Poker Deck

I'm thinking in investing in a couple of top of the line deck of cards. The kind that are difficult to bend and can last nearly a lifetime. I hear Da Vinci is good but what can you recommend?

Anyone?

I've never even heard of cards that last a lifetime. Doesn't everything break or bend after a while? eh. Anyway. Sorry I couldn't answer your question.

Sorry dude, no idea. I could google it and sound like I know what I am talking about but I'm too lazy for that.

Edit: I see you are getting lots of useful information.

1000 FPP deck of 2 plastic casino playing cards. You can almost bend them totally in half and they instant go flat, they wont get messed up at all from normal shuffling and dealing.

From Pokerstars for 1000 FPPs

Copag and KEM are the two real leaders in this, though there are others. Quality is pretty much the same IMO, and prices are roughly equivilent.

I've PM'd you a link with a huge list of reviews on many cards.

I have a PokerStars chip set and it came with 2 decks of their plastic cards. I've been using them for over 6 months now and they're still straight and flat. so if you have PokerStars FPP check out thier FPP store it's a good buy.

My only problem with them is that the cut card that comes with them is a little too small but it's managable.

You could search Google use "KEM Playing cards" and find an online outlet they are supposedly the best.

^^^^^

I am a certified poker dealer and have investigated all the plastic cards on the market (as far as I know).

Here are my findings [note that the two main brands are Kem and Copag]:

Kem: the best of the best, IF you get a deck that isn't "bowed"-- sometimes the deck has a bend, either, down or up (down is better if you have to pick, as you will be riffling the deck "up", which should compensate in the long run; but you don't get to pick, the cards come as they are). Highly recommended with the caveat of getting a good deck.

Copag: the best as far as price to value; best consistency in that I have never gotten a set up (two decks, diff. color backs) that has been bowed one way or the other (vs. kem). Print/color is the weakest of any. Highly recommended as an into plastic deck. You are guaranteed not to be disappoinited (vs. a perhaps bad Kem deck), but they are not the "best".

Gemaco: I found these to be a bit too "stiff" for professional dealing. If you shuffle/riffle your cards like most home games do, I am sure they would be fine. Price might be a consideration, as they are less than Kems. Not recommended.

Del Negro: by far the stiffest of the brands, almost unusable with the professional riffle. Good color/ink. Same consideration as Gemacos if you are not using the professional deal/riffle. Not recommended.

A-Plus: I would suggest these as the best "off" brand plastic card (Kem and Copag being the established). I thought the print on these was superior to the Copag (but no one can compete w Kem's ink job). They are slightly stiffer than either of the two main brands, but not so much so that they are bad (vs. Gemaco and Del Negro). Recommended.

Hope that helps....

Thanks to JD for the VERY informative link.

Thansk to aliengenius for his first hand knowledge.

I just purchased two brand new KEM decks. I can't wait to get them and show them off to my next home game. I'll let you know what I think of them.

Sounds like you are a really an axpert and a good suggestor! Did you ever play with Modiano plastic playing cards? They come from Italy and I saw them here. Looks like they cost almost the same as Copag...

Please let me know

Kisses

Ok, I got a set up of the following, so I want to add reviews:

Modiano: recommended; these are nice cards, they shuffle very well; nice back designs. Also, they use a lot of blues in their court cards, even on the hearts and diamonds, I think it looks good.

Fourneir (Spain): recommended; nice cards, on par with A+ and Modiano, maybe even the best of the three as far as feel and shuffle. The only criticism I could give is that they tried to give the court cards flesh colored faces, and I don't think it works all that great.

NPT (ace of spades reads: "Long Life Player's Cards"): these are ok, but not as good as A+, Modiano, or Fournier. A little be harder to shuffle than the three mentioned.

Royal (Taiwan): by far the least expensive of all the plastic decks (at around $5 each). They are ok, but they have a very slick gloss feel to them. This makes them "stick" a bit to your finger during the pitch. If you are just a home game (vs. professionally trained) dealer it probably wouldn't be a problem, however. Another nice thing is that the decks all come with individual plastic carry cases, something I have only been able to find with Kems (usually the carry case if for two decks together, know as a 'set up'). I am just using the cases for the other brands!

Summary:

Recommeded:
1. Kem. But only if you don't get a bad deck that is bowed, or an older (pre US Playing Card's purchase of Kem brand) deck that is defective.
2. Fournier.
3. (tie) A+
3. (tie) Modiano
4. Copag-- could be three (tie), or maybe even two (based on shuffablility alone), but I am going to give the other brands a slight edge because of looks/print faces. Also, Copag is so common that everyone has them, and who wants to be like everyone else, right?

Not recommended (mostly based on professional riffle/shuffle and pitch only; these would probably all be fine durable cards for home games, etc.);
1. NPT
2. Royal
3. Gemaco
4. Del Negro

Of course these are just my opinions, everyone will have their own idea of the aesthetic of the court cards, the feel of the decks regarding texture and stiffness, etc.

I met a guy who had leather cards years ago, he was an old dealer. At the time I was young, 12 or 13 I think. But I will never forget how much he loved these cards, and how nice they felt. I don't know how good they would be for constant big games, but private small games they might be nice. I have no idea who made them, I know they were expensive. Ever heard of these, or where to get them alien?

Sorry, I have never heard of them before. I will ask my dealing instructor next time I see him-- if anyone would know he would.

Thank you aliengenius! I knew I could count on you. My decks are on their way, I'm really curious to try them!!

kisses

The kem decks are supposed to be really good, but i have never actually tried them. So i wouldnt know from my point of view.

I have a review of two more plastic decks:

1. Piatnik (made in Austria). These have a decent riffle and pitch to them, comparable to the level of A+ or Modiano, so they are recommended on that level. However, the ink/print is less than desirable: the red in the hearts and diamonds is more of a sickly orange color. Also, they are 'four indexed'-- so the little rank and suit that usually appears in the upper left and lower right of the card is on all four corners. Some players thought his made the card too crowded looking. Also, I noticed that not all the diamonds were of a consistent shape: some were curved in, others seemed 'bloated' out. Weird.

2. Stud King. I got these here. These have a GREAT riffle and pitch, and might be one of the best out there. HIGHLY recommended. Next to Royal these are the least expensive plastic cards out there, at $13 per set up (two decks). The price to quality ratio is fantastic on these, so if you have been considering investing in good cards, scoop these up while you can!

I dealt with a set of Kems for 3 months and they still looked great. So I would recommend Kems.

Stud vs KEM?

Also, I purchased a set of COPAG, but people complain that they're too slick. Are KEM as slick as COPAG?

A good deck of Kems is the very top of the pile. However, they seem to have the most inconsistency in their production, with defects, brittle/breaks, streaks on the card, warping in the deck being more common by far than any other brand. But like I said, if you get a good one, they are like butter to shuffle, and ink/print is the sharpest and most aesthetically pleasing of any brand.

As far a copag being "slick" I would say, no. In fact they may be one of the less slick brands out there. I am fairly certain that the people who have this complaint are simply coming from "regular" cards and are new to good plastic cards (which are, as a whole, slicker than normal cards). But as far as comparing plastic cards, copag are fine.

Like I said, the Stud King are highly recommended, and would be even at twice the price.

Kem cards don't last a human lifetime. After a while (decades) they have lost enough of their plasticizer that they chip and split. But, they surely outlast cardboard.

I've got a deck of Player's Choice (non-plastic) cards that've lasted over 10 years... but by 'lasted' I mostly just mean "still has all 52 cards". I use them for pitching practice and muck around games with kids - they're next to useless for proper shuffling.

Haven't come across many of the brands that've been mentioned in Australia. The companies I deal for all use Copags, so I've got a setup of them at home but that's about it. I know the decks that we use regularly (two or three games per week) really start to lose their colour within six months, and if people have been sweating on them a lot then they really become hard to shuffle. Imagine that'd be the same with most brands though.

I have had my Copaq's for about 4 years now, and while the ink is not the best like aliengenius stated, a quick wipedown every month or 2 keeps em looking new. A couple have small bends, but they have lasted great. A couple of people who I played with used to use Kems, but both had a problem with cards cracking. Not sure if it was an isolated incident or not. The ink on the Kems are great, but the cracks kinda swayed me towards the Copaq's.