Life In 19x19

I just got done buying

http://www.amazon.com/Glass-Go-Stones-JangStone-No-2/dp/B000E4BASS/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Just to realize the competition size stone is 8.8 - 9.2mm, and I got 8.5mm.

I have read the reviews and they all say the stone still feels good in the hand.


Do you think an 8.5mm will still have a good feel?

You can feel the difference between 8.5 mm and 9.2 mm, but the difference between 8.5 and 8.8 is really very small. I doubt anyone would be able to distinguish between them just from playing with them.

It can take quite some time (say, years of constant use) to find your favorite size --
8.8mm (32), 9.2mm (33), 9.8mm (35), 10.1mm (36), or 10.7mm (38), etc.

After a while, some people can tell the difference of 0.3mm increments by touch.

Uzziel wrote:to realize the competition size stone is 8.8 - 9.2mm...

Which competition(s)? Many AGA tourneys use the weighted, plastic ING stones,
which feel about size 36 (10.1mm) but I haven't measured them.

Some Chinese pro tourneys use the flat single-concave clay stones (8.0mm? I'm not sure).

Top Japanese and Korean pro tourneys probably use around size 38 (10.7mm) or thicker,
but we don't have to worry about that so much.

There is no rule about what size stone is "right". Whatever works for you is right. I knew a professional player who said that he enjoyed playing with all sizes from 8.0 to 9.8 mm He didn't like smaller or larger sizes. By the way, it should be mentioned that quality control for glass (or yunzi) stones is not strict enough to distinguish one or two millimeter differences consistently. Size 31, as mentioned in the Amazon page, is actually supposed to be 8.4 mm but I doubt the thickness of the actual stones will be that precise.

Yea sorry I just read on a site that 8.8-9.1 is the common size that feels good for common players.

I am getting sucked into the equipment it is part of the fascination and being extremely detail oriented with the miniscule.

If I did not have what I considered an aesthetically pleasing set I feel I would have a hard time focusing my time and energy to learn.(May be an excuse )

To each his own, but I do not just enjoy the game for its complexity, but also for its simplicity (as long as the details are right ).

I enjoy the look of bigger stones and I thought 8.5mm was decently big, and now (after seen a comparison) it is about mid-range. Unforunately (after spending $125 on a board) it is probably the only thing I could have afforded anyway .

Hopefully it is a good starting stone, and maybe in the future I can move up to a bigger size around what EdLee uses.

When you spend quite a bit of money you just want to make sure what you are getting is going to suit you well as it is what you will be using for a long time to come.



Thanks for all the responses.

1) Who sells weighted plastic ING stones? My google searches turn up nothing useful.

2) I can't seem to find glass stones any larger than 10mm. Is that as large as they get in glass? Would I have to turn to expensive slate and shell stones in order to get stones thicker than 10mm?

zslane wrote:1) Who sells weighted plastic ING stones? My google searches turn up nothing useful.

Good question. I'm curious about this too. They are great for the coffee shop/bookstore scene, where stones are often dropped.
Glass stones chip easily, but the weighted plastic ING stones are practically indestructible,
so they are excellent for go club use.

zslane wrote:2) I can't seem to find glass stones any larger than 10mm. Is that as large as they get in glass?

Many years ago a friend from Japan has a set of high-end Japanese glass stones,
I think they were over 11mm, and had a matte surface, which is quite unusual, different from
the common glossy white glass stones. I don't know where she got that set, but at least it existed.

Yunzi 11.6mm (size 41)

Ing stones and Ing Bowls listed as "10mm"

zslane wrote:[..]

2) I can't seem to find glass stones any larger than 10mm [..]

Hebsacker-Verlag in Germany offers 21.5 x 11 mm glass stones for 48 € plus shipping to most (if not all) of Europe, I don’t know whether they also ship elsewhere but I’m sure they’ll tell if you ask.

Thanks for all those links!

I think I may give the 10mm ING stones a try from Yutopian. Does anyone know where in Los Angeles they are located? Do they allow local pickup of purchased items by any chance?

Just out of curiosity, and please forgive if this is a dumb question, are all glass stones created equal? In other words, are they all equally susceptible to chipping? Are Japanese glass stones any more or less durable than Korean glass stones?

Whether you use glass, yunzi, slate or shell stones, I have found that they are all susceptible to chipping. If you don't want chipped stones, you can try plastic or even metal stones

zslane wrote:Just out of curiosity, and please forgive if this is a dumb question, are all glass stones created equal? In other words, are they all equally susceptible to chipping? Are Japanese glass stones any more or less durable than Korean glass stones?

More or less durable? No, glass is more or less "glass" in mass production of toys like marbles and ubiquitous go stones. Higher quality ceramic and glass compounds are available—and you can feel the difference—but they all will chip if struck at the right angle with sufficient force. Try to play on or over a carpeted floor.

Over the decades, I have owned many sets of Japanese, Korean and Chinese sourced go stones made of ceramics, glasses and plastics. The quality of a Japanese set of 9mm (acquired in the early 1980s from Ishi Press for $60) is amazing. I still have them and even the Japanese mfrs are not making stones of this quality any longer. From that same era, I had some Korean stones (found in a grocery store for $12) that were irregular and easily damaged. Chinese Ing sets from the mid-1990s were precisely manufactured but after about 15 years they started to separate or the interior weight started to rattle around. I do not know what the current version is like. I have also owned (and kept or passed on to other players) several sets of expensive and cheap flat Chinese and Yunzi stones made of ceramics and that lovely green glass. They were all quite well made but no more durable than anything else.

I own big glass stones, I've played with yunzi and slate and shell.

But to be completely honest, I love the feel of those thick ing stones the best. Maybe they look ugly but nothing has the grip of ING.

I ordered a set of 10mm plastic ING stones from Yutopia. I'm looking forward to giving them a try.