It's funny how often I see the words "real casino chip weight
of 11.5 grams" in the ads for poker chips.

What a crock!

I guess first I should back up and tell you what my definition
of a real casino chip is.

In my mind a real casino chip is what you would find on a live
table game found in a real casino.  Here in Nevada we have
hundreds of real casinos all throughout our state.  With
Indian reservations, riverboats, cruise ships and other gaming
jurisdictions popping up I'm betting you have a real casino
somewhere near you too.

In Nevada, chip manufacturers are licensed by the NGCB (Nevada
Gaming Control Board) who is the state's governing & enforcement
agency for gaming here in the Silver State.  95% of chips found
in Nevada casinos use one of four different companies for their
chips.

By far the largest company is PaulSon.  These clay composite
chips are characterized by a hat and cane mold around the
outside rim of the chip.  They are a great looking traditional
chip and can be found in just about every gaming jurisdiction.

In my opinion the reason that PaulSon is the largest chip
company is that they also manufacture table games, roulette
wheels, felt table tops, dice, cards and just about every
other product a casino would need to open it's doors.
It's real easy for a new casino to have "one stop shopping"
with PaulSon and get everything that they need.

The second company is Bud Jones.  Bud Jones chips are plastic
and characterized by either a coin center or the more common
"sticker inlay".  Personally I'm not too fond of either the
plastic or the sticker that can easily get scratched but from
what I understand these chips are the most affordable to a
cost conscious casino.

The third company is Bourgott de et Grasset from France.  They
make a 40 mm ceramic chip that is very similar to the Chipco
style of chip.  Commonly known as B&G, this company has purchased
the above two companies and have renamed themselves Gaming
Partners International.

With this conglomerate a casino can go to them and have any
style of chip they would like:  clay, plastic or ceramic.

The bad news to the person who wants to have a custom chip made
by PaulSon, Bud Jones or B&G is that they are out of luck.  This
new combined company will only make chips for you if you have a
current, valid gaming license.  Period!

Recently PaulSon has started accepting orders from the general
public but they do have a minimum order of 100,000 chips.  Most
likely that is a chip or two more than you need for your home
game.

So if you want a reasonable quantity of a REAL custom chip your
only real option is to have the fourth company, Chipco
International, make your chip.

There are a few other smaller companies like Blue Chip, RT Plastics
and American Standard but these are chips that are rarely if ever
found in real casinos.

Since we have determined that Chipco is the only option to have
a real chip customized you'll have to decide if a Chipco Pro-Tech
chip is right for you and your home game.

But for now I want you to know that none of these companies have
an 11.5 gram chip.  All of them either have a 9 gram, 9.5 gram or
10 gram chip.  11.5 gram chips no longer exist in casinos.  For
that matter you won't find a 13 gram or 16 gram chip either.

If you want a chip that has the true weight of a real casino chip
than you need to stay away from these heavier chips.

After all most of them are just plastic molded around a metal
washer to give it some weight anyway.  A slug filled chip is just
not a quality chip.

So if you want a "real" casino chip stick to a PaulSon, Bud Jones
B&G or Chipco chip.  Very few others can be found on live gaming
tables in real casinos.

Take a look at some of our other guides to learn more about the
exciting hobby of casino chip collecting.

*~*~*~*~*~*

We've been collecting chips since 1986, selling them since 1995, on
eBay since 1998 and working with Chipco International to make custom
chips since '98 as well.  If you have any questions about casino
chips, custom chips or eBay feel free to contact me through our
About Me page.