Wow. What a beautiful set. The dark rosewood is stunning. Your photos are so much better than SC's. Perfect lighting and exposure. On the SC website, all of their product photos have a slight green unattractive hue.
Review of Staunton Castle library size chess set
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I love this style. I have the HoS 3.75" Collectors in Padauk which is similar to what you have here. The Collectors is my favorite. I love all of the variations that I have seen including TCE and OS.
@mr P: I'm not really into ebony or ebonized boxwood and this is one of the few sets not in ebony or ebonized boxwood that Mandeep has so I jumped on it. Like you said, the dark rosewood is stunning for sure, totally happy with that wood!
I think it's a miss that SC doesn't have many offerings other then ebony or ebonized boxwood. But I hear he's busy with bringing out his sets in indian rosewood and padauk soon so I can't wait 
@mr Mc: I totally agree with you, it's classy and the design is now my second favorite.
I have library size chess sets but I never play with them as they feel too small and do not give the same joy as a 4” king chess set.
Mar 20, 2021
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#6
Really nice set. And very nice pictures as well, thanks for the review! I'm happy to hear that there are no problems with it. When did you order it, and when did it arrive?
Mar 20, 2021
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#7
Beautiful set. Even for an "inexpensive" set (note the quotation marks!), Mandeep delivers considerable detail on his knights and does not skimp in quality generally.
Mar 20, 2021
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#8
Pawnerai wrote:
Wow. What a beautiful set. The dark rosewood is stunning. Your photos are so much better than SC's. Perfect lighting and exposure. On the SC website, all of their product photos have a slight green unattractive hue.
I am constantly surprised by how bad the photography is on some of the web sites by Indian sellers. For example, I was looking at two sets by Chess-by-India on its own web site and on Etsy. They look completely different, in both color and detail - so much so that if I were to buy either, I would first correspond with the company to determine which, if either, set of photos is accurate. In fact, they are so different that in one case, I am not even sure it is the same set.
SpanishStallion wrote:
I have library size chess sets but I never play with them as they feel too small and do not give the same joy as a 4” king chess set.
It feels small indeed but for it's purposes I'd say it has the perfect size.
Aernout_nl wrote:
Really nice set. And very nice pictures as well, thanks for the review! I'm happy to hear that there are no problems with it. When did you order it, and when did it arrive?
About two weeks in total between placing the order and delivery (DHL express).
RichardHG wrote:
Beautiful set. Even for an "inexpensive" set (note the quotation marks!), Mandeep delivers considerable detail on his knights and does not skimp in quality generally.
I also bought even a cheaper set which even includes a nice wooden storage box. It's 3.5" Morphy set in sheesham / boxwood. I will make review on that later but I can already tell it feels like a quality set, I didn't see any skimping or that sort of thing. It really is big bang for the buck.
Mar 20, 2021
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#13
I have three sets from Staunton Castle in the past year, their service is pretty good and I have had not one single issue with them.
Staunton Castle service is good but for cracked and imperfect chessmen they do not offer the same good service as Chessbazaar. Chessbazaar replacement policy is best.
Mar 21, 2021
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#15
Other than that is definitely a very nice set,that I hope you enjoy......"That" is how a chess set should be packaged for shipping!
I can't stand the sellers who allow the weight of each piece to basically jam against each other.Looking for trouble.
As for C.B.'s serivce....I have bought 12 sets from them,2 boards and a nice storage case....but.....four of the sets had cracking issues and though in each case the issues were taken care of...."every time" I got replacements,they either did not match the original in exact color,or had a slightly different shape....So,I had to buy the pieces that did not match well....and even they were not exactly like the original......Consistently inconsistent!
I mean,what is with these friggin' carvers? Is it that hard to offer a consistent product in this industry?....Do the sellers really have a process to check their products out?
No wonder there have been a plethora of buyers who have had various issues,on this site over this last year!
Not to bash C.B(though it seems like I have)......they do try to please,but I "think" they don't have good consistent carvers,or any true standards for their sets.
I would still buy from them, though I'd have anxiety until everything checked out.My next set will probably be their Ceska Kublovka pieces......Fingers will be crossed. and that is definitely going to be my last set.....19 is enough.Not counting 3 travel sets and a total of "only" 3 boards.
magictwanger wrote:
Other than that is definitely a very nice set,that I hope you enjoy......"That" is how a chess set should be packaged for shipping!
I can't stand the sellers who allow the weight of each piece to basically jam against each other.Looking for trouble.
As for C.B.'s serivce....I have bought 12 sets from them,2 boards and a nice storage case....but.....four of the sets had cracking issues and though in each case the issues were taken care of...."every time" I got replacements,they either did not match the original in exact color,or had a slightly different shape....So,I had to buy the pieces that did not match well....and even they were not exactly like the original......Consistently inconsistent!
I mean,what is with these friggin' carvers? Is it that hard to offer a consistent product in this industry?....Do the sellers really have a process to check their products out?
No wonder there have been a plethora of buyers who have had various issues,on this site over this last year!
Not to bash C.B(though it seems like I have)......they do try to please,but I "think" they don't have good consistent carvers,or any true standards for their sets.
I would still buy from them, though I'd have anxiety until everything checked out.My next set will probably be their Ceska Kublovka pieces......Fingers will be crossed. and that is definitely going to be my last set.....19 is enough.Not counting 3 travel sets and a total of "only" 3 boards.
I agree, that wrapping should become the standard for every sellers. Maybe it already is, I don't know as I don't have that many sets to be able to judge.
About that CB replacements...wow 4 times? That's not a coincidence anymore to me. No matter how "good" they are with their replacement policy but getting the wrong ones every time then it's worthless. You did get 8 sets right from the start so I can see why you're willing to take a last gamble with that Ceska Kublovka set, I just looked it up and it's charming I must say, so I whish you good luck to get it right in one go.
GambitHawk wrote:
magictwanger wrote:
I would still buy from them, though I'd have anxiety until everything checked out.My next set will probably be their Ceska Kublovka pieces......Fingers will be crossed. and that is definitely going to be my last set.....19 is enough.Not counting 3 travel sets and a total of "only" 3 boards.
You know damn well it is never enough.
There's an old thread where the OP asked how many chess sets is enough. One poster said just one more.
Mar 21, 2021
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#18
Honestly, I don't even know how many sets I own, besides he ones I purchased, and the ones that have been gifts.
Mar 21, 2021
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#19
Nah! Just want one more,which fills the last chess related empty space in my little chess/hobby room......Unless something popped up at a flee market,or something like that....and...it would have to be special.
Staunton Castle has several library size chess sets, this review is about "Small Collector Series Premium Staunton 3" in rosewood / boxwood". It comes with extra queens.
Measured specifications:
King: 3.08" (7.84cm) / 1.46" (37.1cm) - 44g
Queen: 2.63" (6.69cm) / 1.36" (3.47cm) - 39g
Bishop: 2.34" (5.96cm / 1.19" (3.04cm) - 25g
Knight: 2.09" (5.32cm) / 1.21" (3.08cm) - 29g
Rook: 1.97" (5.00cm) / 1.27" (3.22cm) - 35g
Pawn: 1.73" (4.39cm) / 1.06" (2.69cm) - 20g
Weight set: 901g (with extra queens)
It came well wrapped. Fwiw, there is a certification with purchase date on it.
Impression:
It's a typical Staunton design with broad bases. The pieces are well carved and the finish is good. The rosewood pieces are quite dark with attractive grains showing. Both kings have Staunton Castle stamp on the base which is a nice touch. Even though it's library size, because of the weights and the broad bases the pieces feel quite heavy and plays well. It's a pleasure using it for analyzing games or even playing a regular game occasionally.
Complementary pictures