United Cutlery replicas, or 'others'...?

[Khamul]

Hi. I am interested in buying a sword, but am still unsure as to whether to blow my entire budget on a United Cutlery sword, or to get one or two of those replicas that I found on American eBay. I was wondering what the difference in quality is, aswell as any hidden charges (like I heard that if buy one off US eBay, i'll get stung with VAT and admin charges when I attempt to have it brought into the UK... aswell as the possibility of having it stored *at my expense* while they decide whether or not to allow it into the country). Any thoughts?

[Orc]

It really depends on what you are looking for. The two UC swords that I have personally held (you can view my reviews either through my postings in this forum or the Staff Reviews (http://www.warofthering.net/shop/staffreviewsindex.shtml) section) were quite well made, though each did have a minor defect. I've seen some of the 'knock offs' i.e. the real cheep quality and typically sell for $30-50. You are definately getting what you pay for with the immitations, as the few that I have seen were quite pathetic. The other advantage of the UC swords is that they are licensed and will be the closest to the origional props. However, the UC swords are not designed for real use. There are several 'combat ready' LotR swords available, but they often cost as much if not more, than the UC swords.

There are literally hundreds of companies out there that sell the UC swords, so be sure to shop arround. Quite often one dealer or another will have sales etc. so you might be able to find one in your price range.

:Orc:

[Khamul]

Yeah, I found the ringwraiths sword for £150 at Blades-UK. Thats about as cheap as I have found a real one for in this country, thats about $200-$230 I think

[TrueSwordsman]

You really do get what you pay for. I have heard of some of the rip off swords falling apart within a day after purchase. Many companies will sell rubbish like that, but I know of one company that refuses to sell anything they would not use or want to own themselves. Arms of Valor, Ltd. www.armsofvalor.com ships to the UK and they even have a toll free number that people from the UK can use to call them. I am sure that you will have to pay import fees but there is no way around it the Queen always get her pound of flesh. I have talked with a gentleman in Spain who said it is cheaper to have it shipped from the US and pay the small import fee than to buy it in his own country. Most likely that would be the same case in the UK.

In my opinion if you are going to spend the money you may as well get something you will be happy with!