Weighted Pieces & The Right Chess Set For Me

I know a little about single weighted pieces, double weighted pieces, and triple weighted pieces. Heavier pieces tend to be more sturdy. I've played on chess sets which the pieces felt a little heavy and chess sets which the pieces felt too light; I've also played with pieces that felt like a nice balance, but I don't know how weighted those were. I read a chess article online which gave the generalization that single weighted usually weights about one ounce (double two ounces and triple three ounces), but then went on to discuss some nuances like piece material and piece height, so the weight should also correspond to the ratio of piece height and is more complicated than just what weight is "best" for all pieces.

I also have a bit of storytelling to share for what kind of chess set I'm looking for.

Years ago, a chess friend of mine used to bring a chess set with them to parties, casual gatherings, or the park. They had a Play Magnus set (black and white board and pieces) and I liked the design of it. I thought to maybe get a set similar to that one day, so I could also bring with me to places like the park too. I remember looking up that exact Play Magnus set online (board, pieces, and the quiver bag it was transported in) and it cost about $50 back then. I didn't really need a chess set. My OTB chess club has plenty of sets for events, so I never needed to carry a set with me.

This Play Magnus set stopped being manufactured and are basically collectors' items now. I've seen some of these sets online used and still sell for about $100. There's also beautiful sets which costs several hundred of even thousands of dollars, but I was just looking for a regulation size set roughly $50 or cheaper which I could take to places and use.

Anyway, that friend had an extra vinyl board (green and white squares), so they gave it to me. I thought that maybe I could buy pieces for it one day and perhaps a bag if I wanted and at least it would save me the cost of buying a board.

That was over 5 years ago and that board has just been sitting in my bedroom ever since. Occasionally, I'd use it for blindfold chess exercises, but that was it. A few days ago, I thought to look online to see how much some inexpensive pieces cost and maybe a nice bag to carry it in. I originally looked for the chess pieces and then the bag. I liked this bag in green and the chess.com logo because it would match the board I have:

https://www.chesscomshop.com/chess-com-deluxe-chess-bag

When I added up the cost of the bag and pieces, I learned it was slightly cheaper to buy them together with a new vinyl board, so I'd still be left with that extra board xD

Maybe I'll consider buying a set and just keep that board as a spare. This is what I was looking at:

https://www.chesscomshop.com/chesscom-deluxe-chess-set-combination-and-single-weighted-regulation-pieces-vinyl-chess-board-deluxe-bag 

I like the bag (and chess.com logo) and the design of the pieces. Basic, but I like it. The main reason I didn't purchase that yet is because I want to learn more about single/double/triple weighted pieces before purchasing. I may ask around at my OTB chess club, but I also thought to create this chess.com forum thread and see what advice others have to offer. Does this set look good for what I'm using it for? For instance, it's not that much of a price difference for triple weighted pieces. I just want to increase the chance of me appreciating the purchase and not choose weighted pieces at a weight I don't like playing with.

Our Club has a collection of unweighted, single, double and triple weighted. All Staunton design with a 3-3/4" King. I've played with each one and here's my humble opinion. Unweighted feels more like a toy and should never be considered by a serious enthusiast. Single weighted is fine and triple weighted is overkill for a plastic set. Like Goldilocks, I prefer the one in the middle. Double weighted has the stability I prefer without the added cost of triple weighted.

I have a set similar to the chess.com set and is well worth it for portability and playability (with double weighted pieces).

For home use, I have a wooden set that is triple weighted. I think triple weighted is quite appropriate for wooden sets.

Single weighted pieces get knocked over too easily. If you like the regulation style pieces, go for the triple weighted, which is 32 oz total for the set. These are the pieces I have that are quadruple weighted (51 oz), which we played on: https://www.uscfsales.com/the-collector-series-plastic-chessmen-3-75-king

Personally I concur with #3 and use triple weighted pieces OTB, especially for blitz and bullet, where the heavier pieces won't go flying nearly as much. It just seems to feel better. You might be able to get a bag to go with the set + board if you haven't already too.

For me it depends on the chess set design, and base size. On how much weighting is needed.

But it does bother me playing blitz. If a chess set weighting is too heavy, and extremely unbalanced. I would rather have a set that is too light, then too heavy. As moving a few onces of a bottom heavy chess piece. At blitz speeds can really slow down your movment speed.

My travel set is double weighted wood, with a silicone board and a bag similar to the ones that chess.com is selling. The only downside is that the pieces didn't include extra queens, and they couldn't be purchased separately. I threw in a couple of plastic tournament queens, but I am still shopping for a convincing pair of wooden queens for aesthetic reasons.

I believe Chess House sells singles - you may find something there.

I'm familiar with double weighted pieces, but I never knew that triple weighted pieces existed. I'm pretty sure that those pieces are more durable, but the players will probably play slower blitz.