Hermann Ohme set - question

Hi all. My preference has always been for non-Staunton sets esp. modern designs. Naturally that would include the Hermann Ohme set. I have seen originals in wood, which are exquisite - but probably very rare, and presumably way beyond what I can afford. That leaves two options: the plastic originals copyrighted 1960 (they come up quite often on eBay) or the Chess Bazaar one. 

My question is twofold: a) has anybody got both, and if yes, how accurate is the CB version, and how does it compare to original, aesthetically speaking? b) is CB version not an infringement of copyright?

According to worldchesshof.org :

Haverumwilltravel, I just did an online search (for an original wooden set  )- and stumbled upon this: the original patent filed by Ohme. So it answers my question above. The patent was taken out in 1954 and was for 14 years.

"Owned in the past?" You gave this one away?

Elliot's should be called the "Brancusi" set :-). 

1. My father is Herman Ohme. That is accurate that he sold his patent and went on to teach and later he got his doctorate in education and went on to educational administration. I loved to watch him make the wooden sets by hand in our garage. They are cherished throughout our family. Every piece was hand made with care and skill. The pieces came two of the same piece connected at the top in a very rough form. He sawed them into two pieces and sanded them, drilled the hole in the bottom where he poured in liquid lead. He lacquered  each piece and glued on the felt at the very end. Definitely hold out for one of his original wooden sets. He also made chess boards. He was  a medic in the army in ww2 in The First US Army. He was a scholar. He learned French while he was serving in ww2.  Chess, photography, and classical music sustained him through the horror of the war. He had a true passion for chess and it stayed with him throughout his life.  I had always heard that his set won a design award in Russia. He lived a long full life and died 4 years ago. 

Wow, thank you Kohme2 for sharing that information about your father, his design is beautiful. 

Mutter Erde

what is the size of the king?

11,5 cm/4,5 inches for the kings.. and the queens alike.

that's pretty rare - I think it was one one of his hand-made sets ... maybe an expert can confirm this

Thank you. It is an old set and it is beautifully done, I think it is wonderful and it may well be an original Ohme. Still, it differs from the patented design you have shown here in two of the pieces, queen and knight. As indicated, the queens are made to exactly match the kings in height. Also, their head or crown has no rim. The knights- this happens not to show in the photo- have no 'chin up' angle and their head in profile is shorter. None of the alterations are accidental and they look very good themselves, to my eyes at least. I am going to add a few more photos in a couple of days.

Here are 2 more photos. The box which is a large box of 8,5 x 16,3 x 29cm bears no signs. From where and when could it be?

My guess is that it is a local copy by a German hobbyist or craftsman of the Ohmes set. I don't think the Ohmes's sets were made in maple...

Why not maple? Just curious. Do you know the black pieces material, too? Glad people make arts & crafts their hobby