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How are custom chess board constructed

#1

Hi
I'm an aspiring woodworker and love chess, especially lichess. I was hoping to hear from anyone who may know how some of the higher end chess boards like JLP or Drueke are constructed? Specifically, are the squares the same physical piece of wood from top to bottom, or are they glued to something underneath? Say, something along the lines of a piece of plywood? If they're solid, are there any steps taken to make sure the border doesnt crack when the wood expands/contracts?

Thanks!

Hi I'm an aspiring woodworker and love chess, especially lichess. I was hoping to hear from anyone who may know how some of the higher end chess boards like JLP or Drueke are constructed? Specifically, are the squares the same physical piece of wood from top to bottom, or are they glued to something underneath? Say, something along the lines of a piece of plywood? If they're solid, are there any steps taken to make sure the border doesnt crack when the wood expands/contracts? Thanks!
#2

the simplest method is to glue eight long stripes together, then they are cut into eight parts and every second part gets rotated. Voila, chessboard.

http://www.instructables.com/id/solid-wood-Chess-board/

the simplest method is to glue eight long stripes together, then they are cut into eight parts and every second part gets rotated. Voila, chessboard. http://www.instructables.com/id/solid-wood-Chess-board/
#3

I prefer ...
A uniform grain of wood.
Try pointing the grain uniformally ...
Example:
All the lighter square grains vertically.
All the darker squares horizontally.

Depending on the wood and finish, it might be the opposite.
It might be even better having them all point in the same direction.

I believe it's a question of visibility.
Scan your wood and then look at the grain direction on a computer. Pick the orientation you like the best.

I prefer ... A uniform grain of wood. Try pointing the grain uniformally ... Example: All the lighter square grains vertically. All the darker squares horizontally. Depending on the wood and finish, it might be the opposite. It might be even better having them all point in the same direction. I believe it's a question of visibility. Scan your wood and then look at the grain direction on a computer. Pick the orientation you like the best.
#4

What about the borders though? For example, https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1297/3303/products/21-hardwood-player-s-chessboard-with-2-25-squares-jlp-usa-21184577665_large.jpg?v=1516082090

Is something like that as simple as making a solid wood board and then gluing a nice border to it? I'd love it if so, but I'm worried about longevity of it- when the wood expands/contracts, will that affect the edges?

What about the borders though? For example, https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1297/3303/products/21-hardwood-player-s-chessboard-with-2-25-squares-jlp-usa-21184577665_large.jpg?v=1516082090 Is something like that as simple as making a solid wood board and then gluing a nice border to it? I'd love it if so, but I'm worried about longevity of it- when the wood expands/contracts, will that affect the edges?
#5

Ever piece is only about 2 inches wide. Don't expect it to expand very much. I would guess maybe 1%.

You will have to seal the wood, like sealing a wooden floor. Expect your chessboard to last as long as a wooden floor.

Like wooden floors, over time, there are going to be marks on it. So expect your chessboard to grow old too.

Imagine a piece landing on it a bit hard or not totally flat or when you drop the pieces on the chessboard.

There are lots of videos, so take the time to look at lots of them. Find the chessboard you feel you can do and enjoy the results. When your ready to build another one, learn from your pasted mistakes.

Ever piece is only about 2 inches wide. Don't expect it to expand very much. I would guess maybe 1%. You will have to seal the wood, like sealing a wooden floor. Expect your chessboard to last as long as a wooden floor. Like wooden floors, over time, there are going to be marks on it. So expect your chessboard to grow old too. Imagine a piece landing on it a bit hard or not totally flat or when you drop the pieces on the chessboard. There are lots of videos, so take the time to look at lots of them. Find the chessboard you feel you can do and enjoy the results. When your ready to build another one, learn from your pasted mistakes.
#7

To address the latter part of the question first:

"are there any steps taken to make sure the border doesnt crack when the wood expands/contracts?"

Use craft wood. It is dried and prepared to limit concerns such as this.

When I lived in Texas, where I started wood-working, I knew a guy who showed me the steps he took through a couple of different types of woods. He'd been doing it for 30-40 years. (As old as I am; taught by his father to process wood.)

Each type of wood has a different set of steps to process it for various types of consumption. And it includes understanding how to cut across the grain of a trunk or limb, per your expected outcome (i.e. a rough cut, treating it later for outdoor exposure, treating it for indoor use and finishing, craft wood, etc.)

Ideally, to make fine, hand-crafted chess boards, what you want is to purchase your supplies from a company (or individual) that (or, who) specializes in things like this. Like anything else, such as ISO specifications, there are specifications in the wood-working industry for fine, hand-crafted goods -- but you have to know what to ask for. (Sorry, I don't know proper terminology here; only the feel of good, fine, hand-craft type wood.)

=====

Personally, I prefer wood which has been cut and let sit for a year. After sitting for (at least) a year, then it should be cut across whichever grain you want or need in size and proportion to what you're going to use it for. Based on the thickness you need for your thickest piece, or pieces, then you have it kiln dried at a low temperature. According to the guy I knew, kiln drying wood should be fired with wet wood so that the drying process happens, but more naturally. Like smoking meat -- you don't want to bake it at high temperature or dry it too quickly, else you end-up with bad meat (or split, or warped wood).

After the kiln drying process, then you cut down to the sizes you want -- typically, thickness -- and let sit for a few months. Some woods need a top-weight. (That is, without weight on top of them, they might naturally curl or warp.)

The guy explained to me that some processors of wood use porous natural sealants during the latter part of the process. (Otherwise, you can end-up with bugs, rot, or inconsistent lengths.) This can change the nature of the wood later (one of the specifications you might ask for in purchasing fine craft wood, if it matters to you).

After the latter part of the process (letting kiln dried wood sit, sometimes pressed, sometimes not), then you can finish it -- that is, work it, and, shrinkage should be minimal. But, note, the more you take off of the outer part of a pre-shrunk piece of wood, the more the inner part is exposed and will release moisture later (leading to additional shrinkage).

The guy suggested to me, that I first cut the squares, and stain or dye them from the rough-cut before finishing, and then let them sit a while longer; first with humidity, then with a dry heat.

If necessary or wanted, re-stain (i.e. darker colored squares) and finish.

Finish should be something like beeswax or the likes. Something that will seal the wood naturally. (Wood finishes are a whole separate topic with its own investment of time -- including maintenance.)

=====

Pieces are turned on a small lathe (except Knights, and notching). Enough is said about that, because it doesn't matter as much as the individual squares.

As for finishing the individual squares. I did the final edge cut with a Dremel, and then sanded the sides until I was happy with checking each corner-to-corner (top and bottom) with a micrometer. First I sanded the edges of the squares by hand, and then using a variable-speed belt sander until measurements dialed-in. (Each was checked individually.)

After finishing the sanding and measurements step, I laid-out the squares until I was happy with how it looked from all 4 directions. (The light and dark square grains were at 90-degrees to each other.) Then I marked the individual squares' arrangement and alignment on the bottom. And then started the framing process. (The frame can shrink, too, so, same as everything else above.)

I scored/notched the sides and bottoms of the pieces. The side of each square was 1/4-inch; I only scored 3/8-inch bottom-to-top. Add some wood glue to the side and bottom and set each piece (meticulously). Put the frame around the edges, and then added weight from the top and let it all set. The backing for the pieces, under the frame, was a piece of 1/8-inch plexiglass. (But, you can use wood for this purpose, too. Just make sure it follows the same type of shrinkage specs, otherwise, if the wood underneath shrinks over time, you could end-up with the pieces coming loose or popping-up.)

=====

The first time I did this, it sucked, big-time. A lot of time spent, and I only had a crappy, half-rate, hand-made board. The second time was much better. My subsequent efforts improve with each iteration. (I make about 1 board a year in my spare time. With some laser-cut lathe patterns, I can turn all of the pieces, except Knights, and notching or decorative carving of pieces, in an hour and finish a full set inside a month, easily.) I've since moved from Texas to California, and buying supplies commercially (instead of private party). Buying online is a hit-or-miss experience (a lot of wasted money). If I really want or need material, I have drive into a major metro area (hand-check material before purchase).

=====

NOTE: I don't know how high-end chess-boards are made. I'm only telling you about my personal experience trying to construct a nice-looking chessboard on my own time and dime.

AND, it's not "cheap." -- I just spread it out over time.

I can tell you this, though ... Ain't nobody using Plywood to make high-end chess-boards. (Though, I've heard that sometimes cork and/or fiberboard backers are used for squares inside of cheap-o chess boards. I see no reason why you can't use plywood for backing the squares. Or even making squares and staining them if you want to go this route.)

My two cents and experience.

To address the latter part of the question first: >> "are there any steps taken to make sure the border doesnt crack when the wood expands/contracts?" Use craft wood. It is dried and prepared to limit concerns such as this. When I lived in Texas, where I started wood-working, I knew a guy who showed me the steps he took through a couple of different types of woods. He'd been doing it for 30-40 years. (As old as I am; taught by his father to process wood.) Each type of wood has a different set of steps to process it for various types of consumption. And it includes understanding how to cut across the grain of a trunk or limb, per your expected outcome (i.e. a rough cut, treating it later for outdoor exposure, treating it for indoor use and finishing, craft wood, etc.) Ideally, to make fine, hand-crafted chess boards, what you want is to purchase your supplies from a company (or individual) that (or, who) specializes in things like this. Like anything else, such as ISO specifications, there are specifications in the wood-working industry for fine, hand-crafted goods -- but you have to know what to ask for. (Sorry, I don't know proper terminology here; only the feel of good, fine, hand-craft type wood.) ===== Personally, I prefer wood which has been cut and let sit for a year. After sitting for (at least) a year, then it should be cut across whichever grain you want or need in size and proportion to what you're going to use it for. Based on the thickness you need for your thickest piece, or pieces, then you have it kiln dried at a low temperature. According to the guy I knew, kiln drying wood should be fired with wet wood so that the drying process happens, but more naturally. Like smoking meat -- you don't want to bake it at high temperature or dry it too quickly, else you end-up with bad meat (or split, or warped wood). After the kiln drying process, then you cut down to the sizes you want -- typically, thickness -- and let sit for a few months. Some woods need a top-weight. (That is, without weight on top of them, they might naturally curl or warp.) The guy explained to me that some processors of wood use porous natural sealants during the latter part of the process. (Otherwise, you can end-up with bugs, rot, or inconsistent lengths.) This can change the nature of the wood later (one of the specifications you might ask for in purchasing fine craft wood, if it matters to you). After the latter part of the process (letting kiln dried wood sit, sometimes pressed, sometimes not), then you can finish it -- that is, work it, and, shrinkage should be minimal. But, note, the more you take off of the outer part of a pre-shrunk piece of wood, the more the inner part is exposed and will release moisture later (leading to additional shrinkage). The guy suggested to me, that I first cut the squares, and stain or dye them from the rough-cut before finishing, and then let them sit a while longer; first with humidity, then with a dry heat. If necessary or wanted, re-stain (i.e. darker colored squares) and finish. Finish should be something like beeswax or the likes. Something that will seal the wood naturally. (Wood finishes are a whole separate topic with its own investment of time -- including maintenance.) ===== Pieces are turned on a small lathe (except Knights, and notching). Enough is said about that, because it doesn't matter as much as the individual squares. As for finishing the individual squares. I did the final edge cut with a Dremel, and then sanded the sides until I was happy with checking each corner-to-corner (top and bottom) with a micrometer. First I sanded the edges of the squares by hand, and then using a variable-speed belt sander until measurements dialed-in. (Each was checked individually.) After finishing the sanding and measurements step, I laid-out the squares until I was happy with how it looked from all 4 directions. (The light and dark square grains were at 90-degrees to each other.) Then I marked the individual squares' arrangement and alignment on the bottom. And then started the framing process. (The frame can shrink, too, so, same as everything else above.) I scored/notched the sides and bottoms of the pieces. The side of each square was 1/4-inch; I only scored 3/8-inch bottom-to-top. Add some wood glue to the side and bottom and set each piece (meticulously). Put the frame around the edges, and then added weight from the top and let it all set. The backing for the pieces, under the frame, was a piece of 1/8-inch plexiglass. (But, you can use wood for this purpose, too. Just make sure it follows the same type of shrinkage specs, otherwise, if the wood underneath shrinks over time, you could end-up with the pieces coming loose or popping-up.) ===== The first time I did this, it sucked, big-time. A lot of time spent, and I only had a crappy, half-rate, hand-made board. The second time was much better. My subsequent efforts improve with each iteration. (I make about 1 board a year in my spare time. With some laser-cut lathe patterns, I can turn all of the pieces, except Knights, and notching or decorative carving of pieces, in an hour and finish a full set inside a month, easily.) I've since moved from Texas to California, and buying supplies commercially (instead of private party). Buying online is a hit-or-miss experience (a lot of wasted money). If I really want or need material, I have drive into a major metro area (hand-check material before purchase). ===== NOTE: I don't know how high-end chess-boards are made. I'm only telling you about my personal experience trying to construct a nice-looking chessboard on my own time and dime. AND, it's not "cheap." -- I just spread it out over time. I can tell you this, though ... Ain't nobody using Plywood to make high-end chess-boards. (Though, I've heard that sometimes cork and/or fiberboard backers are used for squares inside of cheap-o chess boards. I see no reason why you can't use plywood for backing the squares. Or even making squares and staining them if you want to go this route.) My two cents and experience.
#8

Just buy a plastic one from toys r us.

Just buy a plastic one from toys r us.
#9

MrCharles, thanks a ton!! That's print-out worthy :D

MrCharles, thanks a ton!! That's print-out worthy :D

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