I also would like to mention that these photos bring out the brown more so than with naked eye, but it's not that far off
Questions on chess bazaar.
Have people herehad experience with chess bazaar? I have had mixed results purchasing from them. One of the sets I bought seemed like a good deal, had relatively minor issues that were fixed quickly, and one set was phenomenal, except for a small overcut on a boxwood knight.
A bucephalus set arrived today, and I was shocked by the poor quality of ebony that was used. Most of the dark pieces are outright brown, streaky, and splotchy. I wondering if other people have had such mixed results from this place.
Are ebony pieces often this streaky/splotchy? I have two other ebony sets, a dragon knight series from chess bazaar and a sultan set from House of Staunton, and neither of them has this much streaking.
There are different types of ebonies. HoS uses Gaboon Ebony (https://www.wood-database.com/gaboon-ebony/) which almost sheer black. For CB, they probably use a different type of ebony which is not as sheer compare to Gaboon.

Ok. The photos they advertise with don't show any streaking or splotches, but it is good to know there are different kinds. Below is the ebony of my chessbazaar dragon knight set. Not super black, but a decent black. Alot better then the stuff they just pushed onto me.

That hasn’t been my experience. I’ve ordered two sets from Chessbazaar in the past year and each arrived looking exactly like the pictures on their website - no flaws, defects or blemishes.

I had the same thing start to happen to a set of mine. The brown looks like the colour of a fading black permanent marker (they eventually go brown). I emailed CB explaining the situation. They said I should remove them from the CB storage box I bought at least every two weeks. I replied that this wasn't acceptable. If it was the box causing the streaking, then the box wasn't fit for purpose and I want a refund on the box. In the end they replaced the pieces, so I was happy. Send them back.

I just asked them to exchange the 2 knights and the king. If they do this I'll be satisfied. It's the giant brown spots on the body of the knight, the base of the king and the fact that you can clearly see the two different types of wood used on the other knight. I know it's two piece construction but this doesn't even attempt to blend.
I hope they make this right.Also, does asking for an exchange seem unreasonable to you all? What would you do? I have onlyonly relati recently started collecting chess pieces and was curious what others would/have done.
Thanks

Since ebony is no longer the dark black color of times past (unless it's stained), why not get a dark rosewood instead? You'll get more consistent coloring, with a lot less likelihood of splitting or cracking.
Below: My Mechanics Institute set in boxwood and dark rosewood. The googly-eyes were my idea.
Since ebony is no longer the dark black color of times past (unless it's stained), why not get a dark rosewood instead?
Not many chess sets are available in rosewood today, because of international trade restrictions.

- Chessbazaar is mailing out replacement pieces for the king and two knights. They made this right, I am glad I can still do business with them, as I find the craftsmanship/skill to price ratio unbeatable, and hope this was just a one time aberration.

- Chessbazaar is mailing out replacement pieces for the king and two knights. They made this right, I am glad I can still do business with them, as I find the craftsmanship/skill to price ratio unbeatable, and hope this was just a one time aberration.
I am glad they are making things right and hope you'll love the replacements. You are 100% right about the ratio of craftmanship to skill, when everything goes right.
I have a Dubrovnik set from them that I love. I use it everyday. Even the cats approve of it! But, I have had some bad experiences that make me wary. What really ended things for me was when thy would only replace broken pieces they sent (parts missing) if I ordered another set. Otherwise they wanted to charge me even though they didn't deny the facts. Their QC process seems badly flawed. After 2 bad experiences, I can't bring myself to order from them again. A low price is meaningless if the set makes you unhappy.

Since ebony is no longer the dark black color of times past (unless it's stained), why not get a dark rosewood instead? You'll get more consistent coloring, with a lot less likelihood of splitting or cracking.
Below: My Mechanics Institute set in boxwood and dark rosewood. The googly-eyes were my idea.
Are those googly eyes...?

Since ebony is no longer the dark black color of times past (unless it's stained), why not get a dark rosewood instead?
Not many chess sets are available in rosewood today, because of international trade restrictions.
At present, Chess Bazaar is offering 34 sets in rosewood. The caveat being, if it's old stock or if the company gets permission, for whatever reason, they can still sell rosewood . . . . for now.

Are those googly eyes...?
Yes, they are! I love the Mechanics Institute set from HoS. Big, chunky pieces that can withstand tons of misuse and abuse. The original sets, handmade for a simultaneous exhibition by Capablanca in 1916, survived daily use at the Mechanics Institutes Chess Club in San Francisco for decades afterwards. It's a fun set to play with (love those rooks), but the knights, though stout, were lacking in personality. The simply etched eyes gave them an empty expression. It was the only aspect of the set that I felt could use a bit more pizzazz. Thus, the googly eyes. Now the knights follow me all across the board.
COMPLETE M.I. SET
KNIGHT CLOSE UP
AND FINALLY, THE KNIGHTS FULLY ANIMATED

With the cut of their mouths they look like they're saying "oooo".
Or "Booooo" Life goes down better with a touch of whimsy.

Since ebony is no longer the dark black color of times past (unless it's stained), why not get a dark rosewood instead? You'll get more consistent coloring, with a lot less likelihood of splitting or cracking.
Below: My Mechanics Institute set in boxwood and dark rosewood. The googly-eyes were my idea.
I had a chance to play one game in a tournament I was in using the Mechanic's Institute original Mechanics' set. I really did like the knights actually. One important thing I remember is that either the king or the queen, most likely the queen had a long pointy spire on top. I am not seeing that particular detail in the HoS set. Unfortunately I cannot find photos of an original Mechanics' set to confirm this.

Have people herehad experience with chess bazaar? I have had mixed results purchasing from them. One of the sets I bought seemed like a good deal, had relatively minor issues that were fixed quickly, and one set was phenomenal, except for a small overcut on a boxwood knight.
A bucephalus set arrived today, and I was shocked by the poor quality of ebony that was used. Most of the dark pieces are outright brown, streaky, and splotchy. I wondering if other people have had such mixed results from this place.
Are ebony pieces often this streaky/splotchy? I have two other ebony sets, a dragon knight series from chess bazaar and a sultan set from House of Staunton, and neither of them has this much streaking.
disclosure: I am not affiliated in any way with ChessBazaar besides being their customer.
I own 4 sets from ChessBazaar. Two of them are what they call "budget" sets, and two are reproduction sets which were under $200 each. One of the knights on the fancier set had a small crack on the side on bottom. I contacted them and they replaced once I showed them the photo of it. In another instance of one of cheaper sets (which despite the low price is of excellent quality IMO) they sent me a smaller one by accident. They offered either to refund entirely or to partially refund so I'd keep it. I chose to keep it. My experience with them is very good.
Don't hesitate to email them if anything is wrong with the set. They reply quickly.
Have people herehad experience with chess bazaar? I have had mixed results purchasing from them. One of the sets I bought seemed like a good deal, had relatively minor issues that were fixed quickly, and one set was phenomenal, except for a small overcut on a boxwood knight.
A bucephalus set arrived today, and I was shocked by the poor quality of ebony that was used. Most of the dark pieces are outright brown, streaky, and splotchy. I wondering if other people have had such mixed results from this place.
Are ebony pieces often this streaky/splotchy? I have two other ebony sets, a dragon knight series from chess bazaar and a sultan set from House of Staunton, and neither of them has this much streaking.