I ordered from four of the major chess retailers and heres what happened.

Ok, firstly I wont be posting any pictures (youll find out why later in the chessbazaar section). Second the retailers are not in order from worst to greatest or vice versa, but more in order from when I purchased from them. And lastly, if you have had a different experience that was more positive, great, I'm happy that it worked out for you (or if you had a negative experience in place of my positive, im sorry that that happened to you) But this is only MY EXPERIENCE, I can only give warnings or praise based off that and you can take it for what its worth.

First, House of Staunton: I wasnt ready to commit to buying wood pieces yet so I dipped my toe into the water and purchased three of their nicer plastic pieces, the Reykjavik 3.75 inches, the Zurich 3.875 inches, and the Fischer series at 4.0 inches. I also purchased some large carrier bags (not the tournament ones but the kind where you can roll the board up and slide it through a loop at the bottom, anyway, they are great and would recommend em for the $8), but I am going to strictly talk about piece for this forum (unless something was really poor quality). The Zurich being the most expensive of the three and one of the more expensive plastic sets they had was a bit of a let down. The plastic had small bubbles and marks around the detail marks of the knights, and the turrets on the rooks were not even, forcing me to carefully try and even them out. The Reykjavik was the whole reason I made the order and it is fantastic, having the option to chose to have the dark piece be red is greatly appreciated and made them even more stunning. The Fischer set was the dark horse (n pun intended). Out of all the sets I talk about today, its probably my favorite set I own (and I have a Ganine tournament set which was pretty hard to get). Its heavy enough for blitz, it looks great, and it is only 20 dollars, so while it would be sad to have a piece break, its not the end of the world. The down side is that it is polished plastic and has a lot of scuffs and marks right out of the box. This was let the wind out f my sails a bit because I would like to be the one to put wear in a set, not have it come that way, but since it wouldn't really show up on camera and since the set was not a hug amount of money I didn't file a complaint or request for a refund. The other down side was shipping price were a tad higher than what I was accustomed to, but an easy way around this is to find or wait for a free shipping coupon that occasionally they put out. Overall I would shop with them again if I can afford to.

Second, Wholesalechess: I ordered the 3.5 inch Chamfered set in shesham and boxwood, I chose this set because I like that the skirts of the pieces were convex instead of the usual concave slopes you see on pieces in that price range (They normally retail for 80 dollars but I got a percentage off, remember i was not spending big here, just dipping my toe). The set is perfect and besides some wood shavings remaining around the turrets of the rooks and the slits in the bishops there were no problems whatsoever, and a sharp blade and careful hand corrected them anyway, The leather bases is fancy and nice but not very practical, but since These are mostly to be admired and rarely would be brought out to be played I am fine with it. Also I tend to lift my pieces instead of slide, so its not a negative for me. I would gladly shop with them again.

Third Chessusa: From this retailer I decided on the 4 inch Mark of Westminster Cardinal hoplites in rose and box wood. Initially the set I recieved was not matching, The kings were not the same hight as eachother and neither were the bishops or the pawns, the difference ranged from a 16th of an inch, to an 8th. I contacted them and imidiatly I was told that that shouldnt have happened, and that it was their fault completly and they would do everything in their power to fix it. They asked me if I could provide pictures and I told them my phne camera is aweful and broken so they wont be good but theyll probably show the size differnce and they told me that would do. After that they said a whole new set will be on its way out to me and inside that box a free return label to send the mismatched back (turns out the half sets were from different years of production, hence why there were differences in size but not design). After that I waited...I took four days for the package to be sent out. Normally this would be horrible but the rep I spoke to was in constant contact AND due to the fact that they are located in the North east of the US while a horrible winter storm was battering that area, four days is pretty good. Two days after that I recieved my replacment and the set is great. The set usually reatils for 220 dollars and even though I didnt spend that on the set I would say that it is worth it. I enjoy the Queens crown in this set and the knights and the rosewood grain all matches (some sets you get from other seller theres very clear differences in grain and depth of color, but more on that later). I would recomend them if they are in your price range, I know there are less expensive sets out there, but the company as a whole are really top notch and the set they provided is excelently crafted.

Last ChessBazaar: This company loures you in really briliantly, they have lovely sets at really reasonable prices and they have satisfaction guarentees that cant be beat (free replacements for damaged pieces, if your piece EVER cracks theyle replace it), It all sounds too good to be true! Well...It kinda is. I ordered two sets from them, The hungarian natinal tournament set in bud rosewood 3.8 inches, and the antique series dublin pattern set in rosewood and boxwood 4 inches. I chose these sets odly enough because they look far from staunton style pieces. Unfortunatly what I got was pretty from from what I saw in the pictures. The Dublin set had AT LEAST half of the peices scuffed, chipped, or scoarched with friction burns that the maker couldnt be bothered to sand of their mistake before sealing them...The Hungarian set was not as bad but still had scuffs and minor chips...Not acceptable for a set that retails at 200 dollars (the dublin retails at 160, and while I didnt pay that for either I feel as a customer the quality should still be there regaurdless if discounts applied or not). So I emailed them, They are located in India and I can afford to be on that long distance of a call for however long it might have taken. I got a very kind response appologizing, but asking for pictures. I told them my camera is broken and might not be able to pick up the scuffs and marks. They essentially said that with out pictures theres nothing the will do or want to do. I told them Id try. My camera really does suck guys, it can focus and is just a wreck, but I sent them 30 pictures hping that out of those maybe ten would show them what they need. They told me those were not good enough and that they dont believe there to be any manufacturerer damage...Like I friction burn my pieces for fun. Anyway, I assuered them that those were the best pictures I could get and that there was infact damage from the manufacturere (all while being very polite and relativly calm since I wanted my replacment pieces), they went silent. After not hearing from them I contacted Paypal to issue a dispute (and sent paypal the emails CB and I had exchanged). Paypal reached out to them on my behalf and STILL CB didnt respond. After four days I decided to have paypal escalate the situation. They would then have ten days to respond or I got my money back. One day went by and Miraculously they found their way to their computer to respond. First I got an email from paypal saying they responded and by april ill have a judgment as to what isbeing done, then I got an email from CB. I said 'Sorry for the inconvience, somehow we skipped your mail'...and skipped paypals mail on my behalf, and only after you decided that my peices wernt your problem...But I didnt say that because Im trying to be the better person (it doesnt always work out). They offered to send me the 17 replacment pieces that were affected and I said thank you and to please ensure they match the rest of the sets as much as possible. And thats where we are. It all just happened this hour. I cant recomend shopping from them unless you buy something under 100 dollars (not that thats not a lot of moneny still, Im just saying its easier to frgive a 60 dllar set being damaged rather that a 2/3 hundreed dollar set being damaged), it might be worth a shot, but if you go with a nicer set and it gets damaged you are going to have a headache on your hands.
TLDR: Ive bought from four of the big chess sellers online and would recomend almost all of them besides one.

P.s. Ill update this if and when the CB situation is resolved.

First update: After several emails back and forth I finally got my replacments today and a little more than half of them dont match (in base width and in general height), not only that but there were some glue marks on a few of the pieces...I contacted both CB and paypal with the update and researched shipping to india in case I had to make a return. Shipping is too expensive (even with paypal kindly offering up to thirty dollars to contribute), with the cheapest I foud being a flat rate box from USPS for around 90. DHL and my local pack and ship were well over 100 dollars. So Im in limbo right now and will update further if something changes.

NEW UPDATE: Ok, so after messaging CB and paypal about the pieces I have some developments...not that great though. CB is keeping to their initial statment that the pieces match and theres no way they dont since they are from the same lot number. They dont, I swear to you that they dont. I would be happy if they wernt too short and the bases an 8th of an inch off, but thats not the case. So I messaged them asking for a few options, either give me theentire matching pieces (so, say the knights didnt match the replacments, send me the four matching knights so I KNOW THEY MATCH instead of sending me the odd amount that doesnt match up and than accusing me of being dishonest when I tell you flat out they dont match up), provide a return label so I can send every single piece back and get a full refund from paypal, or provide me with a partial refund. They said they can provide the pieces if I wait 3 to 4 weeks (not possible, paypal closes the case in less than a week and I fear I wont be able to get anywhere on my own against CB) or tell them the amount I would request for the partial refund. I told them I would like remebersment for the most damaged set (the dublin, the cheaper of the two). I also called paypal and told them everything and reiterated to them what I was looking for in terms of a partial refund so that they could work with me on it. Paypal sent an email and said they have three days to respond. That was a day ago, so we shall see...Please wish me luck.

Probably the last update...CB is saying they agreed to the partial refund and contacted paypal, but paypal is saying thats not true and they are awaiting their response, if they dont get it in the next three days my case closes in their favor. I am going to go to the bank tomorrow and try and see if they can help me but I dont know if that will work. Paypal said if enough people reported the company for these types of things they would be flagged and prohibited from using their service. I know more than enough of you have had these same problems Please if you still feel that youre unsatisfied with how CB conducts their buisness, report them to paypal. Otherwise theyll keep lying and taking advantage of us...Thats all I have for now.

Final update: With the bank starting an investigation/dispute for fraud and some desperate emails from me CB finally agreed THROUGH PAYPAL to grant the partial refund. So this is all settled and all disputes have been closed. I can almost garuntee that I wont buy from them again.

So an update on my feelings about oneof the sellers...I purchased the Soigne set from wholesalechess last week or the week before when it was on sale (that pluse the 20 percent coupon was a good deal). I wanted a set that I could be proud to play with that was wood (I already have plastic sets). Anyway, so I ordered that and the wood board that was on sale and to my shock and horror there were several deffects...two of the pieces were cracked (not from shipping) and there were glue marks on some others that would not come off. Also one of the light knights looked to be from a different lot because it was shorter and thinner (it bothered me and since I paid for it to be as close to pristine as you can get with products of this nature I feel I have a right to not be satisfied when its anything but). So I emailed them and they promptly sent me replacments for the pieces. Sadly the replacment knights did not match the existing ones (one matches a cracked one and the other was too narrow...so I couldnt use them without it bothering me). The felts were also smaller (which I told them wasnt a big deal, just to send me some the proper size and ill reaply them. They asked me to send the set back and theyed send me out a new set that they can ensure would be matching. I told them I didnt want to risk it and asked for my money back when I send the set back. They agreed, so im shipping them out tomorrow. Im just sad that the set didnt work out. The board also had a small paint drip, which to be honest did bother me, but I dont want to return it...Its heavy and a hassel as is. Im sure any normal person would see the board and set and be happy, but ive got this anal retentive BS that just pinpoints every flaw and nags at me.

Surely you know someone with a camera or a better phone who could take pictures.

You could at least post several of the photos you sent to the manufacturers so that we could see if they are as terrible as you said.

I have had CB ask for pictures. When I gave them some they said it was acceptable. The only way they "fixed" the issue was by me pressing them to fix it then they fixed it by coming up with a completely different color for the white pieces (which meant new finials for the black pieces, which did not fit correctly).  

The fix was not great and it took nearly 3 months for me to get my new pieces. 

I've only received equipment from CB once, but I was very happy with the experience and would be happy to buy from them again (in fact I did buy from them again just a few days ago, but it will take a few weeks for my new sets to get here). I bought a GM Blitz set and a rosewood board, and they both looked great and arrived in perfect condition. The GM Blitz set, if anything, is even better than in the photos on the CB web site.

I'm not saying that I don't believe the OP, of course, just providing another data point.

Is this one of the sets that the OP received?

Actually not, my whole family uses flip phones and I moved up here not knowing anyone to take care f my grandfather when he got diagnosed with Alzheimer's, So Im very secluded,,,But eitherway I feel you are missing the point that their guarantee doesnt mention this, and they went silent till I had to get the payment company involved.

I can assure you that it is all true.

Like I said before in the post, thats not my experience, but its good it worked out for you. It didnt work out that way for me.

Thats my fear, I asked them to please ensure that the pieces match as best they can and the swore to me that they will....for what ever that is worth.

Im glad your order went well, like I said I can only recount my personal experience. That is a lovely set and I hope it gets to you safe and sound (and that you enjoy playing it of course).

You misread a little, @Deadenglish. I already received the GM Blitz set long ago, and it is indeed lovely. My new order, which I'm still waiting for, is of a Dubrovnik 2.0 and a Imperial Collector set.

But yes, just like you, I was just recounting  my personal experience.

I've bought 4 sets from ChessBazaar, all have had problems with them. Two were luxury sets (500+) and two were mid-range (200+). Two of the sets were bud rosewood, and both sets suffered from padauk oxidation on several pieces which completely ruined the affected pieces. They use padauk that is not properly cured, which is the source of this problem it seems. I had to order 2 replacement pawns that were affected the worst on the more expensive set, it cost me $30 for the 2 pawns and it's been 2 weeks since I sent payment and they haven't shipped out yet. The ebony set had two pawns and a knight with scuf/scratch marks on them, and the knights were poorly finished in the manes and details of the face. These problems did not get me free replacements because only cracks and warping is covered in their guarantee. After a lot of back and forth they agreed to replace the knights, if I ordered another product from them (they love to do this offer, to get you to keep buying). The product I bought to get the knight replacements was one of the bud rosewood sets, that came with its own set of problems, other than oxidizing pieces. One of the light bishops had green marks on the top that are very noticeable and annoying to look at, but surprise, its not covered and its $15 for a replacement.

The four sets I have are:

St Petersburg (lacquered) - Bud rosewood

Arabian Knight - Ebony

Zagreb - Bud Rosewood

Desert Gold (with board)

I have also bought from HoS, one of their superior traditional boards and the burnt grandmaster series pieces. $200 for the board and $200 for the pieces. The pieces I had no issues with and they are probably my favorite set I own, the board was poorly packaged imo (at least CB gets the packaging right) and had a few small dents/marks on the surface which annoyed me but not enough to go through the hassle of a return, because I live in Canada and had to pick up the order from a US po address in order to avoid their insane international shipping cost (one of the pros of CB: free shipping).

So, both companies have their pros and cons it seems. I haven't bought enough products from HoS to give an accurate comparison to CB, but I feel like if I were to buy more products in the future it would probably be from HoS.

Oh sorry, For some reason I thought you had ordered a second GM blitz...My mistake, anyway those are both great sets and I am glad the one you currently have is working out for you and hope the second is the same.

I agree with you 100 percent. CB asked if I wanted to order another product to bundle with the replacments and save them on shipping, I told them no and I guess because the payment was at risk of getting pulled they dropped it. Im sorry you didnt have that luxary. I, like you, was frustrated with 'HOS shipping prices (and im in the US so its probably far more expensive for you), but I would probably choose them again before CB.

In my experience. To order "basic" pieces the best shop is https://tiendaajedrezescacimat.es/en/ (probably shipping can be not acceptable in some countries), they have very good prices. And for guanteed high quality pieces (not less to HOS) to good price, https://www.stauntoncastle.com.

I have purchased 3 sets from Chess Bazaar.

The first was a crimson Dubrovnik and I remain quite pleased with it.

The second was an inexpensive set that I wanted to keep in my office for lunchtime play. The knights were ferociously dissimilar and the leatherette pads were misaligned and, in some cases, torn.

The latest arrived with damaged pieces. They asked for photos and then said they would send me replacements if I ordered another set. This is a story I have heard often enough that I have to believe it is part of their business model. I was discouraged enough with their customer service that I decided I would no longer order from CB.

It is unfortunate as their prices are appealing and the pictures on the website look good.