News

Solid Wood or Veneer: The Difference You Only Notice Later

They look the same in a photo — not after ten years. How to tell whether a chess board is genuinely solid wood or just veneered.

Weighted Chess Pieces: Why Weight Determines How the Game Feels

Metal in the base, felt underneath: why weighted chess pieces change how the game feels — and how to spot good pieces just by holding them.

Chess Board Size: Matching Square Size to King Height

Square size, king height, tournament dimensions: the simple formula and the four-pawn test that guarantee your board and pieces will match.

Buying Chess Pieces Separately: What Matters When You Already Have a Board

Board's here, pieces are missing: which king height matches which square size, what to check for in shape, weight, and contrast — and when a full set makes more sense.

Handcrafted or Mass-Produced: How to Actually Tell the Difference

The knight gives everything away: how to spot genuine handwork, what machines actually do better — and why irregularity is a mark of quality.

Staunton Chess Pieces: Why an 1849 Design Still Rules Today

Designed in 1849, still the world standard today: what defines the Staunton design, why it won out — and how to tell good pieces from bad.

Caring for a Chess Board: What Wood Needs — and What Damages It

A solid wood board doesn't need much — but it genuinely needs what little it does. What never to do, how to oil it properly, and why air is the real enemy.

Travel Chess Sets: Small, But Done Right

Small doesn't mean cheap: what makes a good travel chess set, where the size limit sits — and why compact sets get used more often than large ones.

Tournament Chess Standards: What USCF and FIDE Require — and What Matters at Home

2 to 2.5-inch squares, a 3.75-inch king, Staunton design: what USCF and FIDE actually require in tournament chess — and how much of it applies at home.

Engraving in Wood: What Becomes of It After Twenty Years

An engraving is a promise — does it hold up? Why laser engravings can't fade, what does change around them, and the one mistake that actually damages them.