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Chess Pieces

Chess pieces are available around the world in an endless variety of styles and materials. The playing pieces in a chess set are often what give a chess set its unique style or theme. The quality of the pieces is also the largest factor in the quality of the set. Pieces without enough weight will fall over easily, distracting from the game, and often causing pieces to be misplaced on the board.   

Woods, marble, plastics, stones and metals are only some of the many materials used to create chess pieces. Traditional chess pieces consist of one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, 2 knights and eight pawns, all shaped in the classic designs. There are, however, many different versions of these chess pieces; for example a collectable set will have the “king piece” as a different character such as a dog with a crown or the main character off a movie or television series.

There are three different weights of chess pieces: single weighted (15-25 grams), double weighted (30-50 grams) and triple weighted (50-115 grams). A lot of the materials used to make the pieces need no added weight because they are naturally heavy enough, such as metal, stone, and Marble, although they will sometimes have a little extra weight added. Most woods and all plastics need extra weight added.

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