Mahjong set + table

[Pekepan]

Hi everyone,

I just need some advice, since I\'m planning on buying a new set of tiles. What should I look for? How heavy should they be? How big? Any help is much appreciated.

Also, I\'m looking into one of those automatic shuffling tables. Anyone know how much they are or where I can take a look at them?

Finally, I\'m looking for stores where I can actually go and find this stuff. It\'s easy online, but if I could check them out at the store it\'d be MUCH easier. I live in the Los Angeles area.

Thank you!

Edit: I\'m looking to spend around $100-150.

[Tom Sloper]

Assuming you want a set for playing Japanese mahjong, go to Little Tokyo.
http://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq/whereg.htm
http://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq/types.htm
(Edit: If you do buy a Japanese set, I hope you can read kanji.)
You can\'t buy a new automatic table in Los Angeles, but I have a used one you can buy. But you\'d have to order special tiles for it from Japan.
http://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq/tables.htm
http://www.sloperama.com/mahjongg/column389j.htm

[wyce]

hey Tom,how much is your used one? i\'m very interested!

[Pekepan]

Thanks for the prompt response Tom! I\'m very interested in the table, and I tried to PM you but failed i think :( What are its dimensions and how much does it cost? Thank you again!

Peter

Edit: Sorry about trying to PM you. I didn\'t notice the \"do not\" in your sig.

[Pekepan]

Oh, I totally didn\'t say anything about the tiles.

Yes, I plan on playing Riichi mahjong, and I know enough kanji to read the tiles :). But the friends I\'m teaching right now are just starting, and might be put off by the idea that they can\'t, so I want tiles with arabic numbers on them if possible.

I was thinking Chinatown, but I have NO idea why Little Tokyo never occurred to me! Are there any specific stores that carry them? I go there pretty often, but I\'ve never seen a mahjong set there before.

And off-topic I just noticed that you also play go-stop! My parents taught me how to play when I was little :). Are there places to play either mahjong or go-stop in the LA area? I\'ve only played with my friends at their places. But then again, going to a Korean go-stop parlor would be... a scary experience if they\'re anything like they are in Korea...

[Pekepan]

I found fairly cheap tables at http://www.zjcgroup.com/ (thanks to Tom\'s website!) and I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with them. They look great, but their low price point makes me a little wary.

Thoughts?

[TropicSmoothie]

I\'ve heard of that group before. Been into contact with them myself. The reason for their lower prices is simply because you\'re not paying for a brand. It would be like buying a regular pair of sneakers instead of Nike\'s.

Also, I\'d love to see that old mahjong table getting all fixed up Tom. My family is full of handymen/women. Carpenters, mechanics, engineers, refurbishers. Would be great to see it in full glory again.

[hirohurl]

Hi folks,

I occasionally get asked about mj tables. I have heard that Hawaii is the place to look, and anywhere else where there is a strong Japanese nisei presence in the USA.

DH

[Tom Sloper]

1. the friends I\'m teaching right now are just starting, and might be put off by the idea that they can\'t, so I want tiles with arabic numbers on them if possible.

2. I was thinking Chinatown, but I have NO idea why Little Tokyo never occurred to me! Are there any specific stores that carry them?

3. Are there places to play either mahjong or go-stop in the LA area?

4. Sorry about trying to PM you.

1. Then don\'t buy an automatic table, unless you can find a Chinese one and its tiles have Western indices.

2. See the FAQ I pointed you to yesterday.

3. Mahjong yes. Read that column I pointed you to yesterday.
Go-stop I don\'t know.

4. My email address is not difficult to find. I prefer most of my mahjong conversations to be public, either on this forum or on the newsgroup or on my bulletin board. For stuff like trying to buy or sell something, that would need to be private, of course.

[Tom Sloper]

I\'d love to see that old mahjong table getting all fixed up Tom. My family is full of handymen/women. Carpenters, mechanics, engineers, refurbishers. Would be great to see it in full glory again.

It works fine; see the video. Everything except the dice-roller, and... The plastic film atop the control panel has flaked off; it just needs to be replaced with one in good condition.

[Tom Sloper]

hey Tom,how much is your used one? i\'m very interested!

Email me but only if you live within driving distance. I don\'t want to hire a carpenter to build a crate to ship it in. My email address is not hard to find.

[Barticle]

go-stop! [...]

I´ve recently been playing (virtual) Koi-Koi which as you probably know is the Japanese version.

Like riichi mahjong, it´s one of the minigames in the PS3 game Ryu ga Gotoku: Kenzan. I even wrote a plain-text guide for it. Yes, I´m a geek. B)

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/ps3/file/943326/56770

If you´re desperate for a game, the same site that hosts the Flash game of riichi mahjong also has a Koi-Koi game (two players - you versus computer)...

http://www.gamedesign.jp/flash/hanafuda/hanafuda.html

[Pekepan]

Well thanks for the advice everyone, especially Tom! I\'ll be going shopping today so wish me luck!

[Barticle]

Happy hunting, mate!

We await your report. :)

[Pekepan]

So I\'m back from my excursion to Little Tokyo. I checked out two of the main plazas there. Only two stores had mahjong tiles, and only one of them had a riichi set. The set was overpriced IMO. It was $150 for what looked like a mini set. And the case was pretty shabby too.

Oh well, gives me an excuse to go to Chinatown next week :) Maybe I\'ll just make red fives with blank tiles. I\'m still debating whether I want to force-feed the 14 kanji characters to my friends or just get an arabic set. The only problem I have with American mahjong sets is that the tiles are usually not made to stand on their own.

If Chinatown doesn\'t work out, I\'m gonna hit up the internet shops. Hiro\'s and MahjongMart are first on my list :) Any other suggestions?

Peter