Tournament Chess Set

This has probably been asked before but I didn't see anything on the first two pages and so here goes.

I'm looking for a good chess board, a good set of pieces, and a good clock.  All of which need to be useable in all tournaments and at my (newly discovered) club.  I have no clue what I should be looking for nor what 'regulation' chess pieces/boards/clocks are.  In fact, the only board I own right now is a handmade souvenir board I picked up in Cuba.  Price isn't a huge deal but I want something that'll last.  I'll be using this board a LOT (for study, club, and tournament). 

Any idea where I can pick all of that up without having to get off my chair? :P

wholesalechess.com....what i used for my new club. King has to be 3-1/2 inches high, or so i'm told. Go for square size of 2.5 inches.... Can't help with clocks, i just bought the cheapest ones they had....good luck with the club!

Try WWW.CHESSPIECE.COM or www.houseofstaunton.com or look above under resources. You might want to check with some of your local club members and find out what is used at the club and what is acceptable. Do an internet search, there are a number of good dealers with equipment for sale. Just my 2 cents worth. Good Luck.

I would think a sturdy plastic set and a roll-up vinyl board would be your best bet--easy to transport and it's not a big deal if a king loses its cross (it will) or somebody spills coffee all over it (they will). Having a proper wooden set and solid board is nice for home, but it's an expensive job if they get damaged.

But really, I'd second what IrishMike says: ask the guys at the club. We can all recommend favourites, but if they expect you to take your own board and pieces, they might have certain requirements, and you don't want to buy a set only to find it doesn't meet them.

More thoughts on this at http://www.chess.com/forum/view/chess-equipment/tournament-chess-set , by the way.

The standard tube set with plastic pieces will last you years I have two that have served me faithfully.

This is the one I use at the Chess Club I've never had any issues with it:

 http://www.chesshouse.com/Chronos_Touch_Chess_Clock_BLACK_p/e309.htm

Very interesting stuff...

I went on wholesalechess.com and the staunton website and both have me very interested.  I see the benefit of buying plastic pieces but I definitely want good ones.  The board... well it seems buying almost disposable boards is the way to go ... as for the clock, a good digital.

The shipping costs seem rather insane and I haven't picked anything out quite yet.  I appreciate the advice guys!  Thanks a lot :).

I've purchased many items from Wholesalechess.com over the years and have been very pleased. The one time I received an item of inferior quality they sent me a new one, immediately and without additional cost. I recommend them very highly.

My own club/tourney gear consists of:

• A mousepad chessboard, which has proven very durable and certainly classier than a vinyl one with a crease in it. See  http://www.wholesalechess.com/chess/chess_boards/Soft+Mousepad+Chessboard+(20%22)
• A HEAVY plastic set--the pieces are less apt to fall over during a blitz session, and you can use them as weapons at the last need. I get a lot of compliments on this one ( http://www.wholesalechess.com/chess/chess_pieces/Marshall+Staunton+Chess+Pieces+%283+%BE%22+King%29 )
• A Chronos digital clock with the actual buttons rather than the "touch" sensor pads ('cuz you don't always know when you've hit those). ( http://www.wholesalechess.com/chess/chess_clocks/Chronos+Digital+Chess+Clock )
  

Almost any clock will do, especially for casual play; but I went overboard and bought the Chronos because a) it's a tank, b) it looks cool, and c) it's fairly standard here in the US. People will tell you "You can't program those things" or "I won't buy anything without an off switch," but it's been a solid performer.

Take a look at the boards that I have created, if you would like something slightly different than your standard vinyl tournament chess board.  I started my company, about a year ago, and continue to appreciate any type of feedback or comments.  Check them out here..... www.BoardsofChess.com   Hope you find something you like.

I certainly appreciate the variety of designs; but for my part, BoardsofChess, I find vinyl to be a very unsatisfactory material for "traveling" boards. Look, for example, at the pictures on your catalog page ( http://www.boardsofchess.com/Boards.html )--unless I am mistaken, every one shows curling at the corners on what one would imagine should be a new, pristine, flat board.

My mousepad-material board also has some tendency to curl, I'll admit. But it also spends most of the week rolled up tightly in my bag. When I pull it out, it takes very little manipulation to get it to lay flat.

That's interesting...

I definitely want triple weighted plastic pieces.. so that's good.

I expect a board that won't curl... if that means buying a wood board so be it...

and

I want it all to be legal (and reliable/durable) for tournaments...

Your site seems to have all of this and at decent prices... I'll probably send in an order tommorow... but I am a little worried about the board staying curled... that would be annoying.

Thanks Zug!

Hello ih8sens,

Thank you for pointing that out to me.  Since those pictures were taken, I have started using a heavier weight vinyl.  All of the pictures showing boards with notation, are made of this new heavier vinyl.  Like Zug said, if you counter roll, or roll it with the squares to the outside, curling isn't an issue.  

Thanks for the comments.

I recently bought a vinyl board, triple weighted pieces, digital clock, and carrying case all from wholesalechess.com. I recommend the site in general, though shipping costs a bit more than other sites and is slow (at least to my part of the US).

I don't recommend the clock I got. Its the cheep ($20) digital clock they have. The buttons to set the time sometimes don't work properly, and its just not very high quality. I guess you get what you pay for.

They have options on the site to purchase a package deal with everything I got, minus the clock. When I selected the items individually, it was actually cheaper than the package deal, and allowed me to get slightly better quality chess pieces. 

Over all I was happy to get everything I need to be tournament ready for under $50