Recommendations for a Speed Chess Set?

I'm going to be playing significantly more blitz and bullet chess in less clean spaces, including on stone tables outdoors.  Does anyone have some recommendations for durable chess pieces, boards, and clocks for speed chess?  I paid an arm and a leg for my VTEK clock, and I obviously don't want to carry that all over the place, and risk having it knocked off a table in a slap battle.  Suggestions as far a durability and whatnot?  I figured most of you will suggest simply getting a vinyl roll-up board.  (My current board is a mousepad board, and I obviously don't want that catching preliminary raindrops when playing outside, or anything like that... and I imagine car exhausts make the mousepad boards blacken quickly.)

Thanks for suggestions.

This is a great topic and question.

Let's first talk about the boards.  A silicone board is what I would use.  It has no cloth or other material backing.  The silicone is all the board is made of and will therefore resist water and stains from above and below. 

The problem with a vinyl board is the cloth backing that can get pretty dirty and stained.  And I agree that a mousepad board will get too dirty, one of mine did.

Now, let's move on to the pieces.  I would look for a triple weighted plastic set that has pretty wide bases and won't tip too easily.

Of these I would look at this one from The Chess House:

http://www.chesshouse.com/3_3_4_Commander_Staunton_Chess_Pieces_p/e150.htm

Look at how wide those bases are.

Here's one from ChessUSA, also known as Your Move Chess and Games:

http://www.chessusa.com/product/61-206.html

And here's one from The Chess Store that looks good:

https://thechessstore.com/protourney-plastic-chess-set-black-camel-pieces-3-75-king/

When it comes to the clock, I think you would want a clock with a very visible display.  If you don't mind the touch sensors, I would look at the ZMF-II.  It's less expensive than the others.  The LED displays are pretty easy to see and it looks to hold up with use.  I used to own one.  Personally I would go for the white number display if you can find one, great contrast.

The ZMF Pro actually was the first clock I thought of for this.  The only problem might be the higher cost and still the touch senosrs instead of buttons.

If you want buttons, I would get a Chronos GX.  Wholesale Chess has sales where the cost of this clock is downright low.  I know because I bought one last Labor Day weekend when they had a sale, and I paid in the 80 dollar range for mine.

Of course you will want a bag to hold it all, but all the places have them pretty cheap.

Good luck and let us know what you get.

David, if you think yiou want a silicone board, pm me.

I keep a silicone board with my HoS Liberty Series set and an old Chronos II clock as my blitz and skittles set.  I also keep a vinyl board with the silicone one.

I use the vinyl board when I want to be able to turn it all around between games.

The silicone one is great in areas that might see some spillage or splattering if food or drink.

Silicone boards are awesome.  In addition to them being spill resistant, you can literally wad the board into a ball and carry it around in a backpack if you want and they will still lay flat.  A couple of things you should know before buying a silicone board.  First, If you like rotating the board between games, it is very hard to do on a silicone board.  Second, the texture of the silicone board is different than a vinyl board.  You need to get used to the different "feel" when you move the pieces on a silicone board.  The board "grips" the pieces.  Also, if you have a bottom felt backing to your pieces, sometimes the pieces "stick" instead of "slide" when you move them on a silicone board.  Third, if you are into aesthetics, the the colors on a silicone board are a bit more muted than they would be on a vinyl board.  For example, that royal blue won't visually "pop" on a silicone board.  Other than those minor points, I highly recommend silicone boards.

I would get triple weighted pieces so that they don't get knocked over as easily when playing blitz.

I'm not an expert on clocks.

Edit:  Damn, I like quotation marks.

I would for sure get a chronos GX.  sure they are more expensive, but they are built like tanks

If you ask me,then definitely BCE Chess set.I have it for two years and not a single piece was ever knocked over.

They're wood.  They would be destroyed in weeks.  In G/2 and G/3, they will get knocked over, and probably hit the concrete 2 or 3 times in a session.  I'm looking for plastic, without a doubt.

Surprisingly the sets outside the St Louis Chess Club are all wood and they get a lot of blitz played with them. 

Those are very similar to the VTEK I got, and they are also tanks.  Maybe that's what I need to do, just get a second tank that can take a beating exclusively for street chess.  I've heard people having issues with the galvanized paddles becoming de-sensitized.  Any experience with that?

Thanks, Eugene.  Do you have a link to the set or a similar set for consideration?

No....no...and no

looking at the website here are the features of the board:

1. "300 euros"....yikes

2. "No redundant design. It’s the 21st century." What the heck does that mean.

3. "Weighted. Perfect weight to size ratio." ok but then for 400 euros i can get "Double weighted. More perfect weight to size ratio."......really now, come on.

4. "5 rook crenelations. Looks better than six. Four is for puss****."......ok i get it, they are trying to be cool...but Im sorry, no one should have to pay 300 euros for an extra rook crenelation.

Guys who recommend silicone: I wasn't even aware of those boards.  i can't believe I haven't seen them in USCF tournaments.  I've arrange to get my hands one of them for this purpose.  It seems to be exactly what I'm looking for.

The price is definitely right.  Now, I have to estimate whether I would go through 3 of these in more time that the comparably priced Chronos GX.

not sure what you mean by galvanized paddles....the touch sensors?? i have push button because i like to be able to hit the clock with a piece in my hand sometimes.

technically, they could be argued against at USCF tournaments because they are not opaque and dont allow for easy movement of peieces

They have to change those wooden sets out (or some sets are brought by private owners), if they were in good shape.  The set I saw outside being used was pretty busted up.

Thanks for the suggestions.  They seem solid.  The pieces might be what I'm looking for.  I wish I could see what kind of plastic they are made of.  My Ultimate chessmen, for example, are hard plastic, and so crack.  Softer plastics seem unbreakable.

True that the peices don't slide well but mine is opaque.

For the pieces, you might consider the King's Indian from Legend Products.  It's a great blitz set, IMHO, very robust and durable. 

They are currently being sold also on eBay.  Here's mine: