Lardy set progress

I am in the process of making 2 Lardy sets for myself, since there is a lot of appreciation for Lardys here I thought I would share some photos. The king base diameter is 38mm (1.5") and height is 98mm (3-7/8"). Since a Lardy is more of a knock-around player's set I felt that it would be best to make them out of more common woods. For one set I chose Maple and Cherry, and the second set I chose Maple and White Oak. I was unsure about the White Oak, but as they are unfinished they appear quite promising, I'll have to wait until everything is oiled before I make a final judgement. 

At this point in time I have finished all the turnings, and post turning machine work for all the pawns and pieces with the exception of the knight. My one noticeable change is the pawn tops, I made them a fair smooth "squashed" dome instead of the more pointed ones I see traditionally. I have 1 knight top rough cut and marked out for carving. Here's where Im at:

That looks really really nice. The wood grain on all of the sets looks beautiful and very promising.  However I think one of your Queens has a chip out. I also wonder if maple and white oak would have enough contrast. Is there a way to finish the white oak in a non-staining way that would darken it without masking its grain patterns? 

Yes one of the white oak queens had some checking in it that let go after I machined its coronet. I will see how it turns out after I wax fill it, otherwise I'll either be turning another spare queen or just keeping the set traditional with 1 queen per side.

As for the white oak colouration: it's pretty dark, I've got some spares that I'll be colour testing with before I finish the pieces. Worst comes to worst I'll stain the white oak. I don't think it will come to that though.

Honestly if it's for personal use I wouldn't even fix that queen. I think it gives the ser character.  As for coloration I was just kind of estimating the color of it finished from an MTM Woods video where he made sample blocks of woods with different cuts glued together for customers.  

Turn on Captions if you're not Russian

BTW I absolutely love that your using maple for the white  pieces. After seeing how white NOJ's sets in maple are my boxwood white pieces look muted and yellowish in comparison.  

Wow!!! That looks amazing! I have my Lardy out on my board this month and your set looks very close my 70s Lardy. 

@kineticpawn thanks for the compliments by the way.  I am a bit of a perfectionist so I feel like I couldn't live with the spare queen having a check like that, but if I can fix it then I'll be satisfied. 

Yes I hear you on the boxwood vs Maple. Maple is definitely very white in comparison to boxwood, but once its oiled it tends to go yellow as well. I'd lacquer them but honestly I don't think I would be happy with the finish! 

@mch818 thanks, that is the exact set that I was going for. It drew me in to the point where it fed my chess addiction. I don't know why I needed a Lardy when I already have 5 other wood sets, but I saw it and I had to have it. 

@Ibulidchess I think everyone here can understand that feeling of seeing a chess set that we just couldn’t get out of our head. You and a few other woodworkers are fortunate to have the knowledge and skill to make your own.

MCH 818,

I have a Lardy too, manufactured pre 1985.  Love it.

Q. Why do your White bishops not match ?  My black king is bent and I've this second noticed my queens are not exact match in the coronet (the centre of the black queen is deeper, more honed out ). My set has   1st/8/8/ch on the box. The 1 is peculiar, like an upturned V . (If it is a 1 ) The kings are a fraction taller than four inches. And when I first saw the set it looked fat. Can anybody date or value

Thanks

Well done ibuildchess. Lovely project. Please Keep us updated

@powderdigit thanks! I'm excited to finish it and see how it turns out in the end it won't be full of character like the Jura wood used on the originals but I think my sets are their own breed of Lardy, the pawn tops being a significant marker for me. Keep practicing on the lathe, repetition is the only thing that makes you better. That and try some carbide tipped tools instead of using gouges, scrapers and skews. Old boys might poo-poo them but they are so much easier to start using!

@alterego8 thank you, I hope to have some progress to show everyone soon enough!

Extremely well made @Ibuildchess !  I use to use cherry wood because it is the wood I have the most, I always dye it a little to have more contrast between pieces. Let's see how it ends once dyed.

Do my white bishops not match? They look the same to me. Both have that Hershey Kiss head with the button hat. I can only see the color/tone is slightly different. Here is a different photo of the bishops.

As for your box label, I believe it should be ST8/8/CH. The first 8 is the finish. The second 8 is the size. The last one represents the box. “CH” is for beech box.

@jacmater thanks! I'll see how it turns out once its oiled but I find cherry tends to get quite dark! I had a small stash of 2" that really didn't have a better use than a chess set

@mch818 I didn't see any issues with your bishops, or mine for that matter. Not sure where that comment came from. 

It was not in reply to you. It was in reply to @Alterego8 who said my white bishops did not match. I don’t see the issue so I was replying and inquiring what @Alterego8 saw.

Hi MCH818  i think what Alterego8  was trying to say , is that your lardy bishop looks very unhappy  \  Ibuildchess  very nice

A miscommunication on my part, I was saying that I don't know where Alterego8's comments about non matching bishops came from! But I see how it came across the way you read it. My apologies!

OMG! and I never say that... You’re absolutely right. Haha!

Ahhh I can see how you meant that. I completely misunderstood.