So I decided to knock it off with some green and ivory spray paint on the walnut stained insert to my chess table. So I undertook the project while reviewing the House of Staunton Collector and Chess Bazaar "Onion Head" set this weekend.
I decided that with so many club-sized sets in my collection, I'd make it with 2.5" squares. The insert is 24" x 24", so I masked off a 20" x 20" square that I sprayed ivory. Then I masked off half the green squares...
And then sprayed them green...
After the paint dried for an hour, I removed the masking for the first batch of green squares, and masked the remaining ones.
I sprayed, allowed the green to dry, and removed the masking.
I still need to sand and polyurethane and otherwise finish the board, but it's not bad for a knock off. Here it is with House of Staunton's hefty Mechanics Institute set.
I've been thinking about doing the exact same thing. My method would be either the way you have done it via a mask and paint, or it would be another method I've thought about, which is a custom vinyl sticker.
I have a friend who can print vinyl decals in large sizes, and I thought about ordering a sticker in the size of 24" with a chess board with 2.5" squares on it (for a 20" board overall). Lowes and other hardware stores sell 24"x24" panels of oak plywood with a veneer sheet on the top and bottom for a few dollars, and if I sanded one of those down the sticker should go over that very well. If you've ever been to a Cracker Barrel and seen the large blue and white checkerboards they have out front those are made in a very similar fashion. 
This one has seen quite a lot of action.
I've been thinking about doing the exact same thing. My method would be either the way you have done it via a mask and paint, or it would be another method I've thought about, which is a custom vinyl sticker.
I have a friend who can print vinyl decals in large sizes, and I thought about ordering a sticker in the size of 24" with a chess board with 2.5" squares on it (for a 20" board overall). Lowes and other hardware stores sell 24"x24" panels of oak plywood with a veneer sheet on the top and bottom for a few dollars, and if I sanded one of those down the sticker should go over that very well. If you've ever been to a Cracker Barrel and seen the large blue and white checkerboards they have out front those are made in a very similar fashion.
This one has seen quite a lot of action.
Thanks, Jack. That's an interesting idea. I like the putzing involved in the mask and spray method.
Very nice work, Chuck. I'm impressed with the exactness and evenness as well as the look. What kind of masking tape did you use?
Recommend polycrylic instead of polyurethane. Polycrylic doesn't have a yellowing effect on the colors.
Very nice work, Chuck. I'm impressed with the exactness and evenness as well as the look. What kind of masking tape did you use?
Thanks, Bob. 3M painter's tape.
Recommend polycrylic instead of polyurethane. Polycrylic doesn't have a yellowing effect on the colors.
Thanks, OMG.
Recommend polycrylic instead of polyurethane. Polycrylic doesn't have a yellowing effect on the colors.
I'm rather fond of the yellowing which has occured with my chessboard I finished with polyurethane. But it was in black and natural. Green and white may not take it so well (but then again green and bufff chess boards are very popular).
Wow--cgrau, you made a wonderfully pleasing board!
That's really neat! I think yours looks even better than the one in the picture in your first post.
Wow--cgrau, you made a wonderfully pleasing board!
Thanks, Nathan!
That's really neat! I think yours looks even better than the one in the picture in your first post.
Thanks, Macer! RC's board is superior in many, many ways, but I like my knock-off. The photos hide its flaws.
Jack, this is one of those panels from Lowes, BTW.
Nice work, Chuck. Green leather inset is my favorite, but it's impossible to get. In Dallas, back in the 1980's, a local chess board maker would inset a plastic green board into a wood casing, and the effect was pretty good. Something about brown borders goes well with green squares, and offsets the pieces well.
Nice work, Chuck. Green leather inset is my favorite, but it's impossible to get. In Dallas, back in the 1980's, a local chess board maker would inset a plastic green board into a wood casing, and the effect was pretty good. Something about brown borders goes well with green squares, and offsets the pieces well.
Thanks, Mark. This was remarkably easy. I finished the project tonight with some touch-up, steel wool, and spray poly that I had on hand. I don't mind if it yellows a bit. I totally agree about that green-ivory-brown combination, and how they set off the pieces.
When I saw RC's recent review of the Chess Bazaar Botvinnik-Flohr set, I realized how badly I coveted his green and ivory House of Staunton leather board, long unavailable. RC's board...