Help and FAQs

Weight and size. Both sets come with the same double-sided silicone board, the same 34 pieces including two spare queens, the same two drawstring bags, the same 32 page strategy guide and felt under every base.

• 3X Tournament has triple weighted Staunton no. 6 pieces. The king is 4 inches, the pieces weigh about 2.4 lb together, and the queen's coronet is rounded.
• 4X Tournament Modern has quadruple weighted Staunton no. 8 pieces. The king is 4.4 inches, the pieces weigh about 4 lb, and the queen's crown is pointed.

If you want the lighter set at tournament size, or you play rated events, take the 3X. If you want a piece that feels planted the moment you let go of it, take the 4X.

Three measurements are actually regulated: the square size, the king height and the Staunton pattern. Board material, color and thickness are not.

• The board clears both bodies. Squares are 2.25 inches, which is 5.7 cm. The US Chess Federation allows 2 to 2.5 inches and FIDE specifies 5 to 6 cm.
• The 3X clears both bodies. Its king is 4 inches, 10.2 cm. FIDE gives 9.5 cm and allows 10 percent either way, so 8.55 to 10.45 cm, and the US Chess Federation allows 3.375 to 4.5 inches.
• The 4X clears the US Chess Federation but not FIDE. Its 4.4 inch king is inside the 3.375 to 4.5 inch range, but at 11.2 cm it sits above the FIDE window.

So take the 3X if you play FIDE rated events, and either set for club, casual and home play. Organizers can set house rules on top, so it is always worth checking your own event.

Checked against the FIDE Handbook C.02 Standards of Chess Equipment and the US Chess Federation equipment standard.

Yes. The triple weighted pieces are Staunton no. 6 and have a rounded queen's coronet. The quadruple weighted pieces are Staunton no. 8 and have a pointed queen's crown.

There are 12 points on the queen's coronet and 4 sections on the rook. On the triple weighted set the coronet is rounded rather than pointed.

It depends on the set. The 4 lb quadruple weighted pieces are a natural tan cream. The 2.4 lb triple weighted pieces are an ivory white.

Magnetic pieces can be awkward to slide, because the magnet fights you on the way. Our pieces are held down by their own weight instead, and the felt base lets them glide. You get the stability without the drag.

A 16 by 16 inch board has 2 inch squares, and it is the queen rather than the king that decides this. The 4X king has a 1.9 inch base and fits, but the 4X queen's base is a full 2 inches, the width of the square itself, so a 4X set on that board will look and feel crowded once the middlegame gets busy.

The 3X is the better fit: its widest base, on the king and the queen, is 1.8 inches. Our own board is 20 by 20 inches with 2.25 inch squares, which is what both sets are sized for.

Either, and both come with the same 32 page strategy guide, which starts at how the pieces move and works up to attacking play.

Most people start with the 3X. It is the size and weight you will meet at a club, so nothing about it will catch you out later, and it is the lighter of the two to carry.

It is 20 inches by 20 inches, and each square is 2.25 inches.

The square is the measurement that is actually specified: the US Chess Federation allows 2 to 2.5 inches and FIDE asks for 5 to 6 cm, and 2.25 inches is 5.7 cm, so one board satisfies both. The 20 inch outside measurement is ours, not a federation's. It leaves a border around the 18 inch playing area, which is what stops captured pieces sitting on the edge of the board, and it still rolls up and travels.

Yes. The board is printed with algebraic notation, a to h along one edge and 1 to 8 up the other, so you can follow a book or write a game down without counting squares.

Silicone. We used to sell vinyl boards and have moved to silicone for good. It is spill and stain resistant, and it lies flat again instead of keeping a crease.

Yes. One face is green and white, the other is black and white. Flip it over and pick whichever you prefer.

The old vinyl boards did, and that feedback is exactly why we changed to silicone. A silicone board may carry a faint factory smell when you unroll it for the first time, and it fades within a game.

Lay it flat on a hard surface and put a few heavy books on top for 24 to 48 hours. That is enough for it to relax back into shape. If the crease is still there after that, email us and we will sort it out.

Wipe the board with a soft lint-free cloth. For a stubborn mark, dampen the cloth with mild soap and water. Keep harsh chemicals and abrasive cleaners away from it. Wipe it dry and let it air dry completely before you roll it up.

The pieces take the same treatment. Keep water off the felt bases and let everything dry fully before it goes back in the bags.

Yes. The 4X quadruple weighted pieces weigh about 4 lb for the 34 of them, and the complete 4X set in its box weighs about 5 lb. The 3X triple weighted pieces come to about 2.4 lb, and that set boxed is about 3 lb.

That weight is the point: a piece you have let go of stays where you left it.

High quality plastic, chosen for durability and for how it feels in the hand during a long game.

Iron inserts. That is what gives them the solid, planted feel rather than the hollow rattle of a cheap set.

Rarely. The pieces are sturdy and stand up to normal play. It is possible, though unlikely, for one to be damaged in transit.

If that happens we send a free replacement piece and we pay the shipping, under the 12 month guarantee. You do not have to send the rest of the set back.

Single pieces are not listed for sale on the site at the moment, so it goes through us either way.

Inside the 12 month guarantee, email us with your order number and a photo and we will send the piece free. Outside it, email us anyway and we will see what we can do. Tell us which set you have, the 3X or the 4X, and which piece and color.

3X Triple Weighted, Staunton Modern

• King: 4 in tall, 1.8 in base, 1.76 oz
• Queen: 3.7 in tall, 1.8 in base, 1.83 oz
• Bishop: 3.3 in tall, 1.5 in base, 1.16 oz
• Knight: 2.8 in tall, 1.4 in base, 1.38 oz
• Rook: 2.6 in tall, 1.5 in base, 1.31 oz
• Pawn: 2 in tall, 1.3 in base, 0.74 oz

4X Quadruple Weighted, Staunton Modern

• King: 4.4 in tall, 1.9 in base, 3.35 oz
• Queen: 4.1 in tall, 2 in base, 3.28 oz
• Bishop: 3.6 in tall, 1.6 in base, 2 oz
• Knight: 3 in tall, 1.5 in base, 1.9 oz
• Rook: 2.9 in tall, 1.8 in base, 2.4 oz
• Pawn: 2.25 in tall, 1.4 in base, 1.23 oz

It comes with two. There are four queens in the box, one spare in each color, so a pawn reaching the eighth rank never has to stop the game while somebody hunts for an upturned rook.

There is no separate quiver or shoulder bag. The game box is the carry case: the board, the pieces, the two drawstring bags and the strategy guide all pack back into it, and it is sized to slide into a backpack or a satchel.

Yes, that is exactly what it is built for. The silicone board is 20 by 20 inches with 2.25 inch squares, the quadruple weighted pieces come to 4 lb, and the complete set weighs 5 lb boxed.

Yes. You can download it from the strategy guide page, where it is also available in Spanish, Italian, French and German.

The set arrives in its own printed game box, so it does not need wrapping to be handed over.

If you are sending it straight to someone else, put their address in as the shipping address at checkout and it goes to them.

Nothing. Shipping is free on orders of $50 or more to the 48 contiguous states, Washington DC and Canada, and both sets cost more than $50.

We ship Monday to Friday, and your order leaves us within 2 business days of you placing it, by UPS Ground.

Your tracking number is emailed to you as soon as the label is made, so that link is the quickest answer to where a parcel is. If tracking is not moving and you are worried, email us with your order number and we will chase it with the carrier.

Not from this store. We ship to the 48 contiguous states, Washington DC and Canada, and no other destination has a shipping rate at checkout, so an order from anywhere else cannot be completed here.

Both sets are on Amazon in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Spain. If you are in Alaska, Hawaii or outside the US and Canada, that is the way to get one.

Email us as soon as you can, with your order number. Orders leave within 2 business days, so the window is short, but if we catch it before the label goes on the box we can change the address, swap one set for the other, or cancel it outright.

If it has already shipped it becomes a return, and we pay the shipping on that too.

All major credit and debit cards, processed by Shopify Payments, plus PayPal, Shop Pay, Apple Pay and Google Pay. Your card details are handled by the payment provider and never sit with us.

If there is a method you would like us to add, tell us and we will look at it.

From the United States. Customer service is answered by real people, usually within 24 hours.

Yes. Wholesale runs through our trade storefront at bestchesssetever.biz and through Faire.

For anything that does not fit either of those, email b2b@bestknightgames.com and tell us roughly what you need and when.

Twelve months from the day your set is delivered, on anything that is wrong with it. You pick the outcome: a refund, a replacement set, or a single substitute part.

We pay the shipping on every exchange, substitution, replacement and return, so a fault does not cost you postage. Changed your mind instead? Return an unused set within 30 days of delivery for a full refund.

No. There is no form to fill in and no card to send back. Your order is the record, so keep the order number or the receipt and that is all we need from you.

No. If one component is faulty you can exchange just that piece or that board, free of charge, and keep the rest of the set. Returning the whole set for a full refund is also an option if you would rather.

Email customerservice@bestknightgames.com and include:

• your order number, or a photo of the receipt if you bought it in a store
• the shipping address
• a phone number
• photos of the fault
• where you bought the set, and when

We will reply with instructions. Please do not post anything back before you hear from us. Most problems are settled by sending you one replacement piece, which is quicker for you than returning a whole set.

Yes. The 12 month guarantee is ours and it follows the set, not the shop. Email us with the Amazon order number or a photo of the receipt and we will handle it the same way.

Amazon also runs its own 30 day return window on orders placed there. That one is Amazon's policy rather than ours, and it goes through the Amazon returns center.