Chessboard Restoration and Possible Identification

Hi everyone. I have an old set I played as a child with my grandpa and had received when my grandparents passed. I am sure it was not costly but of course has sentimental value. Now my daughter is old enough to play and I am looking to fix the chessboard up some. I think I will leave the pieces as they are, maybe some new felt at most.

So I am wondering if anyone can identify the board or pieces?

Also wondering what is recommended for fixing the missing tiles in the board? It is missing one color, one white, and half of another color. I have watched a few videos but would appreciate any other suggestions from you all too!

Looks like there is a one week waiting period to post pics...here is a link. https://imgur.com/a/y0ZO5Fa

I don't have any info, but just thought I'd copy over the images from that link for you.

I don't have any info, but just thought I'd copy over the images from that link for you.

Thank you!

Powderdigit wrote: I am at a loss but I love it! Now … before I go on … I’m not an expert and so wait for the real knowledge to arrive at the fair 😊… but they seem to be have a mix of influences … Regence, old English, and the knight is cute but crude; the rook may have Romanian or Austrian influences … perhaps they were even home made along with the board sometime the 1920’s-1950’s perhaps? Perhaps you family heritage and location may point to provenance?

Thank you! And honestly my grandpa was a machinist and had all sorts of tools like a lathe that he could have possibly used. He was the type of guy that could fix anything. The pieces are built imperfectly with a couple of the tops leaning (like they might not have been made by a machine) but the details on the pieces seems like a lot of effort for him to put into something like this. I wouldn't necessarily say he was much of an artist. 

The board folds down the middle and the pieces lay on the inside of the box. There are no markings in the box, and I can see the dried glue around the edges (which could also indicate possibly homemade to me). The hinges are small and held in place by small nails. The board I could believe he made, but the pieces not so much.

As for heritage, he was born in 1925 near the Canadian/US border I believe. His dad immigrated from Scotland and was made a US Citizen in 1926. He lived in the St. Louis area the majority of of his life though.

Its a pre-Staunton design, more specific than that I don't know off the top of my head but one of my books might. If you search "pre-Staunton chess sets" you'll ne able to browse for similar designs. 

This HoS set is not the exact set  but you can see the similarities.  

Link

The chess set is a Mexican Pintop set.  It’s a variant of the Pulpit sets. Best guess as to age would be the late 40’s to early 1950’s. The board looks Mexican as well… pine and lightly stained pine not-quite-veneer is the main clue. 

The chess set is a Mexican Pintop set.  It’s a variant of the Pulpit sets. Best guess as to age would be the late 40’s to early 1950’s. The board looks Mexican as well… pine and lightly stained pine not-quite-veneer is the main clue. 

OH! Absolutely! The Middle Size Pintop here has basically all the same boreholes and etchings on them!

Now I suppose I can just get some pine to replace the squares, some sanding and maybe a little wood filler here and there...and some new stain and wax? and the board should be good to go! Think I'll line the inside with felt to protect the pieces too.

Interesting that this design is 1940s to 1950s.  I would've imagined by then  the more modern Staunton-esque designs would've completely dominated all but the traveling and themed sets. I learned something new smile 😃. 

Also...when we played we used the tallest piece as the queen, and the taller bishop looking piece as the king...were we doing this wrong?

A few progress updates. Felted inside box and pieces.

Awesome pictures and thank you for posting them. I only a novice woodworker and terrible player. Sometimes a cherished (older) piece of furniture, desk, or in this case, chessboard is perfect in its present condition. Complete with dings, gouges, markings, many priceless memories and the promise of more to come. Perhaps a cleaning, very light sanding (board), and a fresh coat of oil will be all that is needed to see it breathe new life. Only my two cents worth. 🙂

Thank you! Also novice here in both too. Would really like to find some 3/32 thick pine to replace the missing squares, but got some bass wood as a quick replacement for now. For sure want to keep the work minimal on the board and wasn't sure how to finish it; stain, wax...oil is a good idea too though. Will post more progress again soon.

Looking good! I’m with Wits and all that he said - albeit he’s a better wood worker than I and probably has me covered as a chess player too! A light sanding - maybe even something like 0000 steel wool - to remove the surface dirt but not the colour and patina of age and then oil will bring it too life. 👍

Sounds like you have this covered. Enjoy the journey! Pop back in with your progress, we’ll enjoy the journey with you.

You’re far too kind my friend! The steel wool is a great idea, likely the best route to try first.