Fischer probably played 10,000 games on that unweighted USCF special. You know the one. I'm sure the Drueke Player's Choice was more than adequate. Looks like FIDE got some sponsorship money for that, however!
Worst set/board for an important match...
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stormcrown wrote:
Fischer probably played 10,000 games on that unweighted USCF special. You know the one. I'm sure the Drueke Player's Choice was more than adequate. Looks like FIDE got some sponsorship money for that, however!
I still got my USCF Special set (and rollup vinyl board) from ye olde days, Served me well for >20 years. Weighted pieces are nicer for blitz of course.
Fischer and Larsen never complained so far as I know . Perfectly playable.
Now I recall a picture of Fischer and Byrne playing a US championship game on a cheap setup (most of the way down the page):
http://www.edcollins.com/chess/ " target="_blank">http://www.edcollins.com/chess/
Vinyl rollup and maybe one of those plastic Windsor Castle set of pieces. Very nostalgic for some of us (though I don't go back that far).
There was a turn of the century tournament in the US where the players
complained bitterly about the low quality of the pieces and boards.
The organizer then sold the pieces and boards to the public after it
finished and one player said that the public was being cheated.
Unweighted and crude wood pieces I imagine.
Fischer's favorite knock-around at home set was his Yugo set. The one with those distinctive knights and with the king/queen/bishop finials being the opposite color. He just about raved how great it was...no glare, great feel etc..
http://www.chessbase.com/images2/2004/fischer04.jpg " target="_blank">http://www.chessbase.com/images2/2004/fischer04.jpg
House of Staunton sells the Windsor design in wood as well as Yugo set. There even used to be an ebony/boxwood knockoff of the old Drueke player's Choice on the web (chessotopia?) but I haven't seen it around lately.
It's funny. When I started playing competetive chess (1971), there was very little to choose from in standard equipment. Now there is enough to get confused several times over.
Those Drueke sets are a desirable item indeed. One mint set with folding linen board went on ebay for $250 just a few days ago.
Aug 29, 2015
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#5
Kind of proves Fischers "Demands" were phony. BTW I have two of these sets for sale if anyone is interested.
georgegrasser wrote:
Kind of proves Fischers "Demands" were phony.
How?
Aug 30, 2015
0
#7
He was willing to play on what was then a $35 set of pieces. To me that is a huge issue. The least I play on is a House of Staunton Championship and my preferred is the Reykjavik II or Professional Series (Unless I run into a whiner that wants to play on his stuff) and my rating was never above 2224.
Gotta be Fischer-Larsen, Denver 1971 Candidates Match.
Plastic pieces (Drueke Player's Choice to be exact) on some minimal board--probably wood though I don't recognize it--and the old BHB clock.
All more than good enough for me but sub-standard for a match of that prestige. What was up with the organizers? Just naive and inexperienced?
The Candidates match previous (Taimanov in Vancouver BC) and after (Petrosian Buenos Aires) had very nice chess tables and pieces.
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/Feb/04/fischers-big-move-in-denver/
Click on the pic for a larger scale image.
Incidentally, a minty box of Drueke player's Choice goes for well over $100 on ebay these days. Even if the weights got loose in those sets, they looked good and had a nice feel.