Luxury Backgammon Sets

LuxuryBackgammon.com is not a company or a business. It isthe website where Mike Weinberger, co-founder of the New OrleansBackgammon Club, displays and “sells” his handmade backgammon setsthat feature African Mahogany and Calf Leather.

The word “sells” is in quotes because each set takes about 150hours of labor and over $300 in raw material to build. This is reallynot a business, therefore, but a passion.

By scrolling down this website you can learn more about theseunique sets and, if you wish, you can contact Mike to order one for$895. The sets are unconditionally guaranteed for life. If for anyreason one breaks, send it to Mike and he will fix it for free and shipit back to you for free, no questions asked.

Mike Weinbergerand Will Hunn, co-founders of theNew Orleans Back-gammon Club.

Because Mike is ab a c k g a m m o nplayer he knowswhat is important toyou, such as thefeel and heft of thecheckers and along lasting playingsurface.

The Case

The case is made out of African Mahogany. It features solidbrass hardware and a cushioned leather handle. It is designed tolast a lifetime. The outside dimensions (closed) are 23.25” x 15.5”and the set comes with tournament size, 1.75” diameter checkers.

Note the protective brasscorners and the beautifulbrass latches. Unlike in-expensive sets that havelatches that can get loose,these latches are held inplace by double-strengthscrews that are set deepinto the solid mahoganyframe.

The Playing Surface

The left and right side playing surfaces are solid sheets of calfleather. The leather is smooth as butter and beautifully hand dyed byMike, personally. The points are also hand dyed in red and black, asopposed to being glued or stiched on, which is critically important.Points that are glued or stiched into place often fray at the edgesand can peel up. Because these points are dyed into solid sheets ofleather they can never fray or peel up. They are a permanent part ofthe solid leather board itself.

An additonal picture of the playing surface appears on thefollowing page

Look Ma! No stichesand no seams!

You would not believehow much work ittook, and how muchleather was ruined,perfecting the systemused to make theseboards. Try hand dy-ing raw leather in 3separate colors (in-cluding the backgroundtan) with nice crispedges. You will find itnext to impossible,which is probably whyno one else does it.

Notice alsothe beautifulwood grainon the handmade, patentpendingcheckers.

More aboutthose later.

The Checkers

The checkers are the part of your backgammon set that youhandle the most. Everything you do revolves around the checkers;they are the heart of the game. For this reason, the checkers in thisset had to be special, and they are.

These are handmade wooden checkers with a twist. In betweenthe beautifully grained layers of wood there is a massive steel insertwhich gives the checkers great weight, about twice the weight of mostplastic checkers. When you lift one of these checkers it’s work. Youdon’t toss them around (you can’t). They demand serious attention,which they deserve. Plastic checkers can be nice, but these ultraheavy, patent pending, wood and steel checkers play at a differentlevel entirely. Another picture of the checkers appears on the follow-ing page.

This close up shows the steel insert on these 1.75” diametercheckers. The over-all height of the checker is a little over one halfinch, about 17/32”. Each one is painstakingly made by hand by per-manently cementing two polished wood discs around a piece of galva-nized steel. Then they are hand sanded to ensure smootheness andto make sure the steel edge meets the wooden edge perfectly.

Next the wood must be stained, and after that the checkers aregiven eight coats of sealer and a high quality, furniture grade, laquer.Of course, there is hand sanding in between each coat as well.

The result is a truely unique product, unlike anything else avail-able in the backgammon world. In fact, the checkers are so remark-able they are the subject of a pending United States Patent Applica-tion, Number 29369903. Once you play with them, you will never goback to plastic checkers again.

The Dice Cups

Aside from the checkers, the dice cups are the single part of theset that receive the most tactile attention. When you are shaking themwaiting for that all important 4 - 5 ... well, you know. The cups on thisset reflect that importance in both feel and handling. They are made ofheavy solid oak with a double thick bottom. They also feature a gentlecurve on two sides, making them easy to grasp. Of course, they alsohave a nicely cushioned bottom and a top lip. Some additional photosof the cups appear on the following page.

Most cups are made ofsome type of soft material.The better ones use leather,while others use a type ofheavy cardboard covered infelt. All of these designshave one thing in common,they can wear out.

The solid oak cups thatcome with this set will neverwear out. Not only that,because they are so solidand have such a heavy,cushioned bottom, they mufflethe sound of the precisiondice they come with.

That’s right, this set comeswith precision dice suppliedby Carol Joy Cole. Weknow other sets, even highpriced ones, come with regu-lar dice - and we could havedone likewise, but somehowthat didn’t seem right. Onceagain, the fact that thesesets are made by a seriousplayer, and not by a com-pany simply looking for aprofit, was determinative.

The Handle

How many times have you seen a nice set with a broken handle?That will never happen here.

This handle is made of cushioned and stitched leather, but it alsohas a steel spring frame hidden inside the leather. The steel springframe gives the handle great strength and also a comfortable flex.

Note also the oversized brass screws that hold the brass platesto the frame. These screws are deeply embedded in the set’s solidwood frame itself, which is important.

Other sets do not attach the handle to a solid wood frame, butto what carpenters call “MDF”. MDF is a cardboard-like wood substi-tute usually covered in felt or some other material. It looks like it’spart of the frame but it is not because these sets do not have a solidwood frame to begin with.

No MDF is used in this set. Every component is solid wood ormetal with the sole exception of the leather playing board.

The Frame

The frame is the skeleton of the set. It is the bone structurethat holds everything together and gives it strength. Here is a closeup view of the solid African Mahogany used to make this frame.

Each piece of Ma-hogany is cut byMike personally,and is trimmed tolength while main-taining its 1” x 1”dimensions.

This shape, knownto carpenters as“baluster” is prizedfor its ability tohold hardware inplace permanently.Screws correctlyset in 1” x 1” solidbaluster do notcome out. Yet, trybuying a piece ofsolid mahoganybaluster like this“off the shelf”, inyour local lumberyard. You can’t.It has to be custommade, as here.

The Plaque and The Guarantee

You would expect a set like this, painstakingly made by handsdriven by passion and not profit, to be special, and this plaque saysit all. Each set comes with this solid brass engraving permanentlyset into the frame. The plaque can also be customized to say, forexample: “Custom made for James Smith.”

And, becausethis is not abusiness, we donot care if wehave to spendtime or moneyto fix your set,in the unlikelyevent somethingshould everbreak.

In that case,simply ship theset to Mike andhe will fix it forfree, and ship itback to you forfree. Thisguarantee isuncondi t ionaland lasts aslong as youown your set.

To Order a Set

Each set is custom made, although there are usually one or twosets in Mike’s workshop, in inventory.

To order yours call Mike at (504) 265 0647 or you can emailhim at LoftMike@Yahoo.com.

The sets are $895, although special discounts are available tobona fide Backgammon Club Directors who wish to raffle the set as aa fund raiser for their club.

Although $895 is a lot of money to most people, remember thateach set requires over $300 in raw material and over 150 hours tobuild. Shipping can also cost a pretty penny, as well as special pack-aging to make sure the set is not damaged.

In truth, therefore, Mike is “working” for about $2 or $3 an hourwhen he “sells” these sets. Please remember this when you speakto him.

In addition, Mike’s labor is free when he provides a set to beused as a fund raising tool by a local backgammon club.

If we keep these facts in mind, as well as the unconditional life-time guarantee that comes with each set, we can all have an enjoy-able experience ordering and playing with these wonderful sets.

Thank you.

Mike Weinberger