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A wide and varied array of wooden chess pieces

ALL STYLES AND TASTES

Our array of chess pieces caters for all styles and preferences and is extensive. Our Chess Business shares only the finest wood chess pieces, certainly our choice of luxury Staunton chess pieces has grown to one of the largest collections in Europe and features the worlds best wooden chess pieces. Our chess pieces are made and imported from a number of different countries including India, Poland, Italy and England. All vendors are scrutinized carefully for quality to ensure that only the finest chessmen are added to our array.

OLD-FASHIONED STAUNTON

Our most popular type is the traditional Staunton chess Men while we stock a huge selection of chess pieces. For sale Staunton we've in reality of all the pieces signifies the lions share of our stock. It's without the one universally recognized as the standard as well as typical and doubt the archetypal set of chessmen. The Staunton design came about at tournaments a top chess player at the moment, Howard Staunton, had become discouraged with the vast variation in chess items in the mid 1800s. He was disappointed when playing against individuals who insisted on using sets that were weird where the pieces weren't immediately acknowledged.

A HISTORY

Staunton didnt layout the Staunton chess Men, he cherished the design and place his name to each set. He promoted it since of him the established became a huge hit worldwide and heavily in his published articles on chess. As a set of chessmen all of the right boxes were ticked by it. It was easy to produce, looked really stylish, it was best and ergonomic as well as sensible to play a-game of chess with. They're without happen to be implemented by most of the words and doubt the best chess pieces chess organizations as the regular competition chess Men.

DELICATELY CARVED

Even with the massive reputation for Staunton we inventory a range of exemplary quality themed chess pieces, some wonderful Italian steel chess Men and the famous Department of Lewis chess Men. Our array furthermore functions some very intricately designed decorative wood chess pieces which are hand-carved from exotic Indian hard woods.

COLLECTIBLES IN EBONY

Furthermore integrated in our variety of chess pieces is a little assortment of vintage duplication chess Men. These are precise duplicates of vintage designs including some before-Staunton sets such as St George and Northern Upright. These models of chess pieces have now been created to optimum standards from the finest Indian ebony timber and so are just like the originals significantly cheaper of program.

CHESS PIECES

You may observe we have a section of our website totally dedicated to the Isle Of Lewis Chess Pieces. These chessmen that are legendary are possibly the familiar and second-most well-known style after Staunton. In our range of Lewis chessmen is the ever popular SAC established which retails for under eighty pounds. We also inventory the amazing Nationwide Museum Scotland set which we regard as the established established. It has been produced from laser tests of the authentic pieces and commissioned by a British maker by some of the foremost regulators on the subject.

What is your favourite Chess Set and Why? We asked some of our Members

Grizzled Veterans

Chocolate or vanilla? Pizza or beer? Doughnuts or coffee?

Sometimes, choices are hard.  And sometimes, you want both.

I have a few chess sets.  I have chosen “both” more than once.  The chess clock collection keeps growing. And the books! Ah, the chess books, two magnificent shelves of them.  Plus the ones on top of the shelf.  You know, the recent acquisitions. Sure, it’s a bit untidy, but they haven’t found their homes yet.  And they deserve a good home, right?

But if you asked me which was my favorite of all, I’d have to say it’s my 4 1/3-inch Lardy, which came courtesy of a certain online auction site, whilst I lived in England.  (Look, I can use “whilst;” I lived there, honest!)  They were never fine, never ornate, and never artful, but they have a well-worn, veteran sturdiness to them. These pieces have their fair share of battles; when they came to me, the black lacquer was chipping, and the four knights weren’t quite a match.  They still aren’t. The whites have yellowed and their king seems to lean over an absent cane.  I scraped off the worst of the paint flakes and cleaned up the black army a bit, but my touchup was in gloss instead of semi-gloss, and now their uniforms look even less regulation.  But they have British spirit, and gumption, and a stiff upper lip (they’re wood, after all), and still plenty of the French élan they were born with. They seem say, “those knights are replacement men, filling the gaps where others fell; his Highness took a cut to the leg long ago.”  I’ve got newer sets, and I’ve got prettier sets, but none with such life.

When I get them out of their box, I think of the little slice of their life I’ve been privileged to be part of.  When I brought them to a California coffee shop, and I spent ten minutes crawling around on the floor looking for a lost pawn, my heart in my throat, thinking “they won’t be a complete set!” only to discover that another player had scooped up my wayward infantryman with his own exhausted warriors and stuffed them all into his box.  When I took them down to my local club outside of London, and their grand fight across the board that night, white perpetually striving with black.  I lost, of course, but I’ll always remember my British chess friends, Joe, John, and Paul, Ralph and Krysztof, whenever I get out the Lardy men.  I will remember my local games in back rooms and classrooms, churches and pubs.  No other set makes me feel so much a part of something else, something larger, this love of chess we all share. Where have these soldiers served before, and what stories would they tell me, if only they could? What adventures will they share with me and my children? Where will they go next? 

So you want to play chess and need to buy a Chess Board

Chess Retail on the rise Global Forecast

Ken Research has announced its recent report titled, “Global Chess Industry In-Depth Investigation and Analysis Report 2017”which highlights the production, revenue, consumption, import and export of the Chess market globally from 2011 to 2016, and forecasts to 2020.

The Chess market analysis is well provided especially for the international market also featuring the development history, competitive landscape analysis, and major regions’ development status.

It provides the essential statistics that point towards the state of the industry and serves as a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals who are interested in the market.

Though the online and virtual games have replaced the need for players to buy physical games, yet the chess industry has managed to survive well and it continues to evolve despite the widespread use of internet games.

The compounded annual growth rate of chess industry had been registered as 2.5% while the chess industries of countries like the United States, Europe, Japan, and China have reckoned for 43% share of the global consumer market.

Companies namely The House of Staunton, ChessSUA, CNCHESS, ChessBaron, Shri Ganesh (India) International, Chessncrafts, chessbazaar.com, Official Staunton, ABC-CHESS.com, Yiwu Linsai and more are the major competitors involved worldwide in this industry.

Sponsorships and competitive playing have driven a perfect money making business exceeding most other board games and in the coming years is also seen as the major reason for the growth of the industry along with other innovations and opportunities to come up.

The average output growth rate of this industry in China was recorded as 3.1% and it is further believed that it will rise speedily with an average growth rate of 3.2% in the years to proceed.

The market of Chess industry swerve to be focused on economic developed regions and the consumer markets in the region of emerging economies like China, India, Brazil, etc are on the mount; the demand for this industry is seen as augmenting unceasingly.

Where to buy a Chess Set and Chessboard and what are the basic requirements?

An Independent Review of the Artisan Sheffield Chess Set

Basic Details of product:

Link to product – https://www.officialstaunton.com/collections/chess-pieces/products/sheffield-rosewood-chess-pieces

Cost - £395 (approx. $480/450 eur)

Full Description: A superb set of chess pieces featuring the Sheffield Knight. Graded Rosewood and Boxwood with an expertly crafted knight with incredible ornate detailed embellishments. Rosewood has beautiful natural grains makes this set very attractive. A Large 3.75 inch King with a 1.75 inch base diameter, generously core weighted and felted pieces, this set has perfectly balanced pieces that will streamline and enhance your game experience

Review:

Basics:

As always, I’m going to start this review by looking at the size of the pieces. For those of you who haven’t read one of my reviews before, I’ve put all the data in tables below. The first table is in millimetres and the second is in inches.

To clarify the labels, Height is the height of the piece, Base is the diameter of the base, Base/Height ratio is Base diameter divided by Height multiplied by 100. The FIDE column states whether the measurements are compliant to FIDE regulations (For anyone who think I’ve interpreted these regulations incorrectly please send me a private message). FIDE Regulations - “Recommended height of the pieces is as follows: King – 9.5 cm, Queen – 8.5 cm, Bishop – 7 cm, Knight – 6 cm, Rook – 5.5 cm and Pawn – 5 cm. The diameter of the piece's base should measure 40-50% of its height. These dimensions may differ up to 10% from the above recommendation, but the order (e.g. King is higher than Queen etc.) must be kept.”

Sizes

So, as we can see, the pieces aren’t FIDE compliant. However, even the latest world championship set is not FIDE compliant. Personally, I do not see this as a massive issue… but it’s always a bonus to know you have a tournament compliant set.

Onto our next criteria…

Materials:

White – Boxwood – A lovely light gold colour

Black – Rosewood – A deep rich red-brown

Discernibility:

To me, being able to tell each piece apart is critical to my tactical play and judgement during a chess match. I’ve played with these pieces’ numerous times over the last few days and I have always, easily been able to tell each piece apart. They are all easily discernible!

Quality of carving:

Okay, let’s get this out of the way first. If you’re a classic kind of person, you might not like these pieces. While they follow the Staunton idea, they are most certainly variations of it. Personally, I’m not rigid to the 1849-1855 Staunton pattern, I’m quite happy to go for something different. In fact, I love the designs of these pieces, especially the knight… but I’ll get to him later.

General quality – The quality of the carving on these pieces is exceptional! The carving is smooth and consistent on all pieces. The polishing is done very well and they have a nice sheen without being too glossy. The polishing gives the pieces a wonderful grip as you lift them.

I do not like that the bases of the Knights and rooks are different from the other pieces. They have 2 rings whereas the other pieces have one. While intricately carved, it makes them feel like they’ve come from another set. This may not bother you, but I know it will bother some!

The felt on these pieces is green and appears to be billiard cloth.

Kings – Both kings are near identical, however, the crowns are very slightly different widths.

Queens – There are 4 queens and they are nearly identical too. The points of the crown are very slightly different in ‘sharpness’ and one queens tip of the crown is very slightly wider (less than 1mm).

Bishops – There is a slight gouge in the tall side of the mitre in each bishop. This will be as a result of the cutting process. The bishops are well made and I cannot see any variances between the pieces.

Knights – The knights are unique and, in my opinion, lovely! They are wonderfully and intricately carved with an aggressive posture symbolic of a great chess battle. For pieces that are individually carved, it is exceptional to see that they are near perfect replicas of one another. This quality is the reason you pay more for this kind of chess set. The knights are not pieces, they are a work of art. The only variance I found in the knights was a 1mm difference in 1 section of the mane.

Rooks – The rooks are very appealing and their unique shape assists greatly with picking them out on the chessboard. Some of you will like the style, some will not. Personally, I love them and this is one of the main reasons I chose this set (along with the knights). This is a gripe of mine, but the top of the rooks have not been polished; this leaves a dull and slightly disappointing look to an otherwise exceptional piece.

Pawns – The pawns are uniform in size and appearance, and have thick necks.

Best board that would match the pieces/best pieces for the board:

I would pick a 58mm/2.25in board for this set (that is the size of square that the pictures were taken on). Colour wise, a nice mahogany and maple board would suit particularly well.

Feel

Weight –

Balance –The pieces balance very well. I can tilt the approximately 65 degrees before it tipped over (standing straight up is 0 degrees). All other pieces have an equally good balancing point. As a result, I think these pieces would be great for a blitz game, I just don’t know whether I could bring myself to use such beautiful pieces in a game that’s so likely to cause damage.

Suitable use

I would recommend this for classical (standard) use.

Price

This is a medium-priced set (Just over £10 per piece). I think this set is good value for money, but wish that they had considered the bases when paying this much money.

Extra queens

There are 2 extra queens (one of each colour) in this set.

Discount Code

25% OFF – use this discount code to get 25% OFF this official Staunton set or any of their others!

Shipping and packaging

The pieces were delivered via next day delivery. They arrived well protected in a thick box with polystyrene as a cushion. Each piece was individually wrapped in foam to further protect the set. These pieces were not going to get damaged! A wonderful set! They arrived in a box that was adorned with the Official Staunton Logo.

Summary

Pros:

• Wonderful, intricate carving
• Well weighted
• A set for a lifetime
• High quality

Cons:

• The bases of the Knights and Rooks are different to the other pieces

Overall, I give the set 4 ½ Stars. ****

What Woods are used in the production of our chess sets?

Official Staunton 1851 Jaques Reproduction Chessmen

1851 Replica Staunton Antiqued Chessmen nowadays and that I need to let you know the elegance of the beautiful collection ......happy me

Today concerning the collection. Let me make it clear, this really is among the greatest, or even the best Jacques reproduction collection I've observed up to now. But I believe I'd need to reveal the respects with the 1849 Staunton Replica Chessmen of Carl. Finishes and the boxwood are a view to see. The finish was constant on all of the items providing the impact to one the items are classic. The pieces were very well completed also it would not be soft for you to inform the distinction with items that are ebony. 4.4 is measured by Leaders " tall. The 34-piece collection includes additional Queens. Items are weighted with guide and foundation soles are coated with heavy green baize. The items are not quite unimpressive and carefully made. And just how about these exquisite hand-carved Knights? All I will state is incredible! Without question, the very best reproduction Jaques Knights I've seen. This collection certainly will not disappoint actually the collector and is recommended. I've incorporated several images for the search. A few of the images are revealed with 2.5" pieces on my chess stand.

Reviews......

Outstanding, he'snot missed and every collection has not been imperfect. That's an archive no-one can not come open to. I can not let you know cracked items or all of the damaged I obtained from so-called "top" sellers. They are doing a bad work not or in quality-control at all that we believe. Carl continues to be spot-on each time. Congrats Mike a beautifully, in your inclusion collection.

Cheers Paul, you're not therefore amiss! Nothing could be more disturbing subsequently to start you find and set cracked items, rosewood or sheesham wood pieces thatnot complement along with other item defects. But I need to applaud Carl about the safe packaging of a container along with my collection with containers having fixed slots for that items.

I acquired my collection today, also. I next everything Paul stated within the article above. Carl required all the evaluations he used the guidance towards the 1851 and obtained about the 1849 collection. This collection is definitely wonderful. Did you receive Paul, the container, also? Used to donot... Slightly too wealthy for my body. The collection is great value.

The widest and best range of chess sets in the UK

If you're in the market for a chess board, while it is standalone or with a set of chessmen we've an enormous range to pick from. All of our chess boards are prepared for instant shipment and warehoused in the UK. Our boards are imported from Spain, Italy and Poland. So you can be reassured of complete satisfaction all the time, we only carry the very best quality chess boards. Here at chess sets UK we are experts in shipping premium quality chess boards throughout Europe, when your board is bought by you from us you may rest assured it is going to arrive in perfect state with all four corners shielded.

The UK's largest and best range of competitively priced chess sets is carried in our UK based warehouse and is prepared for prompt dispatch using either our free shipping or express delivery alternatives. We now have sourced a brilliant selection of chess sets from all around the world. We demand exacting quality standards while our costs remain low and we only stock the top layouts. Our Chess Sets are for sale to the entire world, despite us being based in the UK. We offer extremely well priced delivery options and can ship to any country in the world. For the professional option, purchase your chess set from the united kingdom 's leading chess set retailers.


Our budget wooden chess sets are great starter sets, and can last well into maturity. There's hardly any doubt that playing chess is a mental exercise that is great, because a child's mind remains quite much in the development stage it becomes even more important. Really in some countries chess is now a mandatory element of the curriculum in schools.

What is your favourite Chess Set from Official Staunton?

As a fan of smaller chess sets, I believe that I would like to have the pieces Carl showed off in the Staunton Reproduction thread, the ones in ebony and boxwood. Because the planned launch of that set is one week prior to the competition finishes, it ought to be a choice that is valid, right? Tongue Out What I like about that particular group of pieces is the fact that it seems fairly squat, however tasteful, and also the knight, from what I could gather from that one picture, looks quite well done. They have a pleasant, archlike contour to them, with all the pawns being smallest, together with the queen placing a steady downward slope to the rook, as well as the king being taller compared to the other pieces. Shorter pieces are more easy to manage on the board, simpler to see, and with all the wide foundations which they have, they need to be really secure nonetheless. Eyechess has indicated his preference for rosewood. Truly, I also usually favor rosewood to wood that is fully black, but I believe I'd locate this set appealing nonetheless. So far as I am worried, that set will be my favourite! You will likely have the ability to look at graphics of the set in a number of weeks on the Official Staunton web site, at https://www.officialstaunton.com/collections/chess-pieces?page=1.
So far as the board is worried, I think one with 57/58 millimeter squares would be good, given the width of the 3,5 inch library size Jacques pieces. that are that are repro I 've pieces already with the exact same diameter king, and they work perfectly on that size board. Aside from that, I believe it is essential to think about the colours of the squares in your alternative. Dark with dark is usually not the top choice, or so the mix would need to be picked carefully. I think that, in the boards that I managed to see at the Official Staunton web site, the Italian Framed Mahogany chess board seems greatest, in the sense that it's extremely good looking in itself, but would also complement the pieces very well. I believe the Spassky Fischer board also looks very good, but that board appears to have somewhat darker squares, which is OK in the event that you don’t mind the ever so decreased contrast with ebony pieces, but the palisander shown in the image in the link provided below I believe is a very good fit for the ebony pieces, featuring some darker stripes in the inlaid mahogany, but not being overly dark. I could picture, simply speaking, the above mentioned pieces looking quite gratifying, both in size as well as in colour (comparison), on this unique board. The board may be got from: https://www.officialstaunton.com/collections/chess-boards/products/mahogany-deluxe-solid-frame-chess-board.

For the entire mahogany experience, I'd pick the following box in the Official Staunton web site: https://www.officialstaunton.com/collections/chess-boxes/products/luxury-hand-made-mahogany-chess-box. This box, which Carl has noted to be certainly solid mahogany on another thread, appears quite suave really. I've picked this one for quite a few reasons, although there were some other possibilities as well that might likely have already been excellent alternatives. Firstly, the fact it is entirely made of wood allure if you ask me. Since my dad was a woodworker, I blame that on my genes. I'd much prefer to have a completely wooden carton than to have a box that would be real wood on the surface, and a few other material inside. Second, the aesthetic of the carton is very gratifying, with all the black delimiters being very nicely done, along with the lock and key being the cherry on the cake that is proverbial. I think that I might much prefer to have the mahogany box so, and I presume that it might go great with the pieces I chose in the beginning of the post.
Cost of the carton: GBP 200
I realise that I come up a bit short of GBP 800 (about GBP 150 short) but I trust that’s not an issue. Finest of luck to everyone in the contest and a thanks to Carl for making this competition possible.