May 17, 2009
Paulson Poker Chips – Are There Any Other Choices?
Paulson poker chips are well known in the casino world for being the standard which all others have to compare to but what really makes them stand out? Try doing some research online and you’ll quickly discover that information is scarce. The Paulson chip company, at least to the best of my knowledge, doesn’t have an official website and most likely it’s because they only deal directly with casinos.
If you keep digging you’ll find out that the retail poker chip companies won’t tell their sources for fear people will just go direct to Paulson themselves. I’ve discovered through a few phone calls that they were bought out by a French company, and contacting them is a bit difficult probably as stated above because they only deal directly with casinos.
It would make an interesting read on the history of the Paulson poker chip company. History aside, the main reason Paulson’s are popular mainly among collector’s and people who want authentic casino poker chips is because of their unique clay composition.
The clay in Paulson poker chips told by my source is not like the clay found in pottery but a form of ceramic but later termed clay, probably because the scientific name is long and complicated and clay sounds cooler in my opinion. Paulson chips are found in many of the major casinos like Aladdin, Bally’s, Bellagio, Caesars Palace, Excalibur, Foxwoods, Harrah’s, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, MGM, Mirage, New York New York, Paris, Trump Plaza, Venetian, Wynn and the list goes on and on.
Being manufactured for these casinos, Paulson poker chips undergo meticulous detail in materials, processes, and quality control. Of course due to the nature of compression during the manufacturing process and clay, one cannot get perfectly similar chips but this is one of the charms of authentic casino style poker chips.
Notice the next time you hold a Paulson poker chip how it feels. The clay the chip is composed of is the main reason for this. The size of the inlay (this is the area on the face of a poker chip where images are usually placed) plus many of the molds with intricate designs will also effect the feel. Remember also that new chips sometimes have sharp edges so be very careful. With constant use the edges will dull and feel just as nice as a broken in shoe.
Pay attention to the chip weight the next time you pick one up which chip collectors will say is somewhere between the weight of 9-10 grams, not the usually heavier weights promoted by other poker chip companies. The heavier weighted chips usually achieve this by having metal inserts. These poker chips are called composite clay chips and are also popular but remember not to be fooled to thinking they are true clay casino chips like Paulsons.
Paulson poker chips are available in many variations and styles. There even was a line created around the ever popular secret agent James Bond which was received with mixed reviews. No matter what, any new line that the Paulson’s company introduces is always greeted with open arms among the poker chip community. People may question what’s all the fuss about a Paulson poker chip and in the end it really comes down to personal preference.
Many manufacturers have tried to imitate and so far no one has come close. One should always feel free to buy other brands of poker chips which do have some innovative designs however, if you are in the market for purchasing poker chips and you want an authentic, true to it’s roots casino poker chip, you can’t go wrong with Paulson’s as they are the standard by which all others are compared.
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