A Few Kind Words About Ebonised Chess Pieces

Awesome answers gang

I just worry about purchasing a set and having it split or crack even though the humidity shouldn't be an issue in the house during the year

One dog to another, Bronco70, I've yet to have a piece split on me although as an acoustic guitar player I religously keep the house humidity between 40 and 60%.  Get a hygrometer and even if you can't humidify the whole house keep your sets in one area of the house that is humidified and you'll be fine.  I'm told splits and cracks add character to a set but I really don't want to find out either.

Thanks baddogno I've even heard about using (maybe one of your posts in a thread) a hydro stick from a cigar store. I could always keep them in my humidor with my cigars but those are best at 70 deg and 70% RH ;)

I am no expert on different finishes on wood but, I think the French wax polish looks great myself. The French craftsman are no dummies when it comes to wood finishes & they use what they know works.

@9kick9:

They're 2 separate kinds of finish.  French polish is an incredibly labor intensive way of using a pad with just a drop of shellac (usually, although there are some modern substitutes) and literaly rubbing it into the wood.  Wax is wax, although the fine Carnuba wax used is not what you'll generally find at the local hardware store.  God I've got a big mouth...

I have two HOS ebonized sets. Both are holding up well. The cheaper one, the Wooden Club, looks fine, slightly matte, and the ebonizing isn't wearing through (though I haven't used it all that much as my playing entered a lull soon after I bought it). 

All in all, a great practical set. Cheap and sturdy like plastic but with the feel of wood.

My other set is finer. The ebonizing seems to be of higher quality, shall I say? Very evenly applied and shinier that the other HOS set. It passes reasonably for ebony. The ebonizing needs refreshing on the finer edges where it gets handled. Just from time to time. No problem.

Glad to have it.

One advantage of ebonizing is that boxwood holds up better over the years and resists cracking due to temperature/humidity conditions as opposed to ebony.

In my case, I do nothing special for my ebony sets. I just keep them in their boxes when not on a board.

So far no problems with cracking, really. Perhaps my equable NW climate helps here.

My oldest ebony set I got 20 years ago, a nothing fancy Indian import. For $100 dollars, I did okay for the time. As I said, the wood hasn't cracked so it must have been adequately cured. It hasn't gotten out of round or warped either. The ebony is pretty black too. The king has a little bit--just a smidge--of brown streaking but that's about it. 

I know people speak of how all the black ebony these days has been dyed, but I don't know.

This nothing set seemed to merit decent ebony.

Another ebony set, HOS Collector II, from about 8 years ago also is jet jet black. Is it dyed? Not sure how I would tell. but I see a small brown dot on the underside of one of the queens' lower curves. So I guess this indicates no dying?

In any case, I pleased with how it gleams so darkly, and is finely finished.

For a mid-line set, it's pretty good. No issues with cracking on this one either.

Thank you Goldendog for your insight

Just wondering, how you can tell the "feel" of wood when it's covered with ebony or lacquer?  If I cover my plastic set with the same exterior, how do I know I'm handling wood or plastic - if I'm blindfolded?  How does wood "feel" different if you can't see the grain?

To me, the whole sensory advantage to wood is being able to enjoy the woodgrain, which is more or less negated by covering it up with a shiny finish.  Is the weight or balance different?  What makes it "feel" like wood?

You do make a good point Midavis617; it's possible that what we take to be the feel of wood is actually the multiple coats of laquer hand buffed to a sheen.  Possibly if someone took the time to lacquer a plastic set, after first thoroughly sanding off the mold lines, and then buffed it you would approximate the feel of wooden pieces.  Of course the plastic might melt or distort under the heat of buffing and no one does that anyway so it really doesn't matter.  I think it's also impossible to achieve the same crispness of detail with a casting as you do with a hand carved piece.  As to your assertion that distinct graining is what gives wood its' appeal, I must respectfully disagree.  There are some rare woods like padauk and bocote (?) that exhibit striking grain patterns that can be attractive.  The marketplace has pretty much spoken however on the attractiveness of Shesham rosewood, the dull brown common Indian wood used on so many entry level sets.  It's generally priced the same or even less than ebonized sets and most players frankly despise the look.  You're happy with what you have, good for you.  I wouldn't touch one with a ten foot pole.  I'll stick to my ebony and ebonized sets.  We do share an admiration for the "Cadillac" of woods, bud rosewood (sometimes called blood).  I only have one set made of that and it is by far the crown jewel of my collection (an HOS Sheffield 4.4).  Anyway, I just wanted to provide counterpoint to your argument; hope I wasn't too harsh.  Chess sets are such a personal choice that opinions are bound to differ.

Oh, no, @baddogno, not an argument at all.  I love wood grain which is why I don't like covering it up with an opaque finish.  Also, recognize that older plastic sets from Drueke did not have visible mold lines.  It's rather like covering an old antique up with white paint - you think you know what's under the paint, but you can't enjoy it.

mldavis617 wrote:

Just wondering, how you can tell the "feel" of wood when it's covered with ebony or lacquer?  If I cover my plastic set with the same exterior, how do I know I'm handling wood or plastic - if I'm blindfolded?  How does wood "feel" different if you can't see the grain?

To me, the whole sensory advantage to wood is being able to enjoy the woodgrain, which is more or less negated by covering it up with a shiny finish.  Is the weight or balance different?  What makes it "feel" like wood?

Ebony is wood.

Yes, but does it look and feel like wood, or is it simply an opaque, hard material with a slick finish?

No, it's wood. Genus, Diospyros.

 I don't think you understand.  Ebony is wood.  It's a luxury wood, very hard and dark.  Ebonized, on the other hand, is boxwood (the same wood that the light pieces are made out of), with a black stain on it.  So, nothing is covered in ebony, they are ebonized -- which is to say they are stained.  If they were ebony, they would just be solid ebony ... which you certainly can get, but it's going to be a lot more expensive.

Ebonized is just stained wood, like your table or book case.  It doesn't have some super coating on it that hides the wood.  It may have a layer of polyeurethane to protect it, but almost anything made out of wood that you actually use does.

I'm not too sure about lacquered pieces, I have never used those and do not prefer that look myself.

All of the pieces I've seen that are either ebony or "ebonized" appear to be jet-black.  If there is visible grain in ebony and/or "ebonized" then great.  Photos just don't show the grain, and if there is no grain, there is no point (IMHO) to spend vast amounts of money on wood.  If the grain is visible, then it's a different story.  Yes, I know the difference between ebony and ebonized.  I just can't see any in any of the online photos.  I'd never buy a wood set without being able to see it first - and of course I'd love to have a wood set with visible grain on both sides with beautifully-carved knights.

Ebony does have grain, and it is visible.  Boxwood has grain as well, but I really doubt you will be able to see it once the pieces are stained, in most cases.

You see a lot of complaints about people receiving real ebony sets with brown grain showing through which is sign of cheaper ebony. Some that I have seen like this don't look bad and at least show that this is real ebony and not ebonized or ebony with a black stain to hide the grain. Of course if the pieces are mostly brown then I would be dissatisfied myself but a little is not a bad thing IMHO.

I have a real old BeeKay set from india that is very dark brown/black ebony. Not real bad for the 60 bucks I paid. Its interesting in that none of the Indian sets I have have ever warped at all.

I always prefer ebonized boxwood to ebony, mainly because I just don't like the look of ebony, but also because ebony is prone to cracking, and I don't want to have to worry about humidity.