Introduced in 1905. Discontinued in 1943. Rare but not impossible to find. Singles circulate occasionally. One of several Bicycle patterned backs that were probably designed for club or casino use to compete with Andrew Dougherty’s Bee No. 92 back.  Technically, this is not a plaid at all (also true of Margin Tri-Plaid, Star Plaid No. 1 & 2, and Western Plaid).

A collector friend writes, “I have a sample book that probably represents the 1918 edition, based upon the latest back design copyright of 1917. What I found interesting here is that Tri-Plaid, Snowflake, Star Plaid No. 1 and Western Plaid were all available simultaneously under both Bicycle and their Army & Navy #3032 brand, all in red and blue.”

The first image below shows a magician’s throw-out card promoting T. Nelson Downs, a master at his craft. For more information on throw-out cards, please visit throwingcards.blogspot.com.

The next image shows a comparison between two different Tri-Plaid backs. This illustrates the subtle, and at times, significant differences that result from different print runs as plates are remade. For another example, please see the Wheel No. 1 page.

The final image, below, shows two different Tri-Plaid sample cards. Many sample cards were simply blank or numbered cards, overprinted with the back information in the margins. Because they lacked margins, most of the full-bleed sample cards were specially printed, as both of these were.