The set is particularly suited for my 50mm board. Anything bigger would be too big I think.
House Of Chess vs Chess Bazaar "Zagreb" version
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@phungbest the 50mm board does fit but it is pushing the limits. 55mm might be a slightly better fit in my opinion. 50mm seems a bit crammed. Playable yes but just a bit too closed in for my liking. Nice set and board though.
I agree a 55mm is a better fit but a 55mm board is too big for my taste; especially for my solitary Covid-19 games. Eyechess was right these pieces are slightly bigger than the spec sheet. The real rook is much better looking in real life than in the pictures of their website.
sound67 wrote:
Congrats on your new set. Looking forward to the pictures. Ringy rosewood is a trade term for a kind of acacia wood, acacia rhodoxylon. I don't think any company except HoC uses that term for their chess pieces.
It seems quite dark for it to be Acacia Wood. I looks like actual Rosewood in color to me. Acacia is more of a light to medium brown with peppered grain pattern.
I too ordered the Ringy rosewood set from house of chess:
What I received looks exactly like this:
hthttps://www.chessbazaar.com/offers-zone/clearance-sale/old-1959-russian-zagreb-staunton-chess-pieces-in-rosewood-natural-boxwood-3-8-king.html
There was no bag from house of chess, and the label said the woods were boxwood and babul.
Perhaps house of chess has not updated their photographs, or perhaps there may be some unknown connection between house of chess and chess bazaar.
The set I received looks exactly like the chess bazaar set.
For those who may be interested, here is the 411 on babul wood:
http://www.frienvis.nic.in/WriteReadData/UserFiles/file/pdfs/Babul.pdf
Thanks and Regards
Sorry about that I corrected the links above.
phread wrote:
I too ordered the Ringy rosewood set from house of chess:
What I received looks exactly like this:
hthttps://www.chessbazaar.com/offers-zone/clearance-sale/old-1959-russian-zagreb-staunton-chess-pieces-in-rosewood-natural-boxwood-3-8-king.html
I too was debating between the two vendors. However from their spec sheets, the ChessBazaar seems to be bigger and more expensive $90 (54% off). However in reality my House of Chess set is as big and cheaper. To be honest I suspect they may come from the same "subcontractor".
I am by no mean a wood connoisseur but if it is Babul, it is very attractive. Rosewood like attractive. It would be interesting to have both product side by side for comparison. As mentioned before I am extremely happy with the communication with the vendor before my order, and the product has surpass my original expectation (I am often disappointed from internet where sometimes the pictures are much more beautiful than the real item).
These are the dark pieces. If it is Babul wood, it should be used more often. I love the dark but subtle grain.
One of my favorite designs.....I have the C.B. version,which is a bit raw in overall quality.Definitely worth the price,but I am gifting it to my 8 year old grandson,who shows interest in chess.
I replaced it with the absolutely stunning Yugoslavia(Zagreb) set from The Chess Store,in Padauk and Boxwood.....I mean no contest in carve,finish and overall appearance.I got this set on sale,just before The Queen's Gambit craze caused such a shortage and they immediately raised the price by about 25%,but then it went out of stock.
They have new sets,but I don't believe the Padauk version is available anymore,though I have not checked lately.
To me,The Chess Store's Padauk version is the penultimate version I have come across.
Just me and my own taste...and...2 cents.
@phungbest
I agree the babul is beautiful wood.
I was surprised (actually confused) rather than disappointed by the actual set I received.
I paid the price on the house of chess website, so I am quite happy with the pieces...the more I see and use them the more I like them.
Regards
@sound67 and magictwanger
The wnge is good looking!
There are so many options it took me months to decide upon the actual set I did eventually choose...so many chess pieces and so little money. lol
Regards
Definitely agree! My thoughts are to enjoy whatever sets you have,not to mention how much fun playing chess is.......Life's short.-
If the set is Acacia/Babul. Then they must be stained to achieve that color. Normally Acacia/Babul is light to medium brown. As seen in this chesshouse video.
There are 9 sub species of babul in this case it might Acacia nilotica aka gum arabic tree.
The pieces I have do not appear to be stained,(maybe shellac?) but one never knows; however, I do have an acacia set that is light brown and looks like the set in the video.
Regards
More than one might wish to know...
Babul, and Acacia as a whole, has a naturally fine texture (also considered a smooth finish). It's highly scratch resistant in comparison to other hardwoods. The grain can vary between straight and wavy patterns, and the color can range from a light amber to a dark mahogany.
https://worldinteriors.com/blogs/austin-furniture-roots/acacia-wood-furniture-in-austin#:~:text=Babul%2C%20and%20Acacia%20as%20a,amber%20to%20a%20dark%20mahogany.
Regards