How do I flatten or level a warped tournament board?

Hello chess community, I have a question for you how do I eliminate a warp in a tournament chessboard? I received my board from the HOS a few months ago but didn't realize the warp right away. Here are some photos to highlight the areas of concern. I have other boards comprised of wood, vinyl and silicone that I use quite often and wondered if there is a practical remedy to fix this minor issue? Any suggestions of help would be most appreciated. Thank you kindly....Best regards...Jorge.

I don't own any clamps or shop tools that would expedite the work at hand and the only thing I could logically come up with is to dampen the wood on the bottom surface not the playing side with a damp sponge or rag and place it underneath a heavy object, in lieu of clamps,  that would cover the entire surface for a period of 24 hours to see if it levels out. It's the only thing I could think of at the time. Again if a better method exists that doesn't involve too much cost I'd welcome your ideas. Thanks once again....BR...Jorge.

I would give a call to The House of Staunton.  Hit Option #3 and talk with the guys telling them of the problem.

I would go with what Eyechess said.  That is the only way you might get it resolved, please report back and tell us what they will do for you. 

  Park your car on it overnight. 

That would be really annoying. Ask HOS customer service center so that they take action.

Ok I will speak to Scott from the HOS when I have the opportunity. Thank you all for your responses. That may not fly as well because I had imprinted a personal rubber ID stamp using India ink on the A8 light square and on the bottom non-playing side for identifying purposes when I take the board with me to certain parks where they have tournaments. Since it's been "defaced" by my rubber stamping I don't think Scott will accept it for an exchange. I will try though, again thank you for the help...BR...Jorge.

I am wondering where you live. Warping in wood is caused by large changes in humidity or repeated exposure to moisture.  Wetting down the surface probably wouldn't provide enough moisture in the center of the wood to allow the wood to be releveled and could very well lead to cracking in the surface that you wet.

http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/finishing/water-warps-wood-opposite-from-what-you-may-think

I have a warped board. I bought it warped, very cheap buy. It moved a little when playing so I felted the entire bottom as nd now it doesn't move as much. I bought it because I like the old age of it and now it's my all-purpose board. For plastic and wood pieces, indoor and outdoor. This is the only imperfect board of the eight that I own. 

You say you've had it a few months, so it might be difficult to return by now. HS is not known for this. I don't know why they would send you an imperfect board. But I have to say your mistake was to not carefully examine the product as soon you received.

I live in NYC the borough of Queens to be precise and we get our fair share of humidity fluctuations as per seasonal changes which is occurring right as of this moment as I respond. I've had some good customer relations with the HOS but two things are probably going to negate the exchange: 

1. I've waited too long to prompt an exchange (3 months)

2. I had personal stamped the board with my name to it. (update: removed the rubber stamped markings with fine grit sandpaper looks new now, perhaps an exchange would be more likely now.)

Those 2 factors, totally my mistake, along with not closely inspecting the board when first unpacked will probably fall on deaf ears at the HOS but I will give it a try, one never knows unless an attempt is made.

I'm OK if they say no and will probably use some of the suggestions posted here and messaged to me besides a return to see if I can remedy this condition. Once again thanks for all of your help and insight on this matter. Good day.

My opinion......I do not think the personalization of the board is a factor since they couldn't sell it anyways. In fact I would be surprised if they would make you send the board back since it would cost about $15-$20 to do so. Your pictures say a thousand words and why waste money to get back a warped board. 

superglue a few pennys on bottom of the four corners

Is there an elephant in the room? (You have to check because sometimes nobody talks about it.)

I have this issue sometime when I am making boards.  If you could get some clutch bar clamps from Home Depot or Harbor Freight (typically pretty cheap) and clamp a flat board on the top and the bottom and let it sit in the heat for a few days, that should work. 

Take it to a wood shop equipped with a planner. 2 quick passes, top and bottom, and the board will be flat and level. A little sanding, tung oil, some polishing and good as new. Well in fact, better than the original.

If the wood is veneer, as this one appears to be, you must be careful in planing it.  You might go through the thickness of the veneer and ruin it.

Mr. Professor Pownall,

Thank you for your suggestions but I don't think that would solve the problem completely, in fact it may cause more problems because the board is only a half inch in thickness and planing the board would weaken the structural integrity of the board. I have just emailed Mr. Scott Sandlin Head of Operations at HOS and he told me he told me the board is under warranty so there won't be a problem issuing a new replacement. The problem seems to have been resolved. I won't know until I receive the new board and you can bet your bottom dollar that I will give this new one an ultimate inspection to make sure everything is fine with the  board. I will post an update on this topic as soon as the board arrives.