Buying equipment for myself

[Andy]

I started playing go about 8 years ago and have started taking it more seriously lately. I play go or solve a bit of tsumego every day and would like to buy some new equipment for myself, but have no experience with different kind of equipment.
After having done some research on my own I have found what I think I will buy and would like some questions answered and if you have any other general comment either about the equipment I think of buying or equipment in general please post it as anything will help me make a decision at the moment. If you know of cheap but good places to buy equipment in Japan that would be aprreciated as well.

For the board I am thinking of this (2 inch/5cm Hiba board):
http://www.igo-shogi.co.jp/cgi-bin/sale ... c=00000026

Question 1: How is Hiba for a material for the board? I'm hearing good stuff about it, but I can't find a good comparison of it where it is compared to other types of wood. Especially, how is it compared to shin-kaya?
Question 2: I would really like one where I can screw off the legs like on this one, but I can get the same board without legs for 15 000 yen instead of 22 000 yen which is almost 1/3 cheaper. Is legs really worth it? Do any of you have experience with boards with legs?

For stones I am thinking of either of these sets (clam-shell and slate stones, 10.1mm Tsuki/10.7 Jitsuyo):
http://www.igo-shogi.co.jp/cgi-bin/sale ... c=00000092
http://www.igo-shogi.co.jp/cgi-bin/sale ... c=00000075

Question 1: How is the feel different from Jitsuyo and Tsuki stones?
Question 2: From what I gather you won't need anything better than Jitsuyo stones on a 2 inch/5cm Hiba board. Why is this? Will having Tsuki stones for this kind of board be redundant? What if I got a shin-kaya board instead?

These are the bowls I am going for (cherrywood):
http://www.igo-shogi.co.jp/cgi-bin/sale ... c=00000129

Question 1: Are these bowls big enough to hold 10-11mm stones?
Question 2: Are there any other kind of wood you would recommend?

As I said earlier any type of comments are welcomed, this was also posted on the EGFs new forums (I hope the mods here forgive me for pointing towards those )

[EdLee]

Hi Andy,

How is Hiba for a material for the board? I'm hearing good stuff about it... how is it compared to shin-kaya?

Years ago a friend had a nice hiba board, about 2" (~51mm) thick.
It's very nice. The color felt like it was almost white. I use 2.25" (57mm) shinkaya Japanese table boards,
shown in my avatar. Both hiba and shinkaya Japanese table boards are very nice.
You'll be happy with either one. If price is a factor, pick the lower priced one.

Is legs really worth it? Do any of you have experience with boards with legs?

I don't have experience with boards with legs. But I think this is entirely your personal call,
your preference. I actually don't like the intricate, ornate design of the traditional legs.

This is the first time I've seen another leg design, from your website, thanks.

15.jpg (33.78 KiB) Viewed 4285 times

To prop up my 2.25" shinkaya table board as a floor board, I actually use another
floor board as the base. ( The old floor board is ~4", ~102 mm, made from one solid piece of wood,
quite heavy, and possibly over 100 years old, but in bad condition. )
For me, I would rather use my own piece of furniture to prop up a table board
as a floor board, instead of getting a floor board with the traditional legs.

How is the feel different from Jitsuyo and Tsuki stones?

Given the same size stones, there is no difference in touch between jitsuyo, tsuki, and yuki.
The clam stones are all very highly polished (and waxed, when bought new).
The difference is in the looks, not in the touch.
For the board and bowls you're considering, I highly recommend Size 38 (10.7mm) jitsuyo slate & shell stones.
I think Size 38 works very nicely across a wide range of board thicknesses, from 1" (~25 mm) to over 6" (152 mm+).

Enjoy.

[Andy]

Thank you, your answers, they are helping a lot
I'll probably be looking at Jitsuyo stones for my first set of clam-shell and slate stones then, and in many years I "might" go for something else

[judicata]

EdLee's response is spot on. But I prefer stones to be a bit smaller--closer to 9.0-9.5mm (around size 33). Stone size is a very personal thing, so I would try to spend some time playing with stones of different sizes (regardless of material--glass, shell, whatever) before investing in some nice stones.

[oren]

Where in Japan are you at?

[Andy]

EdLee's response is spot on. But I prefer stones to be a bit smaller--closer to 9.0-9.5mm (around size 33). Stone size is a very personal thing, so I would try to spend some time playing with stones of different sizes (regardless of material--glass, shell, whatever) before investing in some nice stones.

Where I live we don't have too many stone sizes available, but I'll see what I can find!

Where in Japan are you at?

It is my friend who is in Japan at the moment, he is 1 hour away from Tokyo, I'll find out where he is at tomorrow.

[EdLee]

Where I live we don't have too many stone sizes available

Mr. Kuroki sells sample packets of 10 stones each. Other equipment manufacturers probably also offer something similar.
As judicata mentioned, stone size preference is quite personal. It took a few years
to find my (current) favorite size.