Silicone - what´s the verdict?

There are chess boards/mats as well as pieces made of silicone. Silicone mats were hyped when they emerged but I think that most players prefer either mouse pad or vinyl roll ups. Sure, it´s a good thing that silicone mats are wrinkle resstant but they are, IMO, horrible to play on and gathers dust and lint like crazy.

When it comes to pieces silicone ones are virtually indestructible and easy to clean or even sterilize. But I prefer hard plastic (or, of course, wood) when it comes to playing.

Any silicone lovers out there?

Chess Sets for Club & Tournament Play

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/chess-sets-for-club-tournament-play

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell

Won't the silicone pieces attract dirt and dust like crazy, too?

This is just my simple personal preference and opinion. I’m a wood guy. Period. I don’t like the plastics, silicones, ceramic and such. I’ll champion everyone’s right to like, purchase, and play with any material they choose. For me, it’s wood all they way around. But like Dylan said, “My name it means nothing, my age it means less. The country i come from is called the Mid-West…”

Different materials for different purposes and environments.

When travelling you can literally crush a tournament size silicone board into your luggage with no ill effects. Leave it crushed for days, weeks, no problem. I have a perfectly enjoyable 12" travel size silicone board with plastic pieces that crushes down to the size of a can of beer. Backyard get-together with burgers, ice cream, drinks, cement patio? Go with the silicone. Silicone pieces are silent. You can dump it out onto a table and not make a sound. Seniors can startle easily with loud noises. Silicone is good for public library setting and kids due to lack of noise as well. Safety issues at correctional institutions (?) No judgement here. LOL

Although I love my Frank Camaratta Sinquefield wood set and walnut Drueke board, when my son has friends over, I would never leave it out. Time to break out the vinyl board and plastic pieces for them.

I have a silicon board that doesn't lie flat. It curves into a wave shape and I can't flatten it. Is this resolvable or should I discard and buy another?

Maybe leave the silicon board in the sun for the afternoon (flat of course)??

I take mine into the water often. Perhaps I should upgrade to silicon.

Do they float?

A few months ago, I was teaching a beginners class at my local library. A woman brought her son ( 6 @ years old) . He was slamming the chesspieces around, and even throwing them, when he was losing the game. This mother was very serious re teaching her son to play chess. I asked her if they had a chess set at home. She replied--"yes, a glass set". I told her that I did not think that her son was ready for that set. I then told her about silicon chess pieces. I hope that she bought one for her son. I never saw them again. The library banned them from the chess course and the library for the rest of the summer.

Silicon is VERY popular with kids for this exact reason.