My New Take Set - Initial Impressions
Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2009 5:30 pm
http://www.mahjongmart.com/shop/index.p ... ge&pID=199
It arrived yesterday, 12 days before it was supposed to arrive. I was napping in a recliner when my daughter brought it in the house - she told me I had a package but I figured it was from my sister in Michigan, afterall, I had left a couple of items there during a recent visit.
My wife informs me awhile later that the box is from Japan - Japan? I\'m out of that recliner faster than Shimizu Kentaro can utter the word, \"tsumo!\" I find a utility knife and carefully cut open the box - is Jenn Barr\'s handwriting on the packing slip? Inside the shipping box is my eagerly awaited set in it\'s grey and blue glossy corrugated cardboard box - a beautiful blue vinyl case with gold-colored Japanese characters, a hefty item, easily five pounds. Lots of bubble wrap to protect the set on its long journey from Tokyo to North Texas, and the vinyl case is finally opened; here is what I found.
144 tiles including the 136 basics with four flowers and four red fives. There are four sturdy plastic trays that each hold one fourth of the total - 36, that I\'ve already lined with felt. There is a narrow tray that separates the tile trays on either side and contains the betting sticks - my set contained the following:
5 - 10,000 point sticks (one extra)
9 - 5000 point sticks (one extra)
39 - 1000 points sticks (three extra?)
42 - 100 point sticks (two extra) I like these the best since I am a \"Fresh Reacher.\"
The sticks are nice and they only require a minimum of cleaning (ink outside the holes, superfluous plastic).
Also in the narrow box are the dice (4) and the complementary keychain featuring a fob from a black mahjong set - I happened to get a \"one character\" tile. The tile is nice but the chain itself is pretty \"chintzy\" meaning, they spared a lot of expense in the production process on this item. But hey, the purchase didn\'t hinge on this bauble and besides, my wife told me she wants it.
The dice: They\'re small, really small. How small? I don\'t believe dice can be made smaller and still be functional. I recently inherited a micrometer from my father and I went on line this morning to learn how to use it, so I can give those who crave to know such things the dirty details. The dice have an s-value = .3465\" (yes, that\'s ten thousandths of an inch.) For the rest of the world that would be 8.8010 mm. That\'s small, but they give you four of the little buggers, so why complain. Besides, this is Mahjong we\'re playing with the dice and not Yahtzee. Here\'s a bit of a complaint - MahjongMart in their ad for this set says:
\"White tiles with yellow backs. Set includes 4 red fives (with stones in the red five-dots), 4 small white dice, 3 large colored dice, one white dealer button, scoring sticks and a complimentary mahjong tile keychain. Tiles come in trays and a blue case with handle.\"
I did not receive the \"3 large colored dice.\" Didn\'t get them - nope. A \"white dealer button?\" well...
Also in the narrow box is a dealer button; it\'s a clear, plastic gizmo that holds the red east on one side and the blue south on the other printed on paper. It is 4x3 cm and is functional, but is also a study in minimalism. This is OK as well, since I\'ll probably make a dealer button myself to satisfy the need for something extra.
In the lid of the case is a clear, plastic sheet that holds 20 betting chips in four colors. I don\'t know as yet how to use them, but I\'ll learn soon. These are small, poker-style chips that are about 2.5 cm in diameter. Also in the same place is a pink scoring sheet printed in Japanese, of no use to me, but I\'ll cherish it anyways, nonetheless.
The tiles - the heart of the matter, the reason why I forked out 139 of my hard-earned dollars, what about them?
They\'re nice, really nice, and I have four previously purchased mahjong sets to compare them with. They don\'t smell (I\'m looking at you, Yellow Mountain Imports). They have very clear, precise engraving - I especially like the bamboos - so much easier to tell a six from a nine compared to the Chinese sets.
The one bamboos and their peacocks are very nice, the dots are great - love the one dot! I like the orange/yellow backs - reminds me of the color of a pale pumpkin pie.
One suggestion bordering on a gripe - why not use a green ink for the green dragons? The flowers are nice looking, but I would\'ve preferred an extra set of blanks.
They feel nice, these tiles, but they are much smaller than the tiles I\'ve been using. How small? Let\'s get out the trusty micrometer and see...
The box gives the dimensions in millimeters: 26x19x16. The dimension of a tile in inches is typically given as 1 x 3/4 x 5/8. This is what my micrometer found:
Length: 1.051 inches (26.695mm)
Width: 0.775 inches (19.685mm)
Thickness: 0.636 inches (16.154mm)
In other words, the tiles are about hair larger than their officially given dimensions - a good thing! This is notable because I had a previous experience with an online seller whose concept of what constituted an inch was about a quarter inch off.
The tiles sit in the four sturdy trays, and two trays are kept together with a clear, plastic sleeve. One of the sleeve was damaged for some reason, but this can be remedied, if indeed the trays need the sleeves to begin with.
The red fives - besides the dimensions of the tiles, are the hallmark of a riichi mahjong set. The Take Set feature the red five dots with clear faux diamonds replacing the center dot. This is a nice touch, but red stones would\'ve been more logical, I would think. The stones are recessed into the tiles with one of them set in at an angle, a quality lapse of a minor nature. My thinking is to find some nice red stones and replace the clear ones some day, so this is not a big deal either.
The tiles are really slippery, probably because they\'re new -perhaps after some handling they\'ll be easier to hold together when building walls, or doing all those neat movements I see in the videos without the tiles flying off in all directions.
In a sense, there\'s a tinge of disappointment due to the minor quality issues. The Japanese have been known for their penchant for delivering more than what was expected - exceeding the expectations of customers is something I strive to deliver in my own professional life. The quality of the tiles is very good, but they could\'ve sweated the details in this set a bit more.
In the final analysis, I\'m pleased, overall, with the purchase and would recommend MahjongMart and the Take Set to others...like you perhaps?
Gg
It arrived yesterday, 12 days before it was supposed to arrive. I was napping in a recliner when my daughter brought it in the house - she told me I had a package but I figured it was from my sister in Michigan, afterall, I had left a couple of items there during a recent visit.
My wife informs me awhile later that the box is from Japan - Japan? I\'m out of that recliner faster than Shimizu Kentaro can utter the word, \"tsumo!\" I find a utility knife and carefully cut open the box - is Jenn Barr\'s handwriting on the packing slip? Inside the shipping box is my eagerly awaited set in it\'s grey and blue glossy corrugated cardboard box - a beautiful blue vinyl case with gold-colored Japanese characters, a hefty item, easily five pounds. Lots of bubble wrap to protect the set on its long journey from Tokyo to North Texas, and the vinyl case is finally opened; here is what I found.
144 tiles including the 136 basics with four flowers and four red fives. There are four sturdy plastic trays that each hold one fourth of the total - 36, that I\'ve already lined with felt. There is a narrow tray that separates the tile trays on either side and contains the betting sticks - my set contained the following:
5 - 10,000 point sticks (one extra)
9 - 5000 point sticks (one extra)
39 - 1000 points sticks (three extra?)
42 - 100 point sticks (two extra) I like these the best since I am a \"Fresh Reacher.\"
The sticks are nice and they only require a minimum of cleaning (ink outside the holes, superfluous plastic).
Also in the narrow box are the dice (4) and the complementary keychain featuring a fob from a black mahjong set - I happened to get a \"one character\" tile. The tile is nice but the chain itself is pretty \"chintzy\" meaning, they spared a lot of expense in the production process on this item. But hey, the purchase didn\'t hinge on this bauble and besides, my wife told me she wants it.
The dice: They\'re small, really small. How small? I don\'t believe dice can be made smaller and still be functional. I recently inherited a micrometer from my father and I went on line this morning to learn how to use it, so I can give those who crave to know such things the dirty details. The dice have an s-value = .3465\" (yes, that\'s ten thousandths of an inch.) For the rest of the world that would be 8.8010 mm. That\'s small, but they give you four of the little buggers, so why complain. Besides, this is Mahjong we\'re playing with the dice and not Yahtzee. Here\'s a bit of a complaint - MahjongMart in their ad for this set says:
\"White tiles with yellow backs. Set includes 4 red fives (with stones in the red five-dots), 4 small white dice, 3 large colored dice, one white dealer button, scoring sticks and a complimentary mahjong tile keychain. Tiles come in trays and a blue case with handle.\"
I did not receive the \"3 large colored dice.\" Didn\'t get them - nope. A \"white dealer button?\" well...
Also in the narrow box is a dealer button; it\'s a clear, plastic gizmo that holds the red east on one side and the blue south on the other printed on paper. It is 4x3 cm and is functional, but is also a study in minimalism. This is OK as well, since I\'ll probably make a dealer button myself to satisfy the need for something extra.
In the lid of the case is a clear, plastic sheet that holds 20 betting chips in four colors. I don\'t know as yet how to use them, but I\'ll learn soon. These are small, poker-style chips that are about 2.5 cm in diameter. Also in the same place is a pink scoring sheet printed in Japanese, of no use to me, but I\'ll cherish it anyways, nonetheless.
The tiles - the heart of the matter, the reason why I forked out 139 of my hard-earned dollars, what about them?
They\'re nice, really nice, and I have four previously purchased mahjong sets to compare them with. They don\'t smell (I\'m looking at you, Yellow Mountain Imports). They have very clear, precise engraving - I especially like the bamboos - so much easier to tell a six from a nine compared to the Chinese sets.
The one bamboos and their peacocks are very nice, the dots are great - love the one dot! I like the orange/yellow backs - reminds me of the color of a pale pumpkin pie.
One suggestion bordering on a gripe - why not use a green ink for the green dragons? The flowers are nice looking, but I would\'ve preferred an extra set of blanks.
They feel nice, these tiles, but they are much smaller than the tiles I\'ve been using. How small? Let\'s get out the trusty micrometer and see...
The box gives the dimensions in millimeters: 26x19x16. The dimension of a tile in inches is typically given as 1 x 3/4 x 5/8. This is what my micrometer found:
Length: 1.051 inches (26.695mm)
Width: 0.775 inches (19.685mm)
Thickness: 0.636 inches (16.154mm)
In other words, the tiles are about hair larger than their officially given dimensions - a good thing! This is notable because I had a previous experience with an online seller whose concept of what constituted an inch was about a quarter inch off.
The tiles sit in the four sturdy trays, and two trays are kept together with a clear, plastic sleeve. One of the sleeve was damaged for some reason, but this can be remedied, if indeed the trays need the sleeves to begin with.
The red fives - besides the dimensions of the tiles, are the hallmark of a riichi mahjong set. The Take Set feature the red five dots with clear faux diamonds replacing the center dot. This is a nice touch, but red stones would\'ve been more logical, I would think. The stones are recessed into the tiles with one of them set in at an angle, a quality lapse of a minor nature. My thinking is to find some nice red stones and replace the clear ones some day, so this is not a big deal either.
The tiles are really slippery, probably because they\'re new -perhaps after some handling they\'ll be easier to hold together when building walls, or doing all those neat movements I see in the videos without the tiles flying off in all directions.
In a sense, there\'s a tinge of disappointment due to the minor quality issues. The Japanese have been known for their penchant for delivering more than what was expected - exceeding the expectations of customers is something I strive to deliver in my own professional life. The quality of the tiles is very good, but they could\'ve sweated the details in this set a bit more.
In the final analysis, I\'m pleased, overall, with the purchase and would recommend MahjongMart and the Take Set to others...like you perhaps?
Gg