Castle Theme Chess Board

This instructable will guide you to creating a chess board with a castle-like theme. The reason for the castle theme is because some of the earliest known chess sets dated back to medieval times. The game is one of the most played, and world-wide tournaments are held every year. If this is your first chess set, I hope you enjoy the game and this instructable!

Wood:

One 2" x 4" x 1'

One 7 1/2" x 7 1/2" x 1/4"

One 1/2" x 2" x 30"

Tools:

Wood Burner

Hand Saw

Paint and Paint Brushes

Wood Glue

Clamps or Vise

The types of wood I used for the "towers" is a 2" x 4" split into four pieces, some 1/4" plywood, and a 1/2" x 2" board.

Towers:

Draw a line down the middle of a 2" x 4", length-wise, and a line through the middle width-wise. Cut the long parts first, then proceed to cut both pieces in half.

Chess Board:

To make the board more easily stored, I made it only 7 & 1/2" inches on each side. It was big enough to hold the chess pieces comfortably, but small enough that it would be easy to put away.

Walls:

Cut the 1/2" x 2" board into four equal sized parts, each as long as the sides of the chess board.

To fit the board into onto the towers, you will need to cut a 1/2" x 1/2" square notch in each corner. Simply wood glue the chess board to the towers, and the walls to the chess board as shown in the picture.

I recommend wood burning rather than carving the stone shapes, as it can be faster and easier. The reason for carving notches in the wood for the stones is to give it a more 3D look, and will make the painting step look way better. If you want, you can also wood burn the square tiles on the board. Use a precise measuring tool, such as a caliper, you want the squares all perfectly uniform.

First Coat:

Paint the entire project black, you will need to fill in every little hole and dent.

Second Coat:

Very lightly brush dark grey paint onto the outside of the stones, purposely missing every hole and dent.

Final Coat:

You can paint the tiles any color you want. I tried white, but it heavily contrasted the stones and looked bad, so I tried a light grey, which was perfect.

This project was a birthday present for my brother, who wanted his own chess board. I did not make any pieces, as he wanted to try to whittle his own. To make your own without a lathe, I would recommend making either modern style pieces with little detail, or making you own "hardware style" pieces out of bolts, nuts, and screws. Because I don't have any fitting pieces made yet, I borrowed some from another chess set which unfortunatly had bigger pieces with really wide bases, so I had to remove a couple of pieces for the cover image. The end result of the board though was very pleasing, and turned out exactly as I envisioned it, which rarely happens with any of my projects. I hope you enjoyed this instructable and if you have any questions or comments, please write them in the comments box below. Thank you!