Hello!

I’m curious about the process of card finishes. I believe it’s added to the cards and not simply emboss pressed? Is it done to the full sheet or cards individually?
I believe it’s thin plastic or a powder layer (maybe no longer powder)? And I’m extremely curious about how it’s done now and how it was typically done in the 70’s.

Thanks!

You are in luck! Endersgame, a member here is expert on the subject and addresses your questions in the following article. I'll offer some of my experience afterwards.

https://playingcarddecks.com/blogs/all-in/factors-that-affect-the-handling-of-a-deck#:~:text=In%20contrast%2C%20most%20USPCC%20produced,more%20slip%20and%20travel%20further.

I, like many here, own decks made decades ago when the texture was added into the finish of the card and not pressed into the card itself. To me they seem to handle differently. It was interesting that some companies "back in the day", offered finishes that were lightly tinted. I remember play Canasta at my Grandparent's home and one of the packs had a light blue tint in the finish that gave the cards a unique look.

Cards with smooth finishes just don't handle as well as textured, as pointed out in the article. You can add fanning powder to smooth-finished cards, but most won't bother. If you don't do ribbon spreads and/or fans, it may not bother you that much. For me, and the way I handle cards, it would be a non-starter. Bring on the texture!

By the way, the OP mentioned plastic. Some cards do say they have a plastic finish or coating on them. I have found that those that do, even when textured, don't always appeal to me. But like anything else, everyone has their own desires and thank goodness there's many choices for the consumer.

Thanks Ray, that’s a great start!

I’m hoping for some more technical details on what exactly the rollers used to apply to the cards to create the finish, and if decks from 70’s - 90’s were finished and coasted or just finished with the rollers and uncoated (generally speaking) / if the finish was sort of a finish and coating all in one.

Would love a approx time frame of when plastic was introduced into card manufacturing too.

For modern cards I’m still curious when the embossing and finishing is done - I’m guessing before they are die cut?

There are videos on YouTube that I think might show card manufacturing. Yes, most are die cut, but not all.

The finish is just a clear coating. It used to be applied , then rollers would give a texture. The texture is now in the paper.

Most all paper cards have some sort of coating. Only the cheapest won’t.

There's a nice video which shows some of the production. It is in this area of the forum, but here's a link to the post.

https://www.themagiccafe.com/forums/view......orum=332

It shows how the paper is calibrated, and specifically mentions "crushing", something which is talked about a lot nowadays. Crushing was done long before magic companies began touting it as something special. It is done to densify the paper and render it more uniform among other reasons.

The video also shows clearly how the cards are first cut into strips and then punched with a die. It is that die which gives the edges of the cards their shape. Much has been written here about "traditional" cut versus "modern". But it really does make a difference.