Chess Board
Despite not enjoying chess, I made this chess board for my colleagues to play on. This is to replace a small travel board they were using regularly at work (during their breaks only, naturally). The pieces are heavily inspired by this video where I took the same premise of making the pieces on the table saw but chose to modify the proportions. To choose the proportions, a parametric CAD design was drawn for each type of piece and multiple version were produced. Choosing the best of these, the parameters were tweaked further by hand until a preference for ratios was found. The board design is original, and the thin trim of ash is used to create contrast between the oak/sapele board and the sapele boarder. The squares are mounted to a 20 mm thick sheet of MDF to improve stability/prevent warping. A full model of the board was made using a 45 mm square size as the fixed parameter. The scale of the pieces was then adjusted until they looked good on the virtual board. When making a prototype for the king, it was clear there was a mistake so it was refined even further. In the end the pawns were 20 mm square profile and 25 mm square for the pieces. To store the material, a box was designed and made. The lid was friction fit but over time has shrunk to be slightly loose. Inserts and a sheet of felt ensure a snug fit. The board, box and material were made using only a thicknesser, table saw, hand planes and sand paper. Finished with danish oil and furniture wax.