I have developed a game that uses tiles similar to mah-jongg tiles, but with custom etching on the surfaces of course.
Bakelite seems to be the material that classic mah-jongg tiles are made of, but I can't seem to find any gaming manufacturers who will produce them for me en masse. It's similar to plastic but gives a satisfying porcelain-y "click" when pieces knock together, it's durable and the edges bevel or round off nicely. My game's tiles are around 1.5"x2.5", but I'm flexible on the size if manufacturing costs can be reduced...
Right now I'm using tiles cut from 1/4-inch opaque plexi (stickers for the logos instead of etching) and they work fine, but I want tha real deal for actual distribution, which I intend at first to handle myself.
Anyone know where I can get mass amounts of custom tiles produced of this or a similar material? Searched through the forums but "tiles" means so many things here that it's a mess of unrelated hits. Thanks,
~Josh
Ouch, that's a tough one... You might actually just want to drop a line to a publisher that has a game using the type of tiles you're interested in and asking them about it. For example, Jay Tummelson with Rio Grande is a great guy, and usually responds to emails personally.
Who knows, he may be able to answer a question about the production of the tiles in, say, Ta Yu or the RK reprint of Pikomino -- both of which have the sorts of tiles I think you're looking for, or at least help you get in contact with someone who could answer your questions.