What is so special about linen cardstock?

daenys

I love linen cardstock. From my limited understanding of chemistry, the matted texture makes it harder for cards to stick together while maintaining their flexibility. Ever wondered why glossy plastic decks are so hard to separate? Think of unravelling a roll of tape. Well, plastic on plastic exhibits a similar 'stickiness', but at a much weaker level. With sheets the size of tarot cards though, the effect becomes noticeable enough to be annoying. It's not only about trapping air.
 

Cocobird55

Linen cardstock definitely feels better to me. Gregory's linen deck is great, and so is Deidre of the Sorrows.
 

Yelell

I love linen cardstock. From my limited understanding of chemistry, the matted texture makes it harder for cards to stick together while maintaining their flexibility. Ever wondered why glossy plastic decks are so hard to separate? Think of unravelling a roll of tape. Well, plastic on plastic exhibits a similar 'stickiness', but at a much weaker level. With sheets the size of tarot cards though, the effect becomes noticeable enough to be annoying. It's not only about trapping air.

Good point. I have a couple of decks I am constantly thinking I lost a card out of, until I carefully separate every card and find two were nearly fused together again. The linen decks have never acted sticky.
 

daenys

Good point. I have a couple of decks I am constantly thinking I lost a card out of, until I carefully separate every card and find two were nearly fused together again. The linen decks have never acted sticky.

Hah! Now that I think about it, more than the glossy plastic decks which riffle okay (Joie de Vivre), the worst culprit for clumping is the matte pressed cardboard stock from St Martins Press. They don't 'stick' really; I think it's friction.
 

Morwenna

I've been collecting fancy playing cards lately, and thus I've been awash in linen-stock decks. And spoiled rotten! :D Why can't all Tarot decks feel that good? If Bicycle can do it, why not these other companies? And they don't cost an arm and a leg either; the simpler cheaper decks feel just as good as the fancier costlier ones.
 

frejasphere

I agree with the 'feel' of linen stock, it is very smooth and shuffles nicely (sometimes almost too easily with cards flying left, right and centre :D) ...

My only concern which may be unfounded as I haven't seen enough examples to know if this is a problem - is that the grid pattern in the stock sometimes seems to impact on the print quality - where ink doesn't quite get into all the small grooves ...

The example scan is from the 2 of clubs in Bicycle's Tragic Royalty deck (note: the card faces are silver/grey)
 

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