Any experience buying from The Chess Empire?

Lighthouse, Once I found myself sitting in front of a chess board in my apartment playing against an extremely attractive woman that I had briefly spoken to on several occasions at a wine shop. How she was sitting there, playing against me, I couldn't remember for the life of me. We were alone, and I was on my best behavior, cautious about what to say, wanting to make her as comfortable as possible, still surprised that she was there in my apartment playing chess with me. She was a psychologist, that I knew, and her name was Nancy. I didn't try to come on to her in any way, though I'm sure she knew that I liked her. I stared at the board often, as though contemplating on what was taking place. But, in truth, my mind was totally captivated by the exceptional woman sitting in front of me. Needless to say, she thoroughly thrashed me. When the game ended, she smiled and stood up. She was ready to leave. Then, she shocked me by kissing me on the lips. I couldn't believe it. I didn't know how to react, didn't want to press my luck. I was head over heels for her. She smiled after the kiss, and left. My God! What an experience!! Unfortunately, I never saw her again.

Well , That 's a really nice story , in the mystery s of chess games over the years . Or even the magic of playing chess with strangers . Still back to $150 out of pocket still would go for for reimburse on repair cost .

If you want to read a fascinating novel taking place in Saint Petersburg, Russia, I wholeheartedly recommend White Nights, Red Dreams. The author is a chess aficionado, and quite a romantic! Fun read! Forget about the $150. Those scoundrels have ripped me off. It’s too bad, especially since I would love to buy there Pepys chess set. But at $1,100 for the pieces, I would never risk buying from them again. But the pieces look amazing!☺️

Point is , it's never over , until it's over , Then new beginning , In your case  miamora01 , If you like the Pepys chess set then maybe go for a discount over your $150 ?

Risks I have taken over the years to buy that rare valuable chess set , Still guess it's like the salmon swimming upstream or madness in the eyes of my EX .

https://www.etsy.com/listing/694391698/rare-1820-pepys-series-luxury-wood-chess

Madness would be more like it!😊 I’m not that enamored for the set, as I was for the table. Passion plays a part sometimes, but at other times reason overrules. 👍

Sure, Mind you I would put a rug under the chess table as accidents happen , Be it you or a extremely attractive woman . The berber rug has saved me many a times .

It's a really nice table .

In December 2023 I ordered the beveled series Maple and Acacia board with 2 1/4 inch squares, lacquered finish, along with Staunton pieces. I received a 2 1/2" square board. When contacted, The Chess Empire (TCE) told me that there were quality issues with the 2 1/4 inch squares board, so they (generously) sent me a board with 2 1/2 inch squares, (about $100.00 more) at no cost.

But I had chosen the pieces to fit the 2 1/4" board.

The pieces are magnificent, and are exactly as represented on the website. The board was made with Maple and Acacia wood. Acacia wood is an open grained wood, and will not accept a lacquered finish without filler. When the open grained wood is not filled, it results in streaking and scratches when viewed in an angled light. The owner of TCE said that the board was finished per the standard protocol. I am in the process of refinishing the board myself.

Despite my experience with the finish on the Maple and Acacia wood, in March 2024 I ordered a magnetic travel set. The set arrived with one pawn without a magnet. Customer Service promptly sent a replacement pawn at no charge. But the pawn was too small; I had to remove the magnet from the replacement pawn and install the magnet in the original pawn.

In April 2024 I see that the squares are warped along each rank, they are cupped. And of course the squares have separated. The photograph exaggerates the extent of the warping, but the squares do not lie flat. I will be pursuing ways to get my money back.

Unfortunately, in the chess equipment industry, you are never guaranteed of getting a perfect set, or board. I haven't had any board problems, but after ordering 22 sets, I have had my issues. I had them all cleared up to my satisfaction, but not without considerable aggravation.

I'm pretty much done with the collecting stage. Basically, pretty happy and glad to not deal with the usual suspects anymore....Some excellent and some...Meh!

Never had a board from them (only from Chessbazar, and foure years later it's still fine), but the sets I got from TCE were always top-notch.