Bad review/experience with RoyalChessMall

Yes,  lets wait and see,  it was the first thread i saw about RCM.  Communicationwas fine so far.  I will post some pics if sets arrive. wondering how long it takes from india via fedex.

thx pax

Hi Eyechess,

What is wrong with the HoS Royale series (this one?) pieces? To me (i .e. the untrained eye) it looks like a normal, decent set. How on earth are we supposed to buy "good" sets if randomly sets turn out to be "bad"?

Although RoyalChessMall product quality is low (Chessbazaar is better in comparison), their prices are unreasonably high. Naturally, by all logic, I’d rather buy from House of Staunton for the same price as their quality is really high and they offer free worldwide shipment as well. 

The set does not handle or play very well.  I know it looks good but it isn’t as good as others in the same price range.  It is one of those that looks alright on the board but not a trusty one to play with.  When I talked with Frank Camaratta about it he told me he, and now the company, did not have a hand in its making.  They just bought it from their supplier offering it to them.

That particular set has not seen any buying action for years.  And this is one example of me saying that HoS never discontinued it.  I believe Chess Bazaar would have discontinued it if it were theirs.

As another untrained eye for chess pieces, how could a fairly ordinary looking set not 'handle or play very well'? Being unaware of the nuances of how a piece handles or 'plays' I could play a game with any set put in front of me (and never know the difference). I'd go so far to say the same for world class players. I doubt there are many GM's that will walk away from a game challenge because they don't like how the set itself being used 'handles or plays'

I'm truly not being snide, just seeking knowledge I obviously do not have from those that do. So what are the nuances this amateur is oblivious to that enables me to play even if I personally think the set is too light/heavy or the design doesn't appeal to me, etc.? What (subliminal?) cues do you pick up on that makes a set handle better/more playable than others?

Not trying to put words into @Eyechess mouth but for me a set plays well when it is not too light (i.e. doesn't get knocked over easily) or too heavy where players occasionally drop a piece on route to it's destination. Even more important for me is that you could stare at the board/pieces for hours without developing eye strain. So not too shiny and not too much stark colour contrast. For example pure black and white boards and pieces can be very tiring. This is my take on "handling" well. No experience of the set referred to mind you. Given that top tournament sets are standardised today, GMs tend not to have much to complain about but in days gone by many sets were rejected by players before matches.

I agree with @Audioq.  I usually do.

I will tell you a true story that might show that this is indeed a real thing.

Back in 2001, I was directing a Chess tournament.  I used my own, better wood sets and boards for the top 4 boards of the event.  One of these was my newly acquired HoS Marshall Series Rosewood set.  
A friend of mine from 45 miles away had just bought a Rosewood Ambassador set from Legend Products.  These two sets were direct competitors as they were the same sizing and very close to the same price.  He had retired recently and was buying better sets as I was.

He brought his new set to my event.  And seeing that I had everything set up with over 20 minutes to spare, he and I played on first his set and then mine.  After playing a couple games on both sets, he commented that my HoS Marshall set was nicer than his Ambassador set.  It played and handled better.  I agreed with him and was happy I had not bought the Ambassador pieces.  
About a month or so later, I was talking with him on the phone and he told me he had ordered a HoS Marshall set for himself.  It was that much nicer than the other set.

Now, I am here to tell you that I am human and not perfect.  I can immediately think of 4 sets that I bought and then either sold or more frequently gave away because they were not that good to play with.  Yes, and there are more than that.

I also had 4 sets that I sold and ended up buying again because they were so nice and I realized this after selling them.  

Guess they caught my TrustPilot review - Sid has reached out via eBay. Hopefully it's possible to resolve this such that I end up with a decent-quality set and not just a bunch of regrets and wasted time.

So to close this out, just prior to my last post I thought I'd cheekily order a second set in the hopes of ending up with enough decent pieces that I could assemble an acceptable set and return the remaining set, with the worst-case scenario being that I ended up no better off.

For the last week, Sid (or a CSR) has been in occasional contact, and the story is as you'd expect - massive surge in demand, new hiring of CSRs, and perhaps a little less training than might be desired.  Initially, they offered to honour the return on the first set, or a 35% discount (my suggestion based on CB's apparent imperfect discounts before I'd thought to just order a second set), but they were happy for me to wait and see what the second set was like before deciding whether I wanted to return one or both.

I've ended up with a passable set... barely.  Everything is at least okay and I'm not dealing with pawns that weigh anywhere from 24g to 41g, so that's nice.  Unfortunately the standard of workmanship was about the same - I'll let the black rooks tell the story.

Ended up keeping my repaired knight as the ear wasn't as rough as the mane-work on the new ones, ditto the rook with the nipple as I can at least fix that...

@Feinripp I hope your luck is better

Thanks for the update. Oh boy! That is just shoddy work. I would return both sets if it was me. I think you said you like the set so if that is the case, I would return the 2nd set and take 35% discount on the first. Sorry you have such troubles.

I'd return both sets as well. That's almost a $600 investment. Those rooks are awful and the weights of the pawns? Yikes. 

Oh and ya know what? The Hastings set is advertised as a "Luxury" set! Wow, that's some luxury! I guess their customer service is a luxury as well. LOL 

I agree 100%. As long as people accept such shoddy work there is no motivation to improve

I had a big lump in my throat from reading these reviews after ordering that Tal set from RCM, but after seeing your review I am now at ease. Thanks paxmndi!

teamason, I'm very sorry to here about your experience. :/

To clarify, I took the best pieces from both sets and and am returning the remainder, so almost none of the pieces have major flaws and nothing stands out at a glance, and the outlier pawns are being sent back.

They also honoured the offer of the 35% discount, so I have a set I'm happy to play with for 180USD all in, even if I can't recommend RCM to anyone else (or this set, at least).

I'm still trying to sort out the story with Sid, though. Initially he said that the damage surprised him as he personally checked the set before it went out.

When I challenged that and suggested he might be confused, as I ordered the second set under my wife's name to avoid having them cancel the order, he indicated that it was actually the first set that he'd checked (but why would he have?).

In any case the first set had the same issues, so I can't see any possible explanation that makes them look good - if he checked either order before they were sent out, their standards are garbage. If he didn't, I was lied to. In either case the idea that a customer is only guaranteed what they pay for if they make a fuss and the owner checks the merch personally is ludicrous.

RoyalChessMall quality has never appealed to me as their copies look too artificial.

I can understand your frustration. I hate being lied to. I always want them to just tell me the truth. It is fine. I understand we all make mistakes. Don't cover it up with a lie. Anyhow, at least you got a good set in the process and you received the imperfect set discount on top of that. That is the best one can hope in this type of situation.

Vaht eez dees eemperfect set deescount?