IMO, pay the premium for bright white on your $1s. They'd look amazing (albeit a tad more expensive). Regular white just looks meh.

IMO, regular white works very well with the rest of the colors.

Are the icons protected by copyright?

This is true.

Thanks. I think I prefer your earlier idea of doing this with the Horizons logo rather than an altered WoM logo. I will probably try it once I start doing some rough layouts.

What's the price premium on bright white, any idea?

I don't know for certain since they aren't officially available from Disney anymore. But considering that they were created by the biggest advocate of strong copyright law in the US, it's safe to say the answer is yes.

That said, I think I can make a pretty strong fair use case, since it's a non-commercial tribute usage of images that are mostly out of active use at EPCOT.

50c each.

BREAKDOWN

As I mentioned earlier, I'd like a cash set that can handle the following:

• Two tables of .25/.50 or .50/1 NL/PL
• One table of 1/2 NL/PL
• Two tables of 1/2 or 2/4 FL
• One table of 4/8 FL

I think I can achieve that with the following:

240 x $0.25
1200 x $1
400 x $5
100 x $20
60 x $100

That gives me a total bank of just over $11k, probably WAY more than I ever expect to actually see in play unless I start running with a new poker crowd.

I'm planning to break this up over 4-5 orders since I simply don't have the cash to order everything at once. I can probably manage about half this year and half next year, and I'm planning to split the set up into multiple orders to keep it in financially manageable chunks:

Order 1: 500 chips (140-200-100-60-0).
This gives me a playable one-table .25/.50 NL/PL set immediately with a total bank that is significantly larger than my typical one-table games.

Order 2: 440 chips (100-200-100-40-0).
This allows for two-table .25/.50 NL/PL games while also giving me enough $1 and $20 chips for a reasonable single-table FL game.

Next Year: 1060 chips (0-800-200-0-60).
This completes the set and will probably be split over 2 orders.

That's a steep premium for bright white. At 1200 x $1 that adds $600 to the cost of my set.

Unfortunately I don't have color samples of white or bright white (not sure why at least regular white isn't in my set), but based on cost alone, I'm probably going to stick with white.

I would go heavier on the $20s and maybe the $100s. I almost always run out of $25s playing in my 1/2 game and I have 150 in the set I bring to the game.

DrStrange

PS also the effect of inflation is not trivial over the years. I think a $20,000+ bank might be a good idea if you are going to buy 2,000+ chips.

That's something to consider, Doc. Right now it's unheard of for me to get $1000 on the table in my .25/.50 games, so $11k seems like significant overkill. But considering that this will likely be the last custom cash set that I ever purchase, looking at playability 10-15 years down the road is not unreasonable.

At this rate I'm going to have to sell some of my other sets to fund this... <sigh>

I agree about spending the money for art.

I also like the idea of one side with a consistent face (and set/room name?), and I also think those logos work perfectly for having a different symbol for different denominations. The trick here is to be distinctive without getting too busy, and without having TOO much variation, and a solid foundation of consistency.

One idea off the top of my head: different logos for different denominations, but not a strong contrast with the background colour. These are the base layer. A strong and bright numeral in the main EPCOT font in the middle. But then also do a small ring around the logo with the same low-key low-contrast background colouring spelling out the value using the font of the attraction associated with the logo. It could be just a few times with a line (or nothing) between them, or multiple repetition. Something small enough that you don't necessarily recognize it on first glance, but a detail that rewards carefully study.

Or maybe that would be too busy.

What's most important is that these chips work with the chips immediately above and below them in denomination. Not only with colours that don't clash (but aren't too similar) and edgespots that are distinctive, but if you go with different logos, spread out the sleeker and more complicated ones. You're effectively creating many sets of three chips here.

Looks like fun! I wish I had the means (and need) to do this. And if you decide to scrap your design, my Road House set is always available.

While I still plan to pay a pro to do the final inlay design work for me, I want to explore some ideas myself first. To that end, I ordered my first graphics tablet. It's a not-Wacom 8"x5" that I got from Amazon for under 50 bucks, and I'm hoping it will make it easier to do some sketches and photo editing that I find to be too clunky with a mouse.

Plus, I expect my poker 'shops to get a lot better too. Prepare to see Don Knotts in many compromising positions once this thing comes in.

d'oh, I wish you'd asked us first. I haven't used many non-wacom's but there seems to be a clear consensus that they're not in the same class as the name brand. The main reason I mention it is that if you get it and go "meh, this isn't really any better than a mouse", don't give up on the idea. Wacoms make photshop at least 3x more practical. I've watched a lot of artists experiment with every manner of input device, and essentially all of them (not just photoshop painters, but 3d modellers, video editors...) use a Wacom constantly.

Also, a pro graphic designer is a great idea, but imo you have a massive lead on the average custom chip aspirant when it comes to graphic skills/talent/tastes. If you do the design yourself, it's a big source of pride and makes the chips all the more custom. I say give it your best shot, and call up J5 if you feel you're stuck later.

I did look at Wacoms, but simply didn't want to spend $150-300 on something that I wasn't sure I would like or have a lot of use for. The one I picked up has a couple dozen good reviews on Amazon, and the cost is low enough that I'm willing to risk it.

If it's terrible, I can always return it and get something better.

Stop, you're making me blush.

That's my basic plan. I'm going to work up a few different ideas, see which I like best, and then move that as far along as I can. However, I know my limitations, and I think an experienced chip designer can take something good from me and make it great.

I was playing with an idea for the World of Motion denomination inlay tonight that incorporates the Sea Serpent, denom, and ride icon:

Never replied but thanks for the suggestions. As you might see from the mockup I just did, I think the logo as a low-contrast background element might work well.

Also thanks for the offer, but if I ever do a Road House set it'll be along these lines:

I'm glad you started this thread. I have some catching up to do. I like my current chips, but one of these days, I want to get a custom set.

I initially thought trying to combine too many themes was a mistake. Epcot and beer? I agree that focusing on one is a better way to go.

Magic Kingdom opened when I was a kid, and I loved it. When I was a bit older, Epcot opened, and it made the old park look like kid's stuff (which it was, in comparison). Later, I attended business conventions in Orlando, and they would give us free passes at the end of the day. I got a kick out of going to Epcot just to have a beer in the English pub and watch the fireworks over the lake. Cheap extravagance. But I haven't been there in many years.

It seems to me, if I recall correctly, that some of the better inlay designs use just a few colors, and are not based on photos, but line drawings, or vector graphics. jz's, Breich's I recall, but not Abby's. Could this thread use some images of successful designs as examples?

If I recall correctly, then the early medallion logos you posted are great foundations for your design.

I'm not a designer by any means, but the yellow does not go with the other colors, in my opinion. Is the hue too brown, or is it the sidespots? The other colors seem more pure, more contemporary, but the yellow looks like a color pallet from the 70s.

Also, why would the reds not have sidespots, when the whites have them? I like when the spots get more elaborate as the denom increases. I don't know, it seems to give them more value.

Sorry if I am grunching here.

Looks like you are having a blast with this whole process.

I like the black background one here, but at least in this image there is almost no contrast between the black and grey; I would try lightening the black to a dark-dark grey, as well as the grey to a light-grey. Perhaps it looks better on your screen. I'd also go with a slightly less saturated red for the font.

But looks pretty cool. Just wondering, whats your budget range for this set?
Looking forward to more Donn Knotts graphics.

You should come back. I hear they have plenty of tickets available in late July.

Feel free to post inlay artwork that you like, or that showcases a style that you think might work for this set. I may not accept your suggestions, but I'm always open to them.

Yellow seems to be a pretty common color for a $20 chip, and my thought at the time was that this chip's inlay would feature The Land, the EPCOT pavilion that focuses on agriculture and environmentalism. I chose the green and brown edge spots because they were earthy colors, thinking that I might tie them into the inlay design later. Perhaps an image that shows farmers working a field under the sun (yellow sun, brown soil, green crops).

Maybe it won't work, I haven't really gone much past the basic concept I just described.

No real reason other than that I like the half-pie, and I thought that having a half-pie workhorse chip in the set would be interesting and somewhat unique.

Maybe I'll go half red and half orange and make this the Horizons chip. Anyone who ever rode Horizons at EPCOT should remember the smell of oranges in the futuristic agricultural scene.

Sure, these images are just quick mockups of an idea, nothing remotely close to final artwork.

My new pen tablet arrived today, and I've spent 15-20 minutes playing around with it in GIMP. For a cheapo, it was easy to set up on my Win7 box and seems to work pretty much as expected. Perhaps I can give it a real test-drive later tonight with a Don Knotts inlay.

Yellow is fine, but is that straight-up yellow? If so, it must be the edge spots that make it seem out of place, at least to my eye.

And your blue is not a royal blue, but a little on the pastel side, which I like. The red is harder to tell. It could be a pure blue, or maybe slightly lightened. How about a paler yellow?

It's ASM Yellow from the Chip Factory at CT.

Here are a few other similar color schemes that could be used:

lol about the yellow. I used it a lot when I was experimenting with ASM designs, and it always generated discussion. I liked it a lot, but around half the people who saw it had a very negative reaction. I think it's partly the simulator's rendering of it. Chip photos using it don't get the same response:



Always with these things, get samples. A computer screen can't ever replicate the actual colors, and whoever built the simulator did a halfway decent, but hardly perfect translation.

I do agree that this yellow might be pretty earthy for the overall theme so far. ASM makes the standard yellow and also a "dayglo" yellow. The standard yellow includes brass flakes for weight (like all the standard colors), whereas the dayglo omits the flakes. ASM sometimes had a policy against the dayglo colors for bases (only for spots), perhaps because they're more prone to breaking? maybe just because of the weight.

One other suggestion if you haven't done it already: Collect a folder of favorite chip photos. The chiptalk galleries are obviously a goldmine for this. Which are your favorites? What do you like about them? Do you like chips made with lots of primary colors? What about the use of text and images -- which ones are successful and which aren't, and why (too small for the images to read, etc)? I had a folder called "chips I like" that I referred to constantly when experiment with designs, and I think it helped a lot.

I used Canary yellow for my Cali $5's. That color works very well with my brighter color palate.

I have spent almost zero time on CT, so I am a novice when it comes to chip design. And I am like a movie critic when it comes to colors; I have definite opinions about what works or doesn't work, but I am not particularly adept at putting colors together.

Now that I think about it, pale yellow can be a real problem next to whites, unless the lighting is always really good. My Crystal Oyster set had yellow quarters and white $1s, and while there was little confusion, I was not happy with the lack of contrast. That was the main reason I sold them, actually.

I like the butterscotch base, but I'm not sure about the spots.




OK, this is probably a newbie consideration, but is it good design to borrow the main colors of other chips and repeat them in the other denoms? It helps bring the scheme together, but doesn't it make it harder to distinguish one from another? I personally like that you put a red spot, but added a green which does not occur anywhere else.

Also, the mention of dayglow colors is intriguing. Do they weigh more than the other ones, because of the brass? I have always loved the WSOP chips and their gaudy colors. You should either coordinate, or just go wild.

Damn, this makes me want to create a set. I might play with that tool when I have more time.