I recently bought a leather board for carrying to tournaments with my wooden set. I use the wood board at home, where I have played a few "make-up" club tournament games.

I realized at a tournament a few weeks ago that the cost of my set, board, clock, and carrying bag totaled ~ $400.

Originally posted by Wulebgr
I recently bought a leather board for carrying to tournaments with my wooden set. I use the wood board at home, where I have played a few "make-up" club tournament games.

I realized at a tournament a few weeks ago that the cost of my set, board, clock, and carrying bag totaled ~ $400.

Originally posted by masscat
Times sure have changed. My old tournament accoutrements cost me less than $40 (No bag. As you know back in the old days we just toted everything under our arm.)

Originally posted by BLReid
You can still get a Plastic set, vinyl board, clock, and bag for under $70 if you are frugal enough. My roll up set was about $12.00 for the board and pieces (many years ago) and another $50 for the bag and clock. Wulebgr has more invested in his travel set than I have in my "at home" set (which is very nice in my opinion).

Originally posted by masscat
My at home & travel set are one and the same. I did buy one of those inlaid chess tables years ago for $180…they cost about $600 today. The problem is it’s setting in the same room that my wife uses for a sewing/junk room so it now functions as plain old table and not the noble use it once served when I played my correspondence games on it.

Originally posted by masscat
Times sure have changed. My old tournament accoutrements cost me less than $40 (No bag. As you know back in the old days we just toted everything under our arm.)

The story goes that Capablanca didn't even keep a chess set in his home (from the foreword of his Last Lectures book), and the first time I saw a couple of GMs play at a tournament, they were using a cheap rollup board and cheap USCF plastic set. (Who knows, maybe they borrowed the set at the tournament location.)

I sometimes wonder whether there's a tendency to care less about the physical attributes of chess equipment as one's chess skill increases. I hope that's not true, but I can't really remember hearing any GM talk about fine chess sets, etc. Of course, I'm sure I'll never get the chance to prove or disprove this idea through direct experience. 🙂

Originally posted by Wulebgr
I have another set (board, bag, and pieces) that cost me ~$15, add a $25 and we're at $40. Prices have come down since I bought my first tournament set. All that has changed is my preference for playing on a finer set.

i like wooden magnetic. you can use it anywhere.

For tournaments....a roll up vinyl board with plastic WEIGHTED pieces, that's a universal standard in all tournaments. I used to take a nice wooden board/pieces to tournaments, a lot of people asked not to use it and I looked like a shnook for bringing it.

Originally posted by Sam The Sham
For tournaments....a roll up vinyl board with plastic WEIGHTED pieces, that's a universal standard in all tournaments. I used to take a nice wooden board/pieces to tournaments, a lot of people asked not to use it and I looked like a shnook for bringing it.

Originally posted by Mad Rook
That's strange - Why did they not want to play on a nice wooden board? While I don't go to the trouble to carry a wooden board to tournaments, I never turn down an opportunity to play on a wooden board. And, at least in my club, people who bring wooden boards to tournaments are probably given a tad more respect because of it. 🙂

Edit - The only logical r ...[text shortened]... t I used those occasions as motivation to get good enough to not depend on the board notation.

Originally posted by Sam The Sham
Yes, no notation is a good reason, also, my wooden board was not the same size as the roll up vinyl boards. Standardization in tourny play is a good thing.
Plus I looked like a shnook for bringing it. EVERYBODY has a nice roll-up set, they are de riguer, have anything else and you're a n00b.

Originally posted by Mad Rook
Well, yes, if your board wasn't regulation size, that would be a problem. Here in the U.S., the squares have to be between 2 inches and 2.5 inches on a side, I think. All the wooden boards brought to the tournaments I've attended have been regulation size.

And as I said before, nobody in our club or the tournaments I've been to would consider someone a n ...[text shortened]... convenient, is considered a Chevy, while a regulation wooden board is considered a Cadillac.

Originally posted by Sam The Sham
Go to a big tournament with 100 + players, your cadillac will look like a Yugo.Bring a standard sized roll up board and pieces.