Different colors have different weights. Non leaded pink for example is pretty heavy compared to most leaded greens. I don’t think there’s a hard and fast rule but once you know you know
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School me on THC chips for a set (3 Viewers)
- Thread starter jrs146
- Start date
Put one chip close up to your ear. If you can hear angels singing, it’s leaded.
I have been wondering the same thing. Does anybody know if there is a certain timeframe/era when all Paulson's produced where leaded? Or is it similar to todays chips where we have different Paulson molds/options.
I picked these Silver Star fracs up off the classified's on Monday. I am hoping they are leaded. Anybody know if they are?
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Yes they are
Not really. There are exact approximate dates posted somewhere, but my rule of thumb is if they’re Paulsons made between 1979 and 1994, they’re leaded. But our best resource, Chipguide.com is kind of useless in terms of dates. They’ll tell you when the place opened and closed, and usually those dates are accurate, but rarely will you find dates regarding when a particular chip was issued.
Another thing to look for is textured and or shaped inlays. This isn’t a hard and fast rule, because they phased the lead out of chips over several years, and those inlay features were phased out around that time.
And generally, leaded chips will weight 1.5-2 grams more than their unleaded counterparts. But because there’s no weight consistency across colors, again, it’s hard to tell, just by weight.
This thread is helpful:
https://www.pokerchipforum.com/thre...n-chips-still-had-lead-in-them-after-98.8291/
https://www.pokerchipforum.com/thre...n-chips-still-had-lead-in-them-after-98.8291/
ASM feels heavier and harder IMO.
Does this mean I am officially a member of the elite?
So, for example, this reply. You instantly (almost) answered his question very definitely. But HOW did you know?
I don’t know if they are. If @JeepologyOffroad is sure, that’s your answer. But according to Chipguide, this casino opened and closed in 1978. So these could have been produced as early as 1977? I’m not sure when Paulson started producing their own chips, with leaded clay, but I know it was late 70’s. @BGinGA might have some intel there. But the fact that Chipguide shows some chips for that casino on non-Paulson molds would give me pause.
12thMan
Full House
I was going to say eat a few and then get your blood work done but the angelic harmony test is much more of a veteran move.
If they are +10.5 - 11g each then you can be sure (for pink at least)
I own a set myself. From 1978 I think
With all this talk of leaded, FWIW, non-leaded THC chips are still fantastic and, if you're after authentic casino chips, a Vegas harvesting session might be your best bet with regards to building a set. Are you after a cash or tournament set, out of interest?
Yes. Yes they do.
OK, I'm sorry, but I'm going to be extremely nitty here. I figured that you had probably owned them, but that still doesn't tell me how you know they are leaded. So just by the date they were produced? I have some Town Tavern $5s. ChipGuide says they were produced in 1981. Is that enough to know they are leaded? They are currently just 9.6 grams, but they've been milled, so I suppose they were closer to 10 grams before milling.
I also have some hot stamps that did not come from a casino, so nothing to look up on ChipGuide. They weigh about 9.8 grams and have not been milled yet. They are sky blue with lime edge spots. The same three wide spots as the TT $5s. How can I tell if they are leaded or not?
Then there are my Jack Cinci $1s weighing in at about 9.6 grams that I assume are clearly not leaded. Is there some difference between leaded and not leaded when handling them that I should be able to pick up on?
This thread has been very interesting and informative. I want to thank all of you veteran chippers for the information. On another note....it would be really cool to get a thread or list going where people can confirm if a chip is leaded or not and keep track of them all.
At this point I am still researching what chips I would like in the THC mixed set I am working on. I still need $5's, $25's, and $100's. I would also need different $1's if going leaded. At this point (since I guess I now have leaded fracs) I am now wondering if I should focus on the direction of a THC leaded set. Could be pretty cool.
At this point I am still researching what chips I would like in the THC mixed set I am working on. I still need $5's, $25's, and $100's. I would also need different $1's if going leaded. At this point (since I guess I now have leaded fracs) I am now wondering if I should focus on the direction of a THC leaded set. Could be pretty cool.
To me it’s not even the weight. Yeah sure if a chip is noticeably heavy and just has that vintage look then chances are it’s leaded. For me though it’s the feel. Give me a small stack to touch and I can tell you if they are leaded immediately. I suppose that just comes from handling a lot of different chips.
There’s also just some intangible quality looking at chips too. Can’t quite put my finger on it, but just the look of a lot of chips you can guess with a pretty high certainty. Spot patterns and colors too. Some spot patterns weren’t used in the old leaded chips. And some colors, like radiant red, were slightly different in shade as well
Where do I get those???? Who has them?????
You can have 1 guess and only 1 guess
I normally eat one and if I feel really horrible or my second mouth talks, I know it's leaded.
Colquhoun
4 of a Kind
3M LeadCheck Swabs, Instant Lead Test, 8-Pack https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008BK15PU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_SQ25E8K3JCY64FNNFJR2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
I have no idea if this will affect a tested chip. Use at your own risk.
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johnsj12
Two Pair
My first chips were Crystal Parks and RHC but I loved the feel of them. I was pumped after everyone was building up the THC mold. But leaded RHCs are IMO preferable to new THC chips. They just feel and sound better. I think that is part of the THC appeal over RHC for a lot of people is most newer chips are RHC mold and not leaded vs a lot of the popular THC chips being leaded. People complain that RHCs are more prone to fleabites, but I think this is much less of a problem when they are leaded.
buffalojim
Royal Flush
Is it a stretch to say that all shaped, textured inlay chips are all leaded? I've been working under this assumption because I don't know of any that aren't.
Almost all shaped inlays are leaded I’m pretty sure. Except maybe stuff like Bally’s? I’ve never handled those so I don’t know. Curious if they just got grandfathered in with their shapes or how that happened
What he said...You can have 1 guess and only 1 guess
buffalojim
Royal Flush
I had a couple racks of textured round inlay Discoveries 1s that I'm not positive if they were leaded or not. I was never quite sure. Not sure weight alone was enough to be certain in that case.
And I think that information is good, but what people either don’t realize or often forget is that there’s a starting point sometime in the late ‘70s, which is why I tagged @BGinGA eatlier, because I think he knows the details.
Because there was that other company (I forget the name) that was making THCs before Paulson, and they weren’t leaded. And my understanding is that although Paulson bought the mold sometime in the ‘70s, they were still being produced by another manufacturer, for a couple of years, without lead.
This link is helpful but doesn’t say anything about lead http://www.antiquegamblingchips.com/molddesign_manmade.htm
johnsj12
Two Pair
Not leaded.
buffalojim
Royal Flush
C&J?
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