CB GM Blitz set

Nice set.  Cheap at TWICE the price!!

I did receive the board from Brad Borkowski (Colorado Wood Worker) and I do like it very much.  In my opinion it is fairly priced.  

For comparison, I have a Drueke board (vintage 1989 and still in excellent condition - see photos of it on p.2 of this thread) which is virtually identical in size and design (see my earlier posts here, with photos), the only difference being the wood used for the dark squares (Drueke = walnut dark squares; Borkowski board = cherry dark squares).  Both boards use maple for the light squares and walnut for the apron surrounding the playing area.  Note that a Drueke board with 2.25 inch squares is currently priced at $225 on Drueke's website.  Borkowski board = $130 + $30(shipping).  So there is a significant price difference.  

Comparing my two boards, the finish on the Drueke is noticably better in the sense that it is "smoother".  That is, when running your hand across the surface, you can feel zero grain on the Drueke - it is virtually "as smooth as glass".  Thus it is apparent that Drueke uses more cycles of sanding and polishing of the surface.  However, the Borkowski board, while not quite as "smooth" as the Drueke, is still reasonably smooth, just not as smooth.  I would rate the overall build quality of the Drueke board to be "oustanding" and the build quality of the Borkowski board to be "very good".   That is, the difference is discernable upon careful inspection, but not especially apparent upon casual inspection.  

So given that there is a discernible, but perhaps subjective difference in overall quality, the question becomes - is it significant.  That all depends on how one judges "significance".  For me, given the price difference I would have to say the quality difference isn't significant enough to cause me to not recommend the Burkowski board as a very good board for the money.  

Bottom line - from my perspective (obviously subjective, and slightly biased) I believe Borkowski has built a very nice board and I am very pleased with it, especially given the price.

I will try to post some pictures of the board within the next day or two.  

Thank you RussBell for that thorough review! Looking forward to your pictures

As promised, here are the photos of my recently purchased board from Brad Borkowski (ColoradoWoodWorker).  Also shown are my recently purchased GM Blitz pieces from Chess Bazaar.  The board is made of solid wood - cherry and maple squares (2.25 inch) , with walnut apron surround.  The pieces are ebonized boxwood with a nominal 3.75 inch King (actually 3.875 to top of finial), with 1.625 inch King base diameter.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ColoradoWoodWorker

https://www.etsy.com/listing/498580706/brazilian-cherry-jatoba-and-maple?ref=shop_home_active_4

http://www.chessbazaar.com/the-gm-blitz-edition-staunton-series-chess-set-in-stained-dyed-natural-box-wood-3-75-king.html

Wow, Russ. That is a very nice board and the pieces work well on it.

A great piece of work, made even better by the price you paid.

I like the contrast of the board and the border. 

Russ that looks like fine workmanship to me.  When I get the spare cash handy I'm gonna order a board from him.  Thanks for the pictures it's helpful to prospective buyers like myself.

Thanks for the compliments Rsava & fewlio.  As I have gushed several times ealier, I am very pleased with it.  I think it is a very nice looking board and an excellent value.  I particularly like the cherry for the dark squares contrasting with the walnut apron as well as with the pieces, especially the Black pieces.  I am hopeful that with proper care its looks will only improve with age.

I must say again, that I like the pieces as well.  Especially considering I received the 25% backorder discount because I ordered when they were out of stock!

That one piece knight is luxurious!  Seems like a high end feature, it's surprising to see it in such a reasonably priced set.  The whole set honestly looks like something the House of Staunton would get 3-5 hundred for.

@fewlio - I played a game last week with it, it is luxurious. The whole set feels great in your hand. I thoroughly enjoyed playing with it (even though I lost).

For the sake of Rsava and any others who may have concerns about the "points" on the Queen's coronet (see the earlier discussions in this thread), here is a photo of my White Queens showing how the tips of the points are purposefully flattened on the GM Blitz set.  I think they did a pretty good job of it on my pieces.  As I mentioned earlier, I was aware that this was a "feature" of the GM Blitz Queens, so I take no issue with it.  In fact, I've reached the "point" (pun intended) where I pay no attention to it.

fewlio - 

I agree with both you and Rsava.  I am very impressed with the pieces as well....in both looks and feel....hard to beat them for the price....!

@RussBell - thanks for the pic of your Queens. I guess mine are done correctly as they look very similar to yours. 

Board and set look great! Looks like a perfect match

Rsava: Did CB replace your underweighted rook?