Henri Chavet Guide

@Gempjef, very interesting box you have there! First time I see it. It looks like a 100th. commemorative edition.

Hi,

When I see all these great old Chavet sets, I get nearly sad when regarding the current lack of quality. Well, they are still hand carved, but the "savoire faire" - the craftmanship has changed dramatically. Even if local TV is advertising them in some reportages from time to time, the "Made in France" label can quickly become a shame (see cars etc) ...

Got my set in size N°5 one year ago, purchased via the French Chess Federation that are contracting their sales exclusively with an internet vendor named "variantes".

Pieces are not even straight, 2nd choice (B-quality) in polishing and other issues. No 2nd queens available, poor customer service (“French-touch”).

All this covered by "hand-made".

Guess the guys there are getting just older (or younger!), as the machines did not change.

Here are some impressions, only playable on silicon-boards, due to the slippery wooden bottoms.

These imperfections, I try to see them today as a kind of “copy protection”, as Indian stuff is “too perfect” to be authentic.

However, once playing them outdoors, the unique colorings and wood structures are getting valorized and somehow attractive. 

L' Ordures Chavet (Garbage Chavet) strikes again! 

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/chess-equipment/the-current-chavet-sets-are-so-unbelievably-bad-its-comical-enjoy-the-photos?page=1

Living in France, I'm curious why you didn't take the opportunity to return or exchange the product? 

It took me 4-5 emails, photos, and a language barrier over 2 months during Christmas, Queens Gambit mania, and Covid slowdown shutdown to get free replacement pieces here in the US 4000 miles away. The retailer paid for shipping. I still need to fix the loose rattling weights in over half the pieces and then refelt. 

I've grown to love the Garbage Chavet set in a charmingly sad way. Like an ugly stray dog who comes around for food scraps and does nothing all day but lay in the sun. 

They proposed a full refund, but no replacement. 

Thats what they said "We understand ..., unfortunately the imperfections you identified on your chess set are recurring on Chavet pieces."

As I wanted to "have" such a set; I finally decided to keep them... as an "ambassador" of made in France .

They ARE nice, somehow as you described. You just need to have some good wine accompanying the game and even the bishops walk upright again. 

Btw, some month later the FFE stopped their online shop.

http://echecs.asso.fr/Actu.aspx?Ref=10771

@Pawnerai, thanks for sharing your experience. I'm laughing and crying at the same time. From the Sephora recycled box to the "imperfections" on most pieces, it's just unacceptable that a company is selling its products this way, cutting corners on every step of the way. These days are hard for small companies and the carvers making the pieces are probably underpaid and not trained properly or they just lost any interest on their job.

Unfortunately, I have a felling Chavet will never be the same again and old sets will only increase in price though...

@Pawnerai , it seems very much your set, even the leanings of some pieces! but the knights doesn't have eyes, so, is this the same set as yours?

GASP! How dare you even suggest such a thing. My oddly carved, slightly leaning, loose weight rattling, bits of Jura wood posing as a French chess set are still in my possession. 

It's interesting that @Nisse_FR's current No.5 Garbage Chavet** Knights have no eyes. I thought the variations in the Chavet Knight sculpting occurs only between the different sizes. But no, there it is. Chavet Knight sculpting changes with weighting options too (along with different sizes). Unweighted, unfelted No.5 versus my weighted and felted No.5. Learn something new every day.

** I say "Garbage Chavet" with utmost humor reserved for current owners of said Garbage Chavet sets only. Please don't take it too seriously.

Yeah, yeah, of course! I was meaning of the same manufacturer not the set you own! [happy] The fact is that I was wondering if it was the same design as yours but I realised the knights couldn' be because of the eyes, so I thought maybe it's not the same design. Sorry, I don't use to speak english in my dayli life so I can write something diferent as what I wanna say sometimes.

BTW I'm in love with these knights, the ones with the eyes on their faces, In my opinion the most beautiful chavet knights.
Maybe I'll give them a chance and I'll try to make a replica.

@jacmater Purchasing a modern Chavet set is 100% a gamble nowadays. No doubt, there will be issues. You will never get a perfect set. It's just a matter of how many errors are willing to accept? Chavet should be embarrassed that manufacturers make repros of much better quality than Chavet makes themselves.

I would've purchased a repro Chavet instead if it wasn't for the fact that repro Chavet sets are based on No.6 Chavet which does not have Rooks with flared out turrets on top. And of course that interesting Jura wood grain can not be reproduced. 

It appears you'll have to purchase the weighted and felted Chavet No.5 if you want the eyes.

BTW: I completely respect your ability to use a second language. Your worst attempt is much better than my best attempt! Bonne chance!

yes, there are different versions.

The simple standard and the more detailed & weighted/felted.

Added NOS Chavet 121/6 to my collection yeay

Looks great. Any leaners? What size is that again? Size 6?

Ahhhh... 121/6 is the style size number.. Sorry. It's morning here. Still waiting for the coffee to kick in. Hah. Great find!

No leaners as far I can see, just checked it with 50mm lens. The quality of the woods is soso,  there are two pieces with cracks where the knots are and they don't have replacement pieces as it's old stock. But that's okay as I'm already happy to find new 121/6. Yes, it's weighted and felted size 6, to my surprise no loose leads.

Very nice Michael. This was the last style before they stopped making the size 6 completely. The swirls in the wood will tend to disappear over time as the wood takes on a nice darker patina (as long as you use it enough).

Cheers. I'm really thrilled to get it. I intend to fill up the cracks and fine polishing the rough edges as well. It's too beautiful to leave it like that.

Very nice set indeed! It strikes me how most if not all the knights I see from Chavet (unfinished pieces included) are slightly different yet, they somehow keep that little something that makes them special. I know they are carved by hand mostly but still! The angles in the face might change, with or without eyes, the way the nose might point forward or downwards... all beautiful!

The Chavet knights are machine made. There is video online featuring Alain Chavet from 2007 (?) showing some knight being cut. That is why you sometimes get indendations visible in the top of the base where it has been clamped by the machine for cutting the head. I believe the very old (1960s & 70s) Chavet sets were hand carved.

Interesting Audioq. I've read from you saying it several times in the past. Do you have a link to the video you mention? Not that I doubt your words, I just love seeing chess pieces being made. I've watched so many videos from India about this topic! As for Chavet pieces, being made by a machine, I must say they are very inconsistent as every knight I see differs from another set one way or another. I guess what you mean is Chavet carvers use machines live dremels, rotary grinding wheels, etc. to carve the wood, right? That would be totally understandable.

No I mean there are no dremels, turning tools or carvers involved ! There are machine operators who maybe control the speed of the machines and perform finishing etc. Here is a link to a copy of the video. It is not as good as the original, but I can't remember where that was posted. http://laboutiqueajacques.com/Chavet.html#video_tf1 

Thank you so much for sharing the video Audioq! I don't understand french fully but I can definitely see the moment where they are working on a knight. Since we don't see the whole process, I don't know what to say... maybe they are machine made for most of the steps but not all or maybe not for all the series they produce. I know the hair of my B-212 knights are definitely hand carved as they look very rough, uneven and different from each other.  If this was done mechanically all the pieces would look if not the same, very similar and that's not the case on with my set.