I only need one chess set. I said...

@Wits-end: Indeed. I'll try and cure mine by airing my shame in public. Here's the set I don't need and wouldn't buy. It arrived yesterday.

I didn't like this set when I first found it. The pieces are all weird proportions, relative to each other, especially the knights. Those are well podgy (an endearing quality) but borderline design-wise for my tastes. Or they were. Each time I went back for another look, it grew on me, a lot, and I genuinely like the quirkiness of it now.

King is 105mm tall and the set sits nicely on a board with 55-65mm squares. So I still need/ want a smaller set.

PS. I know it looks like a "made up from parts" set in some respects, but it isn't. I trust the seller and examination confirms all pieces are of the same materials and finish with identical carving and turning styles. Anyone seen this type of set before? Any idea who made it, and does it have a name? Thanks.

^^^ That happens to me...for years I couldn't stand the sight of a bridled knight until one day I found a set that I thought they looked ok on. Then within a week I found another. As you say they "grew on me" and now I'm actually craving a set with them.

Sound a bit like , I gone to a bar & after 5 bottle's of beer that girl you thought was ugly , is now Ok & then after 10 bottle's / She's a drop dead gorgeous babe !

This thread makes me smile as it echoes so much of the path I am travelling … the way I thought I’d only get one or two sets and indeed, changing tastes.

The hideous knights comment made me laugh - go to my “five knights” thread and people can vomit on their screens as most of the knights have drill holes and cut rings. That said, I like them but I can totally understand why others may not. Further, I imagine it takes more work, skill and finesse to carve details without such crude techniques but… I am fully aware that I buy at the cheaper end of the scale.

I’ve also always liked knights where the head is down …. … steering away from some of the older style sets with heads straight out and undershot jaws - and yet, I’m slowly liking some of them …
my tastes change like the wind and the Melbourne weather and I am happy that they do … my small collection is diverse and I enjoy rotating the sets around. Currently I am enjoying simpler designs…. Who knows what future years will bring. 🤔😊

I asked for some opinions in this forum back at the beginning of October of last year (just got back into chess, want something nice, what should I get, etc.). My intention was to get one set, a single, nice wooden set, since all I had was a 30+yo plastic set and a vinyl board. Just one set. Just one.

It's May. I have six sets of pieces, five wood boards, a whole mess of roll-ups, a new clock, an old clock, and I'm reeeally trying hard not to pull the trigger on an Australis set from Oldset in Kyiv (I'm going to lose the battle with myself, I can feel it). @MCH818 was right about like-minded individuals. Is this a discussion board or a support group...?

Support group for makers of chess gear, yes 😁

I think support groups are supposed to assist an addiction … not stoke the flames 😀…. And the Australis is lovely, wonderful … thank whoever that it’s USD $500 - above my price point but a hard one to walk away from to be sure!!

Ha! I got back into chess from a 30yr hiatus. I found this forum to be a respite from the “online childish banter.”

At first, I was happy to browse the posts and admire your beautiful photos and knowledge.

Now! Admiration has begun to turn to envy. I don’t need photos; I need tangible pieces to touch and admire.

Now the general chess discussion forum doesn’t seem so bad 😂

“Happiness,” said Ogden Nash, “is having a scratch for every itch.”

My poor wife, or more bluntly, my poor bank balance. 😉

You'll probably get more helpful replies if you start your own topic.  Thanks!