Travel chess set options

I would like to replace my tournament board for something smaller that I can play on smaller tables when I go to my club and when I travel. I’m looking at 2 different sets and want some inputs..

The first board below is cardboard lined with leather that is also magnetic. I like the size and ease of pieces putting away and like the set overall the most.

www.chesshouse.com/collections/travel-chess-sets/products/9-milled-leather-travel-magnetic-chess-set-with-wood-pieces

The second set is close to size but is real wood with magnetic pieces: I like that it has a handle to hold the board. I’m not impressed with the piece slots to put away as it takes forever! But this is still a contender.

www.chesshouse.com/collections/travel-chess-sets/products/8-magnetic-travel-chess-set-in-rosewood

I’m open to other options. I’m not a big fan of magnetic pieces as I like the feel of capturing pieces. But I’m just trying to look for an alternative as the reasons I mentioned above.

How long does it take that board to flatten out the crease if it does? Thank you.

Would you recommend it for 2 player club play?

Got it. Thank you.

I own the 8-inch magnetic travel set from Chess House, mentioned above. I was disappointed with it, in general. It was out-of-stock for a long time before I could get it. For the price ($70-85 + shipping), I expected a higher quality set. The board is actually great, but the pieces have so much finish on them, they are almost "plastisized". In addition, the felt is pretty thin and the underside of the pieces were scraping/marring the board. I contacted Chess House and they held true to trying to provide the best customer service and sent a replacement set of pieces and asked me to return a full set of pieces that I thought were poorly felted. Unfortunately, this left me with a set of pieces that are sort of "the-best-of-the-worst" and a really nice board with some light scratches on it. Some players may not mind the clicking and tapping of the pieces on the board, but for the price, I expected more. I hope your experience is better if you choose this set.

Here's one data point. I have a 12" folding, wooden, magnetic chess set with 1⅜" squares, and I think it is barely playable with family members. I suggest something larger if you expect to play with friends or strangers. I see many options for larger folding, magnetic sets, but I only in wood, which would not be weather resistant, if that matters where you play in the park.

I like pegged chess sets for travel. I mentioned my reasons and shared some set images in a thread dedicated to them. Here's an image of a smaller set that seems to have been available at Chess House (since this seller was mentioned already in this thread): https://www.chesshouse.com/cdn/shop/products/single-replacement-pieces-7-5-folding-pegged-golden-rosewood-chess-set-11968260702295.jpg?v=1575932300&width=700. They seem to also have larger sets - 15" and 16".

If you like to slide pieces when moving, a pegged set is not for you, but otherwise it's a great alternative to magnetic sets.

Not so much as because of the nuisance of handling small pieces in a small space., but YMMV

I have the "Chessnut Go" and the "14'' large Golden Rosewood & Maple Wooden Inlaid Magnetic chess set board for travel" from Royal Chess. Both are really nice and easy to bring to a coffee to play with friends. The magnetic thing is strong enough to avoid random incoming bump but light enough to forget it presence.