Product Description

The perfect way to take you chess game on the road! The Drueke travel chess set includes a tough plastic case and metal playing surface that make it basically indestructible. Not only are the pieces highly magnetic, but they are also short enough to fit under the lid while still saving the position. Give the box a shake or tuck it away in your pack, the pieces will hold their position.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6587 in Toys & Games
• Brand: Carrom
• Model: 877.10
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds

Features

• The Drueke Travel Magnetic Chess set is a quality travel chess set.
• Pieces include strong magnets to hold them in place during travel.
• Board Size: 1" tall, 8" square
• Weight: approx. 1 lb

Customer Reviews

A very versatile little set
The great thing about this particular magnetic travel set is that if you have to leave before the game is over, you just put the lid on. So many other travel magnetic sets force you to take all the pieces off the board and store them inside the folding board. I use this one on the train on my way to work; I read an instructional chess book and follow along on this set. When the ride is over, I mark my spot in the book, put the lid on the set, and they both go in my backpack until the ride home. (the pieces don't move either, even after carrying my backpack around) The pieces are of a unique design with an octagonal base. Drueke (the company that makes these) refers to the pieces as "fully scaled". What this means is that they are all (except the pawns) about the same height, so that the most possible detail can be shown.

Like any nice set, the knights have great detail. They are really quite beautiful for a set in this range.

My only complaint is that the magnets are ever so slightly loose on a couple of pieces. (hence the 4 star rating for durability) This is a quality control issue that Carrom (parent company of Drueke) needs to address. When the magnet on my white queen finally gives out, I'm sure it will be easily fixed with a bit of super glue. Even knowing this, I would buy this set again in a heartbeat.

The only good alternatives that I can think of are some small magnetic and pegged wooden sets sold by House of Jaques on ebay, but they cost a lot more, and will surely not be as durable.

The case on this set is made of a very tough plastic. It is not brittle at all, and takes the beatings that it should with perfect grace. The playing surface is sheet steel (for good magnetic properties) finished in gold and black; very elegant. The magnets are glued directly onto the bottoms of the pieces; there is no felt to hinder the magnetism. This means that if you drag the pieces around instead of picking them up and moving them, the finish will be scratched over time. (I've read reviews of this set enduring 20 years of constant use before needing replacement)

For those of us who are used to playing with tournament sized sets and boards, the squares may seem a bit crowded. The pieces nearly fill up the squares. (just like nearly every other travel magnetic set) Tournament pieces and boards have plenty of room, even with a 3 3/4" size king. (square size = 2 1/4" square)

Most magnetic sets are really cheap Chinese things now. I don't know where this one is made, but they spent the same money to make a quality plastic set that they would have to make a crappy wooden one.

great set
This set is great: it is small and compact, the magnets are strong enough that the pieces stay put even when the board is sideways or upside down, and when the cover is on, the pieces can be left on the board to keep a game in progress going. My 5 year old son, a chess fanatic, declares this is his favorite toy, and has taken to carrying his current game in progress with him wherever he goes around the house or in the car.

The only complaint I have about this set is durability. Two things: 1) the pieces have a tendency to detach from the magnetic bases. Although the bases are easily snapped back on, it is a bit annoying when you lift a piece to make your move and find that you have left behind the magnetic base. We are considering simply using super glue to permanantly attach the magnets to the pieces. 2) the board has a shiny finish which, after just a few weeks regular use, is showing many scratches. I expect in a couple of months it will look pretty banged up.

However, shiny looks are not nearly as important to us as how well the board works, and this is the only board we've seen that allows my on-the-go son to carry his games in progress with him everywhere, so we are still very happy with the product.

Perfect portable chess set
This is the perfect portable chess set. The cover fits under the board when in use. You can stop in the middle of a game and replace the cover to keep the pieces from getting moved. It is magnetic to keep any jostling from moving the pieces. It is a reasonable size - small enough to be conveniently portable, large enough to be fun to play. I've given these as gifts and have two sets myself for travel chess and working through problems while reading chess books. There is a wide boarder around the board where the captured pieces can be placed, leaving all the pieces attached to the board. This is a superbly designed travel chess set.