Niggemann's Alban set

UK

In the UK there are two version of the set available, sometimes differentiated as the "Elite Alban" and the "Alban". But often the Alban name is used for both. No difference in quality, but the Elite Alban has sharper points to the coronet on the Queen, and the cut into the bishops mitre is at a very slight angle, as opposed to be straight upright. But this is not always consistent. The photos from the site I bought mine from, show the cut to the Bishop as dead upright, cutting the "button" on top in half. Just as in the photos on of the Niggemann Alban set. However the one supplied to me is at a slight angle, almost completely missing the button, and is consistent on all Bishops.

My set has rounded points to the Queens Coronet. Some "Elite Alban's" have sharp points.

My Set the "Rebecca" Set.

I recently bought the, lets call it the standard version from Chess Baron, 3.75'' inch King.

https://www.chessbaron.co.uk/product/M2055/

Chess Baron market it as the Rebecca set. I ordered the Boxwood and Sheesham. Which is the only version they currently have in stock. The current price is £119 including 20% VAT (Value Added Tax, Sales Tax for those of you not from the UK)

(The board shown is also a solid wood, Sheesham board, 50mm squares, purchased from them some time ago for £100 inc. VAT. Currently out of stock, the 45mm version currently £69, the 55mm version currently £129, so £100 is probably what the current price would be, if they had any.) They have free UK delivery, so nothing for delivery.

Problems

I had to return 4 pieces for replacement, 1 Black Knight, 1 White Knight and both White Rooks.

Both rooks were chipped and poorly finished and the Knights had noticeable leans, they were not central or upright on their bases. The outer knights below, are the two knights are kept. I returned the central Black Knight, and the Other White Knight, not shown.

Chess Baron replaced these by next day return postage and I am very happy with the set.

However since learning the set is called the Alban by most companies, I noticed that

https://royalchessmall.com/

Sell imperfect versions of the sets, with a 30% reduction, which in their words:

Imperfect Chess Sets may have slight repairs carried out in the pieces and minute color mismatch may be observed."

https://royalchessmall.com/en-gb/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage%2Ccollection&q=alban*

It seems that the Alban sets all suffer from poor manufacturer quality control, and if they are not inspected by local reseller before being sent to customers, people are getting poor quality sets. At least the Royal Chess Mall seem to inspect their sets, and separate them into imperfect and perfect versions.

In Conclusion

To finish, I would just like to say, that I never had any problems with Chess Baron before, the board shown was one of my previous purchases. And they did accept the pieces back for replacement. I received the set on the Friday, returned the pieces by courier, cost £3.68. And received replacements the following Tuesday, and am very happy with the set.

But to get one nice set, they had to combine the best of two sets.

At the end of the day I have spent £222.68 and have a nice set Sheesham set on a matching solid wood, Sheesham board, which isn't too much. (As we are paying 20% tax on chess sets in the UK.)

Note: As always other suppliers are available, I can only talk about my own experiences. For instance The Chess and Bridge shop in the UK has a 3.75'' inch version of this set in Acacia for £149.95.

https://chess.co.uk/products/alban-sheesham-chessmen-95mm-3-75?_pos=3&_sid=cafe10622&_ss=r