Just as with all crazes.
It's seems like the Queens gambit craze is now over
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I think most people will just put their chess sets back in the box and stick them in the closet, never to see the light of day for decades. We'll see a flood of 2020/2021 chess sets hit eBay in the year 2042.
Pawnerai wrote:
I think most people will just put their chess sets back in the box and stick them in the closet, never to see the light of day for decades. We'll see a flood of 2020/2021 chess sets hit eBay in the year 2042.
Sure in time the market will be flooded with , 2nd hand chess sets , may even start sooner , As some do not have the space or just want to cover the lost of silly prices for there new found short lived hobby ,
It’s sad. They think they can become Beth Harmon or a grandmaster with no effort at all, and when they are stuck in the 500s and even bought a premium membership because they thought their rating will automatically increase and doesn’t, they quit because it is “too hard.”
For some, it might simply be a matter of other interests taking hold. Perhaps it is not all or nothing but merely a lessening of intense interest. I also do not think that a person's level of intense interest is necessarily a predictor of their skills. Also, the number of sets or boards a person owns is likely little correlated with their interest in playing chess.
I think it is slowing down. People are starting to go back to normal. My buddies started talking about poker and other activities again. Also, I asked Mandeep a week or two ago about selling me one of his antiqued sets in plain boxwood. He said he could ship a set within 15 days. Of course that is a far cry from being able to deliver, but it is a sign of the slowdown. HoS also had 2 coupons recently. Too bad the set I want from HoS was not available. I also wonder if the Noj waiting list will hold up. Will everyone who ordered a set actually buy one?
You cant attract adults to a hobby like chess on a mass scale without losing 90 percent of those newcomers attention eventually
@RichardHG ‘s comment resonates with me - as do numerous others … for me, a friend from work encouraged me to play and then covid forced me online. The Queens Gambit did fuel my interest but by then I was already hooked on the fun and challenge of playing - it’s a hard game - and this will sound counter-intuitive - but for me, the difficulty makes it fun - as I challenge my rather meagre brain! I’ve purchased a few boards and pieces for a combination of display and study and hopefully soon -over the board games as restrictions ease. I reckon demand will ease but my gut feel says a flood of second-hand sets is some years away - perhaps they are more likely to be stored away in a cupboard and sold at some point later. Who knows …, but I am glad that I have come to the game at such a late stage and hope to improve over the years. I have stalled at 1100-1200 at present but 1300-1400 feels reachable albeit … I understand that these levels are still laughable and low for some.
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#12
Just for curiosity's sake, an eBay search for "chess" in Toys & Hobbies yielded 49,772 results on Thursday, July 1 2021 12:10 GMT. Maybe we can see what the same search yields at some point in the future.
As long as it's not a flood of glass sets, that's fine by me.
Uhm, I doubt I would buy those sets when they're flooding the market. I already have what I wanted unless a dubrovnik set in tazmanian blackwood comes along but I doubt such set will flooding the ebay 
Just bought my last set from a superb Etsy seller(Oldset).
My 19th .....the vintage Alekhin pieces.Just gorgeous.I need to figure out how to put this stuff up with an android phone.If anyone is interested,it does show up as sold,on the Etsy site.I should have it in a few days.Should go well with that nice HOS box they had on sale for a short time.
My last set,if I want to continue to enjoy my wife's cooking.
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#16
A Russian chess grandmaster who retired from tournament competition, and now makes a living teaching chess, shared an interesting insight with me. He said people often come to him saying that they "want to become a chess grandmaster". But he usually replies "no, you want to want to become a chess grandmaster." Meaning that they are not serious, as demonstrated by their low intensity of chess practice, and they are fantasizing about enjoying the results, but lack the motivation to work hard for that result. It's very human way to act. We are designed to overestimate our abilities and self-discipline, to avoid facing the reality of how often we fall short. So we easily become enthusiastic that we can join in, or even master, the latest craze.
The "Queen's Gambit" craze was a surge within the larger covid boom. Stuck at home with little to do many people spent their days online and many picked up chess as a diversion. This was particularly true for kids. Now that normalcy is returning this boom will fade. The Fischer boom resulted in a huge increase in American chess players. When he crashed and burned the interest began to fade and the majority of the newbies gradually drifted away. Naturally, some got hooked on this great game and kept on playing. The same will happen now. Hopefully the fact that so many children became interested in chess will lead to a long-lasting increase in the chess public.
yea 
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It's seems like the Queens gambit craze is now over , Just going on the current ebay prices , I think soon there will be avalanche of chess sets & boards flooding the 2nd hand market ?
with too many newbie given up , After finding chess to hard to learn & play !