Honest Dice | Precision Machined Metal Dice You Can Trust

September Update - Laser Goes Zap Zap!
about 1 year ago – Sat, Sep 06, 2025 at 12:50:50 PM

Hello backers!

Production continues on schedule as the blanks are getting their numbers laser-marked to fulfill their destiny of becoming precision-crafted dice! 🔥

I can't get over how awesome laser marking is. I've been laser marking my dice since 2018. I'm sure I wasn't the first, but it definitely wasn't common. At the time, I couldn't find a manufacturer willing to do it, so I spent countless hours in the garage marking thousands of 60-sided dice for my first Kickstarter. Somehow, watching the numbers magically appear in a flash of brilliance never got old.

The easy-to-read numbers are a permanent discoloration of the surface metal that can't chip off like an applied paint. Also, since it is not engraving into the metal, the process keeps the faces nicely flat and doesn't impair the weight balance. 

Here are some finished d20s in all their glory! The numbers are arranged in my mathematically balanced layout (as are all the dice, not just the d20s), increasing fairness by spreading the values evenly across the die in order to avoid any areas with concentrations of high or low numbers.

With titanium, the heat of the laser oxidizes the surface to form the mark. This process is slower, and the titanium dice take much longer to mark compared to the aluminum dice. I made a short video that shows the marking process in real time for both metals so you can see the difference.

Thank you all for your support that made these dice a reality and for your patience during the manufacturing process. The first manufacturing batch is nearing completion, and the next step will be packaging all the dice in their elegant cases!

Happy gaming,

David

August Update - Time for Color!
about 1 year ago – Wed, Aug 06, 2025 at 12:14:59 PM

Hello backers!

Manufacturing is chugging along nicely - and things just got a whole lot more colorful. Anodizing has officially begun for tens of thousands of shiny, precision aluminum dice!

Here is an image of some recently anodized 31mm d20s. Anodizing is an electrochemical process that thickens the natural oxide layer on aluminum. The dice are submerged in an acid bath and electrically charged, forming a durable oxide layer, which is then dyed. The next step in the process will be laser marking the numbers to turn these blanks into finished dice!

Thank you all for making this project happen. Seeing the dice with some color delights my inner dice goblin and I'm eager to get them to your tables where they belong 🙂.

Happy gaming,

David

July Update - Everything is Good!
over 1 year ago – Sat, Jul 05, 2025 at 12:13:52 PM

Hello backers!

I wanted to check in with a quick update on the project for you. I'm happy to report that the manufacturing continues to go well! Thousands of the dice have been fully machined and are undergoing the finishing process of a light bead blast and a thorough cleaning to prepare for anodizing. 

Here is an image of partially made d8s. They are machined from a billet of square stock with ten d8s per billet. In the first step they were milled as completely as possible while leaving enough material to rigidly hold each one in place. Next, they will be mounted in a custom jig that will precisely clamp to each of the ten d8s and hold them while the other side is machined.

In other exciting news, the project has now exceeded 3,000 backers! What an incredible milestone. I am honored that so many of you have chosen my dice. I am still accepting late pledges, so if you know anyone who would be interested, please feel free to share the project with them 🙂.

Thank you all for your support. I cannot wait for each of you to see your dice in person and take them along on your adventures!

Happy gaming,

David

Manufacturing is Going Smoothly!
over 1 year ago – Fri, Jun 06, 2025 at 11:33:16 AM

Hello backers!

So far the manufacturing is going smoothly. All the metal has arrived and the machinists started their work milling it into tens of thousands of precision dice! I have an image of partially made dice to share but first let me give you a quick update on the pledge manager.

Pledge over time backers should receive their pledge manager invitation email in the next few days if they haven't already! Thank you for your patience. If you are a pledge over time backer and you don't get your email in the next few days, please send me a message and I will be happy to help you out.

The charges for the pledge manager will happen on June 18th. After that point you can still change your shipping address and you will get a reminder email before I ship to update your address if you need to. In the past I waited to process the charges until I was almost ready to ship. However, I had a number of backers who were unpleasantly surprised by the charge since they thought they had already paid months ago. As a result of that feedback I now process the charges soon after surveys are completed.

Here is an image of some partially made d20s. The metal stock is turned down on the lathe into the shape you see above as the first step. This quickly removes the excess material to prepare for precision machining. Next, each will be mounted by their circular base in a 5-axis CNC which will machine most of the d20 except where the base attaches. After that it will be mounted in a fixture made to match the d20 shape in order to hold the die from the other side while another 5-axis CNC removes the base and finishes machining the d20. Then comes anodizing, laser marking, packaging, shipping and finally adventures at your tables all over the world! 

Thank you for supporting my project. It's so exciting to see the dice begin to take shape and I can't wait to hear all of your reactions when you finally get your hands on them. 🙂

Happy gaming,

David

Pledge Manager Opens Tomorrow!
over 1 year ago – Tue, May 13, 2025 at 05:58:12 PM

Hello backers!

Tomorrow I will be sending pledge manager invites to those who did not use the Pledge Over Time (pay in payments) feature. I will also send an email to everyone who did use Pledge Over Time to let them know they can expect their invite around June 23rd. I figured that would be helpful since many backers won't be certain whether or not they used Pledge Over Time. 

As I mentioned in the last update, I wanted to evaluate Kickstarter's new pledge manager to explore whether it would be a better experience for backers as compared to BackerKit. After researching the details I concluded that BackerKit would be better for this project. While I like the concept of keeping the whole process within the same system, currently the BackerKit platform is more advanced, has a longer track record, and I have had good experiences with their team helping me set everything up. Additionally, I am familiar with BackerKit since I have used it for multiple previous projects. 

It would help me out if you could go finalize your order in the pledge manager as soon as you have a chance. I need to start manufacturing as soon as possible, but first I need to know what to make 😆.

Thank you as always for your support!

Happy gaming - David