# Chess table material selection.



## ScottyB (Mar 1, 2009)

My cutting boards went over really well at Christmas. Everyone was impressed with them and those that did not receive one were envious. My brother in law was so impressed that he would like me to build a chess table for him. The chess board he has is a marble board that my sister in law brought back from India. I have some ideas on the design but I am having a problem with selecting an appropriate wood for this board.

I was hoping to get some input from some of you who have much more experience in this area. I am thinking this will need to be a dark wood but I don't think red tones will work for it. I'm considering black walnut but have never worked with it before. I have attached pictures of the board that will be inset into the table.


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## egeorge1 (Dec 18, 2009)

Sounds like an interesting project. You should clarify which picture is more acurate colorwise,that will make a difference in what people recommend to you. The first pic has cool grey tones and the bottom one has warm pinkish tones...at least on my screen.


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## ScottyB (Mar 1, 2009)

Fair enough. I don't have the board and you have the same pictures I have. I will asked my brother in law to clarify that for me. He says the "white" is closer to a grey or a pearl and the black has traces of green. The first picture he claims is a really close representation of color.

When I get closer to the build I will get the board from him but I didn't want to deprive him of it for now.


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## Texas Sawduster (Apr 27, 2009)

*Game top*

Interesting.
I would think something like Mesquite would work.
Or something with the dark veins running through it. I would suggest Hackberry but it's probably too soft for a game table top.


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## Julian the woodnut (Nov 5, 2008)

I would use something dark for sure. Walnut works very well and takes a routered edge much better than oak will.


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## Streamwinner (Nov 25, 2008)

Sounds like a great project. One thing to think about and experiment with is how the board looks on different figures of wood. For example, if you use boards that have very straight lines, it may visually conflict with the straight lines on the chess board. Perhaps using wood with a very curvy grain would better compliment the board, offering a higher contrast between the table and the straight lines of the chess board. 

Please post pics when you're finished.


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## Jwolf24601 (Dec 4, 2009)

I would try to get the board from him and route grooves into 4 pieces of wood that match the lip on the chess board and literally build the table around it.


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## ScottyB (Mar 1, 2009)

Streamwinner said:


> Sounds like a great project. One thing to think about and experiment with is how the board looks on different figures of wood. For example, if you use boards that have very straight lines, it may visually conflict with the straight lines on the chess board. Perhaps using wood with a very curvy grain would better compliment the board, offering a higher contrast between the table and the straight lines of the chess board.
> 
> Please post pics when you're finished.


I will post pics and I picked up 7 bf of walnut today that has a variation of grain patterns in it. I'll play around with what works for the board surface.


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## ScottyB (Mar 1, 2009)

Jwolf24601 said:


> I would try to get the board from him and route grooves into 4 pieces of wood that match the lip on the chess board and literally build the table around it.



I thought about that but he would like the ability to pull the board out.


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## Ledhead (Aug 3, 2009)

I built a chessboard out of walnut and birch and was pleased with the way the two woods looked together.


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## ScottyB (Mar 1, 2009)

I have maple that I could use for that but that would defeat the purpose of making a table for the marble board. :icon_smile:


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## Jasmin (2 mo ago)

Did you Ever finish this chess table, and if so please share results with pictures and complications along the way.


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## kwoodhands (May 1, 2020)

ScottyB said:


> My cutting boards went over really well at Christmas. Everyone was impressed with them and those that did not receive one were envious. My brother in law was so impressed that he would like me to build a chess table for him. The chess board he has is a marble board that my sister in law brought back from India. I have some ideas on the design but I am having a problem with selecting an appropriate wood for this board.
> 
> I was hoping to get some input from some of you who have much more experience in this area. I am thinking this will need to be a dark wood but I don't think red tones will work for it. I'm considering black walnut but have never worked with it before. I have attached pictures of the board that will be inset into the table.


I have turned chess pieces and made boards . Most were sold to an art dealer . The white blocks were maple veneer.
Two were purple heart , three bubinga and the rest were walnut or cherry. All were veneer slices 3/32" thick.
The boards were finished with a card scraper and lacquer. 
I used different species for the dark pieces for no particular reason then I had the stock . 
Veneer over MDF is how I did it. First attempt years ago was with solid pieces. Big mistake, the board warped slightly. 
I wound up tossing the board. Then investigated how this should be done. 
Veneer was the answer.
mike


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## BigCountry79 (Jun 2, 2021)

kwoodhands said:


> I have turned chess pieces and made boards . Most were sold to an art dealer . The white blocks were maple veneer.
> Two were purple heart , three bubinga and the rest were walnut or cherry. All were veneer slices 3/32" thick.
> The boards were finished with a card scraper and lacquer.
> I used different species for the dark pieces for no particular reason then I had the stock .
> ...


Do you have a photo of your maple and bubinga board?


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## SonnyAgain (Dec 5, 2020)

Learn as you go.... what not to do.... One of my early woodworking ventures....

40 - 50 yrs ago I built my first and only chess board, not knowing, back then, too much about what or how to do it properly. I cut each square individually, glued them together and framed the assembly. I suppose I finished it with spar urethane, as it has yellowed over time. The board has been stashed in the barn for a long time. I'm surprised I still have it.

Sonny


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## kwoodhands (May 1, 2020)

BigCountry79 said:


> Do you have a photo of your maple and bubinga board?


No, never took pics of anything I built .
mike


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## 4DThinker (Mar 13, 2013)

I've made a few chess boards, and learned a hard lesson with my first one. I like to use walnut and pecan for the squares. Rip the boards into 2" wide strips (or whatever size you want your squares to be), then glue them up to make a striped panel. Now cross cut the panel into 2" wide strips, flip over every other piece and glue up into a checkerboard panel. 
The mistake I made was wrapping the board with a mitered frame. On an extremely humid day due to a flooded basement that board literally exploded. The checkerboard swelled up until the frame popped apart at the corners. Before that because I had used dowels to join the frame to the panel the board had rippled up and started to shear the dowels.

Lesson: Don't forget about wood expansion/contraction as humidity changes. 
4D


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