A&A Plastic, Silicone Board (20"). 3.75" King - a great set

I picked this up a while ago but finally got the chance to play some games with it, on a family holiday.

It's a tremendous value proposition.

Nice sized triple weighted pieces and a good quality silicone board.

The board is notably slicker on the playing surface than e.g. the Best Chess Set Ever boards, although it is only one sided (black and off-white). It doesbt grab at the pieces or attract dust the way some silicone boards do.

The light coloured pieces are off white, which I prefer to pure white. They match to the light squares on the board but no issues with contrast/visibility.

Pieces are nicely weighted and robust.

And it all packs away nicely in the decent quality zipped compact case.

This is a chess set I'd happily reccomend to a friend. It beats the BCE triple weighted set based on the board and included compact case. Me personally I prefer the off-white light pieces (my BCE triple weighted are pure white).

I have the BCE quads. They are off-white, I love them, but they are significantly heavier and that matters given triple weighted pieces are perfectly good for all my use cases.

Some have complained of the pieces chipping. Perhaps their play is overly rough - what have you experienced?

I love plastic pieces. I hate silicone bords.

No chipping so far. I play with my boys (12 & 10). We don't exactly baby them. So far so good.

Thank you

The A&A and the Best Chess Set Ever triple weighted can both be had for 60 euros.

The BCE quads go for 70 euros.

The case, better board and off-white pieces make the A&A thr better choice for me vs the BCE triples.

The BCE quads are off-white but no travelling case and that dust magnet board...

I would agree the BCE pieces are nice though - that's not an issue.

Fair enough. This is not the set for you.

Fair enough. This is not the set for you.

To add, the Silicone Board that comes with the A&A set is impressively slick, for this material. Much more pleasant to play on than any other silicone board I've tried. But it is still a compromise solution for a tournament set that packs super compact.

I'm playing on it on the table outside my cabin on a French campsite, or in the local bar. Other options would have been vinyl or mouse pad, or a smaller sized travel set. No way I would have brought a 20" wooden board.

Some quick snaps on the deck of our cabin.

I really like that it plays and looks like a decent quality set, which I guess it is for the price but I'm not concerned at all about leaving it outdoors, or playing with it in a rowdy campsite bar for example. And as I said it packs away very nicely.

We drove and got a ferry here so overall a perfect set for such a trip, where weight is not an issue.

Nice set indeed but I do wish they had done a slightly better job with the knights' ears.

Fair - I agree - they don't do anything for me.

I think the bishops might be something of a frail/weak point too inasmuch as the half-ball filial has potential to break off.

Yes, those and the kings' crosses are always at risk but higher-quality plastic should be able to withstand rough play. When it comes to dogs, cats, and squirrels, though...

The heavier a piece is, the more likely it is that a thin part (like a finial) breaks if the piece is dropped.

I purchased this set recently. It's absolutely fantastic and perfect for travel. The silicon board like others can stretch in places that are constantly strained. Though it is rather minimal to be fair so I wouldn't call it a bother. Being able to fold it up so small far outweighs a few little waves. The pieces are weighted nicely and very aesthetic.. reminds me a lot of the 1849 design.