A&A 15" Magnetic Wooden Chess Set, Handmade 3" King Height Chess Pieces with 2 Extra Queen, Portable Travel Chess Set, Chess Game Sets

I've owned this board for little over a year now, and it has been absolutely incredible. I collect chess sets, and own over 100 different sets. I also (try) to play chess at a club level, so I appreciate when things are playable for standard more official chess settings. I've played over 50 games with this board in blitz, rapid, and classical style formats. From this experience, here are my pro's and con's Pros: - Piece design: The piece design in superb. To put it simply, these are the best wooden chess pieces I've ever used in a magnetic chess set. It closely resembles that of the DGT timeless pieces which are the top of the line. Many other sets write "handmade wooden pieces" in their titles but end up just including a set of generic mass made cheap wooden sets, but this company does not. They feel great in the hands, look fantastic, and are very durable. The contrast between the pieces and the board is brilliant, and allows for very pleasant play. The wood grain is also NOT fake, which I am very happy with. They are real wooden pieces that do not have that glossy cheap look. - Magnets: The magnets are perfect for this size of board. They stay on at decently extreme angles, and during blitz play pieces rarely fall down. They also have a very satisfying sound when placing down on the board. - Board quality: Board is very smooth and level. I never really ever have issues with the seam and it has withstood several drops, hits, and literal smacking from small children. I have taken it abroad to two countries and it still plays great. Overtime mine has seen several scratches and nicks, but I've used this in a more extreme case. I actually like the "weathered" look it's taking on as well. - Value Given the quality of the board, pieces, and magnets, I don't think you can find a better deal. This is the highest value magnetic set I have found so far. Cons: - Putting pieces back: The magnets are not all the same direction. This causes pieces to snap to each other, or stick to the sides of other pieces. While this is not an issue when playing at all, it is annoying when putting it back after you're done. However this is really not a problem and adds maybe only an extra 10 seconds to your time when cleaning up. - Base size of Queen and King: These two pieces have slightly larger bases than the rest of the pieces. It doesn't impact playability but it irks me that they're not all the same size. I'm guessing this was to compensate for their taller height. - Size options: This size is fantastic for serious games, and works on many different surfaces. However for portability it is pretty sizeable and barely fits in my laptop backpack. The thickness also makes it cumbersome to carry around if you have a small bag. I wish there were maybe 3 sizes (small, medium, large) where this would be more on the medium size. Overall: This is my top pick for serious portable chess, and is my first recommendation anytime anyone asks. I really appreciate the quality they've put into this. Make sure you pay attention to the dimensions carefully and know that it will be slightly on the larger side. If that isn't an issue for you, you cannot find a better deal for the price!

I bought two sets of chess pieces from A&A at the same time, this one and one with a pasteboard storage case (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B8NRS8YB). The pieces are quite uniform between the two sets, as expected, and so meet my intended purpose. I have replacement pieces for every piece when one is inevitably lost or broken. I grew up seeing many games with small pieces such as pawns, a checker, dice, etc. replaced by something close. By buying two identical sets of pieces that will never be a problem. The pieces are quite as nice as expected, and perfect for recreational play. But after reading many reviews I thought I would check the dimensions... Well, the kings were slightly taller than 3 inches, but the base of the king was more like 1.2 inches rather than 1.4 inches. The pawns had bases that were more or less 0.8 inches, with only slight variations, but were only 1.4 inches tall rather than 1.5 inches. Not a big deal, really, unless you are trying to find replacement pieces to match your missing or broken piece later on, or are looking to buy this set to replace a piece in your set. Another thing I noticed was that every single piece had a oval base -- not dramatically oval, but enough to realize these either were not turned on a lathe, or were sanded unevenly. The case which came with this has a nice wood frame with panel sides which will form a playing surface if the case is opened and turned upside down. The panel looks to be a engineered wood product rather than wood, but is thin, light, and durable. I have no intention of using the case as a board, but will use a separate board (one piece) to play on. Inside is a flocked plastic tray with molded spots for each piece. Makes it quite easy to check that you have picked up and put away all 34 pieces, minimizing the chance of leaving a piece out to get lost. I only hope the plastic is heavy enough to be durable over many years. The wood case added twenty dollars to the cost over what I paid for the set with a pasteboard case, which is not a bad price when I priced other wood storage boxes for chess pieces. This case is quite nicely finished. Bottom line: it is an elegant set of chess pieces with a good case that will be a pleasure to play with for decades, but could be difficult to replace a piece some ten or twenty years from now.

Really nice set. Nice feel, nice wood grain, nice wood pieces looking handmade. Also stable. At least out of the box will check durability in time.

Our son is thoroughly enjoying this set. It was even a breeze to touch base with the sellers as we needed a set of the stickers. We must have missed them somehow in the packaging. Their responses were prompt and courteous. And a new set of stickers were sent to us. Thank you for the great product and customer service!

Love the board, glad I made the purchase! Pros: - Magnetism of pieces - strong enough to hold to the board, but light enough where it doesn't interfere. - Board sits evenly and solidly on table - Really like the cloth case that comes with it - a nice touch! - Gameplay is nice - all pieces already have felt on the bottom, so slide nicely. Due to the magnets, they can also land with a satisfying gentle/faint "thunk" when placed on the square. - All marketing pics you see are spot on - this is a good looking set and you get exactly what's on the tin. One tiny con: - Could probably be a smidge less expensive - after coupon, I paid ~$30 which I feel is a solid price. But the going pre-coupon rate of $40 isn't exactly a rip-off either.

bought this for my 10 yr old nephew for his birthday. it was on my bucket list to learn to play a respectable game of chess ( i am 63 ) i bought a set for myself last summer and some books from the public library and the journey has begun. i thought what ever i learn i can instill to my nephew. it looks like i created a monster. he really enjoys so instead of lugging my 19 in set over , this A&A folding mahogany set would fit the bill. it is perfect for beginner/ novice. thought it was of good quality and appearance. don't expect it to be of a 300 dollar or higher set. while not much weight to the pieces they do have enough weight that they won't topple. if i were to have one ticky tack issue. i would prefer the pieces be of brown color as opposed to black. ( my preference ) other than that get it. it is portable and enjoyable to play. comes with directions for basic understanding of set up and piece movement. no need for a box to put your pieces in as it has a compartment for the individual pieces to fit snugly. you can play just about anywhere. if you do not abuse this set will serve you well. if you purchase you will enjoy ( unless you are the anal type ). if you do not like you can always return.

Excellent quality and great appearance. I wish it could have an extra stickers , as I messed up placing them on the board and needed to remove it. Now my board has no letters on the opposite side 😣 but it’s my fault.

A perfect first set for home use and portable enough to bring it to the park with friends. Your second set should be the 3.75 inch tournament set but is too big and expensive to be taken out of safety of your home. The quality is top notch, pieces are smooth and well proportioned. The pieces weighs like a hardwood would and the magnets helps to hold it in place. Without the magnets, i think it would still be stable due to the base being wide enough for its height. The board is well finished like fine furniture and its shade is lighter which provides contrast with the pieces. I like that its waxed like finish is not too shiny to be distracting and its easier to the eyes. I highly recommend this set.

Made bye timeless thougths

I was looking for a well-made chess set with durability, portability and style that won’t break the bank. This A&A mahogany wood chess set checks all the boxes with flying colours. There are several elements that make this set stands out: 1) The mini brackets at the edge of the board is such a smart design, it removes the annoying gap that “clam shell” style chess sets usually have. It is an inconspicuous mechanism that makes the two board pieces flushed fully when laying on a flat surface. I personally like to slide pieces across the board when I play, and this set will not “catch” in the middle when doing so. 2) The inclusion of an extra queen piece is greatly appreciated. For games where a pawn promotion occurs while the queen is still around, it adds both tangible and intangible value to the gaming experience. No need to use a random token which breaks the immersion! 3) The included cloth bag is the perfect companion to the chess set, it protects the board against scratches. This normally costs extra efforts/money if you want a bag that fits perfectly, this saves that hassle, well played. 4) The size of this set is ideal as it allows for portability while still giving it a sense of presence and space to the game. 5) The chess pieces are all well made and weighted nicely. This is quite noticeable especially if compared to another generic chess set. Others tend to feel flimsy with no heft, but not this one. 6) I also want to commend the staff who assisted me on a product matter, their response is swift and effective. It shows they care about their customers. In conclusion, this product is very much worth every penny spent, highly recommend!

sehr gute Verarbeitung de Materials, guter optischer Eindruck

This is a very well made board and pieces. Definitely worth the $$ charged. Definitely recommend if you’re looking for a quality chess board.

The quality far exceeded my expectations at the price point. The board looks excellent, lies flat, and comes with a nice fitted felt-like bag. The magnets on the pieces are nice feature and decently strong. The 15x15" board size is large enough to not be too cramped, but small enough to be portable. The pieces themselves are perfectly sized for the board and are of fairly average quality, with a few minor imperfections on a few, but nothing that affects anything.