Life In 19x19

tchan001 wrote:...kaya is desirable because there is less and less of this wood in any form. Don't expect even chinese kaya to be available for the long term because it is not allowed to be cut in China anymore. Most kaya boards that are Japanese crafted and available today are from old inventory which will be hard to replace as time goes by.

That is really interesting. Could kaya boards be a nice investment vehicle? It might beat a T-bill.

tchan001 wrote:
Pricing and desirability is not only a matter of the highest quality but also of rarity and demand from the market which in the case of hyuga kaya is much much higher than for honkaya boards...

That is why I ordered the best honkaya board that Mr. Kuroki had to offer (in my price range.) The same board would have cost 5-10 times the price if the tree had been harvested in the Hyuga area. At the time that I bought it, it was priced comparably with the finest masame boards from Hyuga, but was of considerably better quality. I could not afford it today, the exchange rate being less favorable, and the selection more limited.

T-bills are infinitely more liquid, however the yield lately is approximately zero, and they are not as much fun to play on.

go west young man wrote:

tchan001 wrote:
Pricing and desirability is not only a matter of the highest quality but also of rarity and demand from the market which in the case of hyuga kaya is much much higher than for honkaya boards...

That is why I ordered the best honkaya board that Mr. Kuroki had to offer (in my price range.) The same board would have cost 5-10 times the price if the tree had been harvested in the Hyuga area. At the time that I bought it, it was priced comparably with the finest masame boards from Hyuga, but was of considerably better quality. I could not afford it today, the exchange rate being less favorable, and the selection more limited.

T-bills are infinitely more liquid, however the yield lately is approximately zero, and they are not as much fun to play on.

It is true that resale of kaya boards would not be very easy. Furthermore, if you want to use a kaya board as an investment it would be wise not to play on it. Dents and other signs of use are inevitable and would affect the value negatively. The market for investment quality boards would mostly be in Japan. The best strategy might be to make some arrangement to store the board in Japan. That way prospective purchasers could examine the board before buying it and there would be no shipment of the board back and forth which would increase the risk of damage.

gowan wrote:if you want to use a kaya board as an investment it would be wise not to play on it. Dents and other signs of use are inevitable and would affect the value negatively. The market for investment quality boards would mostly be in Japan.

I would wholeheartedly agree, there would be little or no market outside of Japan for an ultra-fine quality goban. And I have noticed that some Japanese gentlemen and gentlewomen are rather particular about their belongings, much preferring something brand new, or at least in absolutely pristine condition. Naturally! Who in the world would not rather have a new Mercedes than an old one?

go west young man wrote:

gowan wrote:if you want to use a kaya board as an investment it would be wise not to play on it. Dents and other signs of use are inevitable and would affect the value negatively. The market for investment quality boards would mostly be in Japan.

I would wholeheartedly agree, there would be little or no market outside of Japan for an ultra-fine quality goban. And I have noticed that some Japanese gentlemen and gentlewomen are rather particular about their belongings, much preferring something brand new, or at least in absolutely pristine condition. Naturally! Who in the world would not rather have a new Mercedes than an old one?

Well if it's a classic Mercedes, some would definitely appreciate it more than a new one.
Likewise, if an ultra-fine quality old goban is made and signed by a very important goban maker like Hirai Yoshimatsu 平井芳松 and in reasonably good shape, then you'll be surprised how many Japanese people would want to bid for and how high they would bid for such an auction item.

Just to second what gowan said, patterns in the wood grain are definitely regarded as undesirable in boards that are used for professional play, because of their potential to distract.

That's why, in Korea, Agathis table boards where the playing surface is painted a sort of mustard yellow colour are the standard for professional games (also because the wood doesn't dent as easily). I imagine it also provides more consistency with regards to the setup of TV studio lighting, cameras etc.

While that may seem asinine to some, you have to remember that modern professional go is in many ways another competitive sport now. Think about how much we standardise things for other sports. When money is on the line you want to remove certain factors that could lead to a dispute where you can.

Anyway, if you're buying a board for personal enjoyment you don't need to worry about such things and the aesthetic elements are more important. So you can get one with interesting or beautiful wood grain if you want, you can search out one with a unique history (tchan, the Satsugen board looks fantastic!) or you can get one that's just like the ones pros use. Whatever makes you happy and doesn't break the bank .