Dear all,

I am currently in the process of purchasing a kaya table goban -- a very exciting prospect. I am going through a very reputable dealer Kuroki Goishi, from whom I have bought stones and bowls in the past, and I was very happy with the quality of the product and the service. The question now is whether to buy a Hyuga Kaya board or a Hon-kaya board. I was recommended a beautiful Hon-kaya board 7cm thick made from one piece. My questions is, is there a difference in quality between the famous Hyuga Kaya and Hon-kaya? Any insight would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance!

BT

The choice of a goban should probably be based on the characteristics of the grain as opposed to the specific area of harvest. Most importantly, look for a very even, straight grain on the top of the board, so as not to distract from play. Look for fine, thin growth rings and a reddish color. Red colored kaya has more natural oils in it, and is denser. Kaya grows in other areas of Kyushu, and elsewhere in Japan. Other things being equal, you probably shouldn't pay considerably more for a goban just because it came from a tree grown in Miyazaki. Look for a honkaya board that exemplifies the best qualities of timber in a goban. I believe KGT only uses Japanese T. Nucifera for honkaya boards, and does not import other varieties of torreya, but some shops in tokyo offer gobans of torreya grandis from China.

Thank you very much. This was very helpful. This is an image of the goban I ended up buying -- it is a one piece hon-kaya from the Gifu prefecture (Honshu kaya). Please let me know your thoughts.

BT3: That board is beautiful. Enjoy it!

Gowan: Congrats on your 1000th post =).

Those are just his old GD posts...

Wow, I'm out of it. Thanks for the correction.

You might want to consider how you are going to use this board. Does it have legs? If not, i. e. if it is intended for use on top of a table, it might be a bit too thick. The tops of Western tables at which we sit on chairs tend to be around 30" above the floor and another 2.75" for the thickness of the board might make it awkward for use on such a table. I have a 5 cm thick Hyuga kaya board (three pieces) and I find it hard to see the surface properly when it is on my dining table. In Japan boards like these are used on tables with tops about 24" above the floor. On the other hand, some people have no problem with this. I solved it by using an adjustable desk chair and raising it to its maximum height.

Thank you very much. This was very helpful. This is an image of the goban I ended up buying -- it is a one piece hon-kaya from the Gifu prefecture (Honshu kaya). Please let me know your thoughts.