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Bee Casino deck??

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Bee Casino deck??
« on: January 15, 2013, 12:12:14 AM »
 

Joshua Robinson

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Hey Guys.

I received a package in the mail today and this was a free deck I got as well. Can anyone give me some information on it please. I'm guessing it is a casino deck since it is a Cambric finish bee deck. It has the time card and jumbo index tech art. The time card says Dec 17/09. 21:08.

Thanks in advance
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Re: Bee Casino deck??
« Reply #1 on: January 15, 2013, 02:18:20 AM »
 

Don Boyer

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CARC and many corner store retailers have Bee decks with "Cambric finish" on the box - it's the most popular Bee finish.  Doesn't make them casino decks, necessarily.

What DOES make it a casino deck is the fact that it has Tech-Art faces, a time-stamped barcode card and a clear window and box for dealer's notes on the back.  The casino appears to be named "The Club", as stated in the club icon on the barcode card.  The timestamp is when the deck was printed at USPC - they're much more specific on decks made for casinos.

Uncanceled casino decks are usually an uncommon find.  The stock is nearly certainly Bee Casino grade.  It was among the "transition period" decks - the Cincinnati plant was shuttered and the Erlanger plant opened in August of '09, so by December they would have had all their operations in Kentucky.  They kept using the preprinted Cincinnati boxes until they ran out.  Ordinarily a black box seal would indicate some chance it was made in Ohio, but the timestamp firmly declares otherwise.  The only other way to know for certain with any Bee decks of that general time period would be to ignore the city marked on the box and look at the guarantee joker which includes the address to send materials needed for a replacement deck.

I've actually got something along these lines in my collection.  Bill Schildman gave me a gift about two years back, two bricks of cards for helping with a small project.  There were a good number of Bee decks, but they had no casino markings or clear window on the box - they looked like ordinary store-bought Bees.  The cards inside told a different story - they were standard index with no Tech Art designs, but there was also a barcode card much like yours.  Better still, they were traditionally cut pushed into the cutting die face-down, so at USPC they call that a "face-down cut".  Most decks are cut face-up due to some supposed improved packaging efficiency, which makes no sense to me but it's the company line on the topic.  Nearly every casino deck out there is made with a face-down cut to facilitate easier shuffling.  All the non-custom, basic Bees meant for retail sale are cut face-up.  Yours are almost certainly cut face-down.

I think, though it's never been confirmed, that my Bees were actually from a batch of samples printed to offer to casino purchasing agents, in case they need to be convinced of the quality of the cards before ordering thousands and thousands of them.  They're of a stiff, heavy stock, almost certainly Bee Casino.
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Re: Bee Casino deck??
« Reply #2 on: January 15, 2013, 03:02:47 AM »
 

Joshua Robinson

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So it is most likely printed in Ohio? Should I open it or not?
I am now a Business Representative for www.shuffleanddeal.com.au

Youtube channel for Shuffle and Deal: http://www.youtube.com/user/ShuffleAndDealAus?feature=mhee
 

Re: Bee Casino deck??
« Reply #3 on: January 15, 2013, 03:50:54 AM »
 

Don Boyer

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So it is most likely printed in Ohio? Should I open it or not?

Please re-read what I wrote - the answer is there.  As far as opening it or not, that's your call.  They're modern, garden-variety Bee Casino cards from a casino I haven't heard of.  Having said that, some people really prize a sealed, uncanceled casino deck.  Leave them sealed and you'll never enjoy using them.
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