Ahaha counting unfinished stones, way over 400… do you want some?
Did you try to make them more heavy (by putting something inside)?
Mmh no, but I am pretty satisfied by the weight. Do you know how much a “real” stone weights? (Btw I expect white and black to have different weights)
No idea. But depends obviously on materials (shell slate glass …)
Maybe something like that inside?
Not only it will weight more, it may cost less too.
@Groin’s suggestion sounds cool — but would mean more passes? Two halves, putting in the weight, and putting the halves together?
BUT this gives me a new idea: bi-colour stones! … practical for demonstrations on a small board … Hebsacker’s in Germany sell bigger ones for large, upright demo boards:
One pass would be fine - just put the die inside the clay - but it would require precision… for bicolor stones, it would just require painting one side differently, but… I don’t like it
I don’t like it either . Gonna have to check each stone every move, not a so good idea.
If the black side had a raised dot in the middle, about the size of a single dot of braille, that would probably be enough to feel which way around the stones were before placing, and if you’ve played shogi, you know it’s not hard to flip a piece over as you place it if necessary
My idea was not to use them in a regular game, rather for teaching and demonstrating where a large demo board would be inconvenient or not available.
Btw, tumbling seems to work very well if I re-wet the stones, after they have dried, before putting them in the tumbler.
Very handy for Othello as well!
More tumbling experiments. A nice “recipe” seems to be: 10ml for 40 stones, 15 minutes tumbling → stone get a very regular shape. Dry excess water. Then, wait for the surface to become just damp , 15 more minutes tumbling → surface becomes very smooth.
Well, bit of paradox but with a demo board it’s maybe the most fitting because you get quickly into a mess of stones to pick in later.
I used big demo board with 2 colors magnet stones and honestly I haven’t found very convenient to look at each stone which side i will select (will be same on a regular board). Bit weird in front of the public, looking each stone between your finger to chose the color, so was my feeling. Anyway it’s possible, so be it.
Thanks. Well I guess the process would be a bit more elaborated but maybe not that complex. Just find the way to get the nut right in the middle.
Have to check but steel could be cheaper or at similar price. And an heavy stone is really a pleasant feeling.
hence the braille-dot suggestion on the black side. I think it would be very then easy once you got used to it
I got your suggestion it’s just shogi rules imply 2 faced pieces so i found the trick really interesting but weiqi well i don’t really see the point to check (even quicker) which is the right side at each move. I rather spend a minute to put the stones in 2 different bowls at the end of the game.
With the braille dot, you don’t have to look, you can do it while staring at the board, talking to the audience, or even moving to place the stone down. I expect it would become second-nature quickly
Maybe just the grain could provide this difference.
Btw, a 1cm high, 2.2 cm wide stone made of slate should weight about 4.6 grams. My stones made with self hardening clay weight 3 grams.
Also, tomorrow I will try wet-tumbling the stones with a mixture of water and colour: if it works, the color will be more durable, more uniform, and the overall production process will be faster.
Update: it works, but I need to improve the technique, as the paint dries and it sticks to the surface. I’ll try putting the stones in a flat plate to dry, and slightly fill the plate with water when detaching the stones. It should work fine. I’ll let you know!