I'm intrigued that it appears to be quarter-sawn wood. I don't think I've seen a go board like it before in that respect. This should be good in terms of the future stability of the board.

Indeed. How many pieces of wood is it made from?

I had a two-piece agathis board that developed a pronounced seam down the middle of the board. This led me to seek out a one-piece agathis replacement board (which I now have). That two-piece board has made me leery of multi-piece board construction in general, even though I understand the reasons behind it. I have a multi-piece 2-sun Kaya shogiban which I am hoping will not develop seams, but only time will tell.

It's difficult to say because it looks like one block of wood. I cannot tell how many pieces it is made from. I think agathis boards are better with single pieces, and shin kaya is better with multiple (although it could also be that agathis trees are larger and easier to make in one block, I don't know).

The Japanese word is "masame" grain. I haven't seen one with grain this good (or pictures) either, I'm very pleased.

Take care to store your board appropriately if you live in a place that requires heating during the winter. I have a 4-piece shin-kaya board and one of the four pieces has changed color dramatically. The wood also shrunk in an uneven way, making the 4-piece composition even more obvious. I still play/study on the board and I don't notice it when I am engrossed in a game, but it looks ugly now. I hope that you take of your board better than I did. Having nice things can be a chore sometimes.

EDIT: Some vague info on this

Got my shin-kaya go board and size-36 glass Go stones from `Go Game Guru' yesterday !!!! It looks like a thinner, more-portable version of the 2.4" one. I'm very happy with the purchase !


In a moment of weakness I also ordered the first Hyuga-kaya table board from this listing -

http://www.kurokigoishi.co.jp/english/o ... index.html

, along with some outlet, size-34 jitsuyo stones and a sakura gosu.

Waiting earnestly for them to arrive. This set I intend to keep at home for playing during the weekend.

My interaction with Kurokigoishi was a bit awkward though I ordered it last weekend, and except for the confirmation page at the end of the order, never got any acknowledgement of order, details of shipping costs etc. I even called up Mr. Kuroki on Tuesday to enquire if my order went through without problems and if he would send me tracking information for the shipment - He said they are shipping the same day and would send me tracking info. in a day...I'm still waiting . If it wasn't for all the good experience others had with Kurokigoishi, I would be worried.

Hopefully my shipment is on its way...

Is it just me or is there some inverse relationship between strength and amount of equipment ordered?

I don't see why.

That's definitely true in my case. But I have to believe that a lot of pros also have prodigious collections. And I'm sure that most rank beginners have little more than a cheap folding board and plastic stones.

If there is a relationship, then it is probably just a statistical accident.

One hypothesis: The people who can afford expensive equipment are probably 1) older and 2) must work hard to earn a level of income that can justify such a purchase. Age is negatively correlated with strength. Amount of work is negatively correlated with free time for study. Therefore the amount of work is negatively correlated with strength. However, this does not indicate a causal relationship in any direction between strength and possession of nice equipment.

We should all applaud the nice folks who keep on buying nice go equipment, go books, and support the go economy with their disposable income. It is thanks to those folks that the go world keeps on rolling.

Toward that end:

PS: I want to buy nice stuff, too. Threads like this give me vicarious satisfaction. I love pictures of boards, so keep them coming!

In my case both the observations are partially true (though I would like to think 30 is not too "old" ). My go equipment far exceeds my ability as a player for now. I'm a full-time particle physicist so I can play and study go only occasionally, but my journey learning go the past month was exhilarating enough to take the plunge

Along the lines of goban buying advice, can anyone recommend a good source of floor goban made from Katsura? The only seller I've come across is Tengudo.jp, who I have dealt with before with good success, but they only have 3-sun and 5-sun options, and I'm looking for 4-sun.

There appears to be a 14-cm (4.6 sun or 46 bu) Katsura at kiseido.com (look for B125)

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As promised, here are some pictures of my reversible, 0.5" Shin Kaya Go board and size-36 glass stones from Go Game Guru. Not sure if the iphone photos do justice- it's a pretty and portable board with a nice color.

These are the pictures of the Hyuga Kaya table goban (1.75-sun, 4 piece composite), extra-large Sakura gosu and size-34 jitsuyo stones from Kurokigoishi. Needless to say, these are masterpieces ! I am going to feel very guilty losing my first 100 (?) games on this

Enjoy -

Now I’m jealous again, kill0! You even got clamshell stones


BTW it might be good to

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Thanks for the tip on the hide tags ! Have now edited it appropriately.

That hyuga kaya board is drool worthy.

Congrats!

This weekend I ordered my first go set featuring a kaya table goban and shell stones:

• Kaya goban size #20 (55mm)
• Slate & shell stones size #36 (10mm)
• Mahogany bowls
• Paulownia cover + cloth cover

I can't wait!

Congrats on your kaya goban. Kaya isn't just beautiful to look at, it also has a pleasant sweet smell.

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A blog on Asian go books, go sightings, and interesting tidbits
Go is such a beautiful game.

Are the lines engraved, or painted?

I love slate stones, they look amazing from here.