What do you look for in a wood chessboard?

I agree regarding size for the Noj set, 53mm is best but than I'd have problems with my other Dubrovnik set (mostly from SC lol) so for me 55mm would be the best compromise

Hey guys, I just got a board from Brad a couple of days ago. He recently started making Jaques style boards, and I ordered one in a custom wood pattern of Peruvian walnut and maple with a cherry border. It is very similar to the board hanging in Simpson's-in-the-Strand in London, except theirs has a ton of age patina on it. I also have a reproduction of the correct pieces for the set which were custom designed for Simpson's by Jaques.

They just look so right together. My pieces have found their home. I should mention that Brad was great, we communicated about what I was looking for, and he came through 100%. He even charged me the same price as his regular Jaques boards, though mine used custom woods. I will definitely be ordering from him again, and already have a couple of boards in mind.

The jacques board is great. Personally I would love a chess board to be minimalist and end grain. You can increase the wood thickness which would make it quite luxurious.

Just returned home to find a large package from Colorado Wood Worker waiting. This is my third board from Brad - each quite different in wood used as well as in size. Appreciate that Brad is making boards that will one day be classics.

Looks beautiful!

I look for plastic to make sure I'm not getting scammed

I have to say that of the half dozen boards and chess sets I have, this smallish and comparatively economical pairing of a Colorado Wood Worker board (2 inch squares) and Staunton Castle (Mandeep Saggu) Knubbel set are the ones I gravitate to most often. The quality of each is excellent, but more importantly the combination of colors and scale strike a chord (admittedly, living in a small apartment, larger pieces and boards are just awkward).

Beautiful @Baudouin27! I also use my Knubbel, a vintage on, on a CWW board as well. I have a 1.75” borderless from Brad.

Magnificent! I have a number of smaller boards - easier to display and to chuck in a tote and take to the pub too. 👍

Brad, I love the board in the second picture of PDX AXEs post above. The raised dark border and beautiful colour for the squares. It reminds me of the beautiful vintage boards I used see years ago,, commonly seen at private chess clubs that go way back. Folding wooden travel boards with green / red/ purple felt interior for the pieces, no need for a raised border on these. Roughly 40mm squares. Super for the pub or out and about use (weighted pieces ). well fitted robust hinges and a simple lock. Market with a soft bag to prevent scratches when travelling. Also good for players who cannot leave the set out at home, they can close it up and pop it on a shelf like a book (Jacques used to make one ). There's far too much plastic around, admittedly - cheap and practical, but wood is as delicious as Cindy Crawford 😍😍

Chessboard enthusiasts, why does king size matter? What's better, a 4 inch king or a 2.5 inch king???

2.5 inch king would be more suitable for analysis or a library set. A 3.75 inch set suitable for tournament play. And 4 inches or bigger would be luxury sets or club sets. Not suitable for casual play or Blitz. However everyone may have their own preferences

I prefer 42 inch kings so that I can whack my opponent with them

(not actually)

I love the board in post #24. The lighter wood (cherry?) of the frame is absolutely gorgeous without distracting while playing. It's beautiful form across the room.

I personally like 3-color boards where the surrounding frame is different from the playing squares. And - again personally - I would like to see the squares be as simple as possible. Especially the light squares. A little grain in a walnut square is much less distracting than a pronounced Birdseye maple or ash light square.

I even feel a bit strange criticising the use of Birdseye maple as it is one of the world's great gifts to woodworking, but I have seen a few boards lately with Birdseye squares that would drive me crazy to play on. Maybe save the Birdseye stuff for the surroundings and/or box for pieces, and use a plain maple or sycamore for the light squares. For me, the frame is the place to make a statement with beautiful / exotic wood - the larger / longer pieces give you a chance to really show off the grain / pattern.

A final thing I think seems under appreciated is boards with lower contrast between squares - like say maple and cherry together. They will allow decent contrast with any set of dark pieces, whereas you might be shy to play with say ebonised pieces on a board like the one in post #24 (that I do like so much).

I'm in the process of making my own board - sycamore and maple squares with a mostly walnut folding box - and hope it turns out half as nice as the boards CWW makes. We'll see, and maybe I'll even post it if it's not too embarrassing.

First, lovely board, and looks like he does great work. And interesting set, but I can't quite see what it is.

I know cherry darkens pretty quickly, but that pics (and the ones on his site) look darker than I would expect. That's almost the colour of the (European)walnut in say a NOJ set.

Maybe he's using a finish that darkens them? Or maybe it's the pic / lighting as his walnut boards look quite dark too?

Or maybe it's Brazilian cherry?

If I can snap it in half by breaking it against my leg, it's not a board worth buying.

I hope OP comes back ocassionally.

I have a few tournament boards with 55mm squares. One of them is event a DGT smart board. I have a folding and quartered board but these are still large.

Lately, I have been looking for a board that will fit on my desk or a small table easier. This is what I'd like to see.

• World Chess Studio board. 45mm squares (many options for pieces I think) . an almost invisible cloth/felt hinge . slim border/frame . angled player-side edge to make lifting/folding easy . Made by Rachapados Ferrer in Spain . Even the non-folding version is nice. Reviews have said the hinge holds up great even after a few years.

• Chessnut Air/Air+. Ignore that this is a smart board... but I like the size. 35mm squares (even smaller). This is likely the size squares I'd like to get a few sets for (Chavet size 0 and 1 are great for this board). I like the colours on the Air and the thin slightly raised border. But I also like the smoother look on the Air+ (same size). There is no raised border on the Air+.

I just got my second board from Brad, a Drueke style with a nice medium walnut and maple in 2.25 inch squares. It is beautiful and looks fabulous with my 3.75 inch Craftsman set in ebony and boxwood sitting on it. Let me reiterate from my earlier post (#22) that Brad is great to work with, very communicative, and his craftsmanship is second to none. I don't think I will be stopping at only 2 of his boards, as the Tower series is still calling to me. Do I NEED another chess board? No. Do I WANT another of Brad's boards? Absolutely yes! He even gave me a code for 10% off after the first board. Do yourself a favor and give in. Life is short, but chess is forever.