re-stamped) fall into one of four general categories, and all can be leaded or unleaded (depending on date of manufacture):

• casino chip sets
• fantasy chip sets
• custom chip sets
• semi-custom chip sets

The more recent unleaded fantasy chip sets (circa 2005-2013) were ordered/sold by Trademark (a GPI distributor), and include Pharaoh's Club & Casino, TH&C Classics, Casino de Isthmuth City, Nation Poker Series, World Top Hat & Cane, Private Cardroom, Avalon Club, and Grand Cardroom (the last three being hot-stamped). All were produced on either the PAULSON CHIPS or Card Pip (suits) mold. One additional fantasy set was ordered/sold by Sidepot Poker - Paulson le Noir, produced on the Paradise (pineapple) mold. Customs and semi-customs included hot-stamped chips sold by Apache Poker, produced on the Card Pip mold.

None were sold directly to the public by GPI.

The nagb chips made from 2017-present were produced on the TH&C mold (excluding B&G and oversized IHC and FHC chips) and all are unleaded. Some of these sets are customs (designed for individuals -- Harlequin, Truman's House, and others), while some are fantasy (designed for resale, either at-cost or for-profit -- Empress Star, Aurora Star, Big Top Poker, Sunset Beach, Royal Princess Casino, Tiger Palace).

All were sold to GPI customers, presumably to approved companies and not to individuals or the general public.

The only major difference between the older THC fantasy sets, the newer sets produced on the PC/card pips mold, and the latest nagb THC sets are colors and spot patterns. That doesn't change the fact that they are all fantasy chip sets, and not casino chips or customs.
 
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Don’t forget the under appreciated Paulson Pro Series 41 mm mold fantasy chips! Definitely unleaded and only white spots with blue, red, green or black base. I actually like mine but many are not big fans.
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Haven’t seen many in person. With that said:

CDI & Tiger Palace.

Close seconds are Top Hat & Cane, and Royal Princess.

NOTE - technically speaking Tiger Palace may not count as a fantasy casino
 
BGinGA said:
The nagb chips made from 2017-present were produced on the TH&C mold (excluding B&G and oversized IHC and FHC chips) and all are unleaded. Some of these sets are customs (designed for individuals -- Harlequin, Truman's House, and others), while some are fantasy (designed for resale, either at-cost or for-profit -- Empress Star, Aurora Star, Big Top Poker, Sunset Beach, Royal Princess Casino, Tiger Palace).
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I heard PCF used to have a NAGB part of the forum. Did they declassify/release the NAGB section of the forum or was that section just deleted?
 
MC_CPA said:
I heard PCF used to have a NAGB part of the forum. Did they declassify/release the NAGB section of the forum or was that section just deleted?
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It looks like the NAGB chips are in the database under "fantasy chips".

They are marked as "group buy" there under "set type". :unsure:



[EDIT - I see you're asking about a section to discuss NAGBs. If that existed it was before my return after my hiatus.]
 
davesilver88 said:
Haven’t seen many in person. With that said:

CDI & Tiger Palace.

Close seconds are Top Hat & Cane, and Royal Princess.

NOTE - technically speaking Tiger Palace may not count as a fantasy casino
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davesilver88 said:
Haven’t seen many in person. With that said:

CDI & Tiger Palace.

Close seconds are Top Hat & Cane, and Royal Princess.

NOTE - technically speaking Tiger Palace may not count as a fantasy casino
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My favorites are Pharaohs and Classics. Tiger Palace (like the rest of NAGB) is a pure example of a fantasy chip. In my understanding, fantasy chips are chips that were originally made not for the casino, but for sale to the public. They are awesome, no doubt, but they are 100% fantasy chips. That is why they do not contain any degree of protection.
 
BGinGA said:
In my view, original Paulson chips (excluding re-labeled or re-stamped) fall into one of four general categories, and all can be leaded or unleaded (depending on date of manufacture):

• casino chip sets
• fantasy chip sets
• custom chip sets
• semi-custom chip sets

The more recent unleaded fantasy chip sets (circa 2005-2013) were ordered/sold by Trademark (a GPI distributor), and include Pharaoh's Club & Casino, TH&C Classics, Casino de Isthmuth City, Nation Poker Series, World Top Hat & Cane, Private Cardroom, Avalon Club, and Grand Cardroom (the last three being hot-stamped). All were produced on either the PAULSON CHIPS or Card Pip (suits) mold. One additional fantasy set was ordered/sold by Sidepot Poker - Paulson le Noir, produced on the Paradise (pineapple) mold. Customs and semi-customs included hot-stamped chips sold by Apache Poker, produced on the Card Pip mold.

None were sold directly to the public by GPI.
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great info

BGinGA said:
The nagb chips made from 2017-present were produced on the TH&C mold (excluding B&G and oversized IHC and FHC chips) and all are unleaded. Some of these sets are customs (designed for individuals -- Harlequin, Truman's House, and others), while some are fantasy (designed for resale, either at-cost or for-profit -- Empress Star, Aurora Star, Big Top Poker, Sunset Beach, Royal Princess Casino, Tiger Palace).
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I personally break these down further (obviously there is some bleed over)

Invite only "group buy" aka NAGB - Star Chips
Personal customs - Harlequin, Truman's House, etc
FPV (For Profit Ventures) - Sunset Beach, Royal Princess Casino, Tiger Palace
 
softchewy said:
I personally break these down further (obviously there is some bleed over)

Invite only "group buy" aka NAGB - Star Chips
Personal customs - Harlequin, Truman's House, etc
FPV (For Profit Ventures) - Sunset Beach, Royal Princess Casino, Tiger Palace
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Where do you place BTP?
 
BGinGA said:
Where do you place BTP?
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Probably somewhere in that bleed over area.. near the middle of the Venn diagram ;)
Only real info I have about those buys is what was shared publicly.
I believe buyers stated they were made as personal sets (including BTP, correct me if wrong) and the intent was not to resell a majority of the chips produced for max profit. Either something changed or the original intent was to resell. Don't know totals produced and how many were sold.
I suspect you and others may have a more informed perspective. How would you categorize them?
The details and intent of the Lemon and Tiger buys are pretty obvious from public info shared, ~ number of chip sets sold and nosebleed pricing (I have also had direct conversations).
Lemon and Tiger buys had designers make appealing sets with the intent of selling the vast majority of the chips for max profit.
They also planned to keep sets for themselves (small % of totals produced).
 
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BGinGA said:
Where do you place BTP?
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softchewy said:
Probably somewhere in that bleed over area.. near the middle of the Venn diagram ;)
Only real info I have about those buys is what was shared publicly.
I believe buyers stated they were made as personal sets (including BTP, correct me if wrong) and the intent was not to resell a majority of the chips produced for max profit. Either something changed or the original intent was to resell. Don't know totals produced and how many were sold.
I suspect you and others may have a more informed perspective. How would you categorize them?
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I put 'em in the "made for resell' category. Whether initially at-cost or for-profit, only those involved know the true answer. Very possibly both.

As you noted, ES/AS chips were intended to be (and initially were) sold at-cost, while SB, RPC, and TP chips were designed from the start to be resold for profit.
 
Was it profitability issues or security concerns that led GPI/Paulson to pull out of this segment? Does anyone know if any attempts have been made to convince them to re-enter?
 
BlackJackStarCity said:
Was it profitability issues or security concerns that led GPI/Paulson to pull out of this segment? Does anyone know if any attempts have been made to convince them to re-enter?
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They claimed it was security issues, but i’m pretty sure a few PCFers looked a little more closely at it, and determined it was just not profitable. Or not profitable enough for them to dedicate machines and labor when they could be focusing on casino orders.

I think the ONLY way that GPI jumps back into the public market is 1. Clay chips become too expensive, obsolete, etc… for casinos to order. There are already some new chip variations like magnetic chips in some casinos. Casinos are cheap, so if there is a secure, cheaper option other than clay, they will go for it.

And 2. GPI starts charging incredibly high prices. Many, many people from this community have proven that they are willing to spend an absurd amount of money on poker chips (including me). I’m sure at least 1 person from GPI has noticed after all the stunts that have been pulled regarding NAGBs. So it would make sense that they would NEED and WANT to charge prices that were 200-300% higher than their past fantasy chip prices. And that’s base model starting chips. Not shaped inlay tiger claw 10g goodness.

I guess i’m not completely versed in past custom order GPI prices, but I think it’s fair to assume IF they were to re-open to the public, there would need to be a specific chain of events. And if that chain of events were to happen, they would try to maximize profits in basically the only consumer market that they still had (PCF).
 
BlackJackStarCity said:
Thanks for the detailed information. I agree with you. Once clays become obsolete for casinos, hopefully, they'll put those production lines to good use.

I'm throwing my vote behind Sidepot Poker - Paulson Le Noir. Not my photos. Wish they wereView attachment 1450534View attachment 1450535
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I bought a set of these when they first were introduced and they felt awesome to handle. Soft and heavy.
 

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