Backgammon Set Buying Guide

Intricate wooden backgammon board

Backgammon Set Prices

Backgammon boards vary widely in price and quality. You can buy anything from a chinsy “travel-sized” board at your local game department store for under ten dollars to an extravagant model with contrasting brass and leather accessories for over a thousand dollars. For about $100 you can get a full tournament-sized set with a playing surface of cork or felt. Used sets of comparable quality can be had for significantly less.

Choosing Materials

The use of different materials varies game play. For example, the sound of the dice hitting a felt board is mellow, and to most, a more pleasing tone than that of a wood or metal board. Of course, personal preference and style are a main consideration. Here’s a general breakdown of the most commonly used materials for the backgammon case, playing surface and pieces. Although backgammon sets come in all sorts of combinations of the following, note that sets with a metal playing surface almost always have magnetic pieces.

Case: leather, wood, metal
Playing board: felt, cork, wood, metal
Pieces: resin, wood, magnetic steel (for use with metal playing boards)

Used Backgammon Sets

Backgammon isn’t nearly as popular as it was in the 1970s. Many people that purchased a backgammon set during this boom have lost interest while others just got a set because it was the “in thing” to do at the time and never actually played the game much. Plenty stellar, vintage backgammon sets and boards are being sold for extremely reasonable prices because of this.

The backgammon set I currently use is a mint 70s model I purchased on eBay. It’s gorgeous. Look for a set with a genuine leather case and a felt or wood playing area. Lipped dice cups are ideal.

Search for a backgammon set on eBay.

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