Higher Prices, Yikes!!

Looks like I need to correct something in my last post. What I thought was a huge price hike in the HOS Dubrovnik is actually a bug on their new website. When I clicked the link for the pieces, it took me to the page for the full set and I didn’t notice.

Chess prices will come down when pandemic calms down so patience is the key. 

@MCH818 — When I search Dubrovnik at HOS, the item in the result list for the standard set is at $219. Then when I click it, it opens to the wood selection page but gives a new base price of $359. Then, if I select Blackwood it applies the upcharge and the new price is $499. I thought this was maybe for the set rather than just the pieces, but just now when I selected a board just to see what would happen it added another $149. So, I’m not entirely sure what’s going on but it looks at least possible that the new price for those pieces is really $499. I was toying with the idea of picking them up to tide me over while I wait for NOJ, but not at that price (assuming that’s the price).

The HoS website has been completely reworked recently, so there may be some glitches here and there.  Having said that, though, the Tasmanian Blackwood is beautiful - possibly there's a coupon code available that would help?  They float discounts to some degree or another pretty often.

That has been the problem.  HoS has offered the Dubrovnik set in some nicer woods.  Every time, they have been expensive, to where the Noj price is more but not that much of a difference to make the savings too great at all.

Golden Rosewood + Boxwood = $219

Ebonized Boxwood + Boxwood = $219 +$10 upcharge = $229

Blackwood + Boxwood = $219 + $140 upcharge = $359

Everything is sold out at the moment except for the Blackwood. Blackwood is the only set available. So the "starting price" and ONLY PRICE is $359. Add it to your cart. It's $359. Which is the $219 + $140.

Thanks to everyone for the ideas/insights. For now I think I’ll just wait for NOJ, since the HoS set is also a little larger than I want (I’d need a 2.25” board as well). I’ve already been on the NOJ list for a while, with an initial estimate of late 2022, so it could be worse…

CB Dubrovnik design is actually my favourite of 1950 reproduction, unfortunately their finish of pieces is terrible. 

I know this may be heresy for saying, but that HoS Blackwood Dubrovnik is damn nice at over half the price of a NOJ. If you can hook it up with a 15% off HoS coupon, the Blackwood Dubrovnik is $305. Compared to what, $750 (plus 2 year wait list) for the NOJ. Sure the Knights are "different" and if you're after the Minceta Rooks you're out of luck. But that price difference, 3.75" HoS King (vs 3.5" NOJ King) and beautiful wood option is really tempting.

PS.. Tazmanian Blackwood is a fancy name for Australian Rosewood. The former is so much more exotic sounding  

The HOS Dubrovnik Rook and Pawn look more like a Staunton rather than a Dubrovnik Pattern. 

Contrast that with NOJ set, where every piece has a base of almost similar dimensions. Maybe this is what contributes to the superior handling and stability of the set. 

 

A wide base, weighted, and a 3.5" King in the NOJ set will result in a stable set with a low center of gravity. Spring for the NOJ if you got the patience and dough. 

Yup, there are certainly pros and cons either way. For me, the deciding factors in favour of NOJ are that I want the smaller size and the walnut, with the later style knights. If someone made a set for less money that had the small size, walnut-like dark pieces, and the later knights I’d seriously consider it, but that doesn’t seem to exist right now.