Chess Bazaar World Championship Set vs. Official World Champ Set

I like the simplicity the knight, the way it's carved. Stylistically that really makes it appear part of the set. But to me it looks more like a dog than a horse. That's my only criticism. 

Thanks to @sound67 & @Eyechess, I finally got myself a FIDE World Championship Chess Set in Sheesham wood from ChessByInda. Aside from some minor cleaning to do (such as cutting loose strings on the felts, wiping out some wood dust on bishop's mitres' cuts and rook's crenellations), this is a terrific set that blew my expectations. I'm also shocked at how great the knight feels & handles. It has become my favorite piece in this set! Enjoy the photos. 

Thank you for taking the time to take pics and post. How long did it take from order placement to arrival? Was the set packaged in generic CBI box? Any WorldChess branding anywhere?

@Pawnerai, It took 16 days from placement of order to arrival via FedEx. About a week was spent waiting for customs clearance. The set was packaged in a generic CBI box. No Worldchess branding anywhere. Otherwise, all the pieces were individually packed inside using foam.

@zagryan Does the King finial knob top have that same dimensional quality like the Queen's finial knob top? Like a 3D gem? Or is it more flat on the front and back side. I can't really tell from the photos because of the DOF from the lens.

And may trouble you for an additional pic of the knight straight on, similar in angle to the pic @Eyechess took in the original post#1? I would love to compare the snout. So far it looks like a spot on repro. Would you say that it's "100%" accurate as CBI proclaims in its product description? Thanks again for your time.

@Pawnerai, Not sure what features you're after but here are additional photos taken with my Samsung phone instead of a digital camera. Since I have never handled THE official WCC set, it is impossible for me to state how authentic the CBI pieces are. 

Lookin' good. That first photo really shows the heft of the Knights. Looks like a great repro for the price. Thanks!

Below is a video of the World Chess set in detail from all angles. And close up. Excuse the creepy music. Hah.

Video of World Chess set in detail.

@theendgame3, The one you referenced is the first version knight. 

@theendgame3 Where is that top photo from? It looks like the ChessBazaar repro referenced in Eyechess original Post#1.

Interesting. The current Chess Bazaar repro Knight looks to be based on the old (2013) Official World Chess carving. So when the CB carving is compared to the current (2018) Official 2018 WC carving, it's not that the CB Knight is wrong, it's just based on a different year. 

Here's a video of the old (2013) WC set unboxing posted in 2013.

2013 Official WC set unboxing

My understanding is that WorldChess has not bothered to update their stock photos when the knight was subtly changed by their Indian supplier. Here's a past thread discussing this change: https://www.chess.com/forum/view/chess-equipment/fide-official-world-chess-set-changed

@theendgame3, Here's a friendly suggestion. Why not get yourself the authentic set from WorldChess and prove to everyone here that they are indeed different from CBI?

Unless he is talking about a different CB set than the one they sold about 2 years ago, before no longer offering this reproduction at all, you can see my comparison of the Official one I bought to the CB one I bought about 2 years ago at the beginning of this topic.

@Eyechess, it's CBI as in ChessByIndia, not CB as in Chess Bazaar. @theendgame3 is trying to point out the difference between CBI and WorldChess. Sorry for hijacking your thread.

Not interested in this set until they fix the sickly looking knight and offer it in something other than black.

That is one butt-ugly knight.

@loubalch & @neveraskmeforadraw, You're absolutely right. There's no in between for this knight. You either like it or don't. I didn't like how it looked when I first saw photos on the internet. But it turned out to be just a first impression. In real life, they're different. And the knight has become my favorite piece in this set.

@Eyechess wrote an excellent explanation for this discrepancy early in this thread: "When you have a chess set in real life, on a board and are handling the pieces as in play, it matters.  Pictures on the internet fall short.  And the majority of these pictures are a side view profile.  When you play with a set, the side view is not used unless you stoop down to table top level."

In the end, how a particular piece looks and handles is a matter of personal taste. Hope you find your favorite piece whatever that may turn out to be.

Of course you are right.  The Chess By India World Championship reproduction does look the same as the older or original model that has since been changed to the later version with a more full Knight body.

And the change is why I bought the Chess Bazaar version and then the Official one.  I prefer the fuller Knight version.

And when I just went to the CBI web page it said that this set had a minimum of 2 sets that had to be ordered.

These are ChessByIndia's version of the knight from the Official World Chess Championship chess set. IMHO, they look closer to Chavet knight than the early version of the official one.