These sets are very nice.
Which 3.5" set is it you have from OS?
I own the same Rosewood Players Series and I also own the same Dubrovnik II set. They are both quite nice to play with. You certainly did a good job getting those.
The 3.5" set I own from OS is their Morphy series. I find that set to be similar and just as nice as the Player Series. I use it on a 2.0" square size board.
After my most recent chess-related purchase, a Noj dubrovnik II set, I felt the need to take another look at the sets I have. That’s what this topic is about. I only have four tournament-sized sets, but they are all special to me, and this is a brief overview of the sets I play with – in pictures – and what they mean to me. The pictures are below the text.
The German-knight set I bought in 2013. I got it from a Dutch retailer for about 35 euro. It’s in sheesham and boxwood. I was just getting back into chess, rediscovering it after a 6 or 7 year gap. My online rating at the time was about 500 points lower than what it is today, but I enjoyed playing chess a lot nevertheless. At the time, I started playing with the then-boyfriend of my girlfriend’s sister. He is Greek, and 2013 was the start of many hours of chess for us. I spray-painted a black and white chess board on a cheap, white IKEA table, and on it, we used this German-knight set and had loads of fun. I’ve continued to use this set for its light weight and often bring it out to parks or other outdoor venues. I pair it with a tournament-standard green and buff rollup board.
In 2014, I had both become a bit more serious about the game, and I would often have long online playing sessions, especially elsewhere. My eyes shifted to nicer sets, and at the end of 2014, I bought my HoS Players’ Series, which with import cost about 220 euro. I bought the set as a birthday present to myself, and I have played against a handful of chess friends with it. It works extremely well with the board I have. I still enjoy this set a great deal. The rosewood is so rich, and the pieces so nicely carved, that whenever I play with them, I get a better tactile experience out of it than with, say, a less nice alternative. I don’t know how many games I’ve played with these pieces, but a couple-a-hundred would be a conservative estimate. The pieces are also heaver than the knockaround set, at about 1.6 kg for the total set.
It was around that time that I started coming to this forum. Thanks to Carl and the many faithful contributors on here, I added the 3,5 inch king set and more recently the Noj Dubrovnik II chess set to my collection. I’ve played a great deal with the first, but not so much with the latter yet. I actually ended up getting the 3,5 inch king set for free, since the first batch of pieces had a problem with the wood. The design of the pieces made me fall in love with them. They are very nice to handle and very heavily weighted. Then I bought the Dubrovnik II, and it has since been my favourite for home analysis. Because my good friend moved back to Greece last year, however, I regret to say that these pieces see a bit less use now than they deserve!
I love all of these pieces for different reasons. They are always ready for a game, boxed up just out of sight, memories and all, but tonight I thought I’d show them to you as well. The presentation style is per piece type for all four sets, so you can see the similarities and differences. From left to right, we have the German knight set; 3,5 inch King OS set; HoS Player's Series; and finally Noj Dubrovnik II. I hope you enjoy the pics: