The day came when it was delivered and I was so happy. ![]() The wait time was relatively short and the expected time was accurate with zero issues in shipping and delivery. I got it extra sharp and this is my display, mat cutting sword. Playing around with options allowed me to make the sword that I absolutely love! I chose the T10 steel, based on the description and research I did on the types of metal. This really allowed my artistic side to come out and I ended up changing my original idea because it didn't flow well once I saw it. Do some research, find out what a decent sword should feature for the money, try to minimize your risk and buy from the sellers with a better reputation."First off, the app to customize a sword is the best thing I've ever seen. Just be more aware of what you are actually paying for. The truth might be that it’s easier and cheaper for them to sell someone a folded steel blade with a carefully and deceptively polished edge to simulate a mono core steel than it is to really find or make a real one. Sanmai, honsanmai, kobuse, shihozume and any other simple or complex lamination is possible, and in some cases not too difficult to pull off but we are seeing more faked laminations than authentic ones lately. There are hopefuls out there but then there are just those that can’t take a hint or flat out ignore obvious warnings. I’m ranting here but I guess the point is don’t be surprised if the thing that seemed to good to be selling for that low price turns out to be a sham or if the ebay seller with a bad rep turns out to be selling you something you didn’t want. Basically, I buy with realistic expectations. If I ever asked for anything over the top, I would not be surprised at all if it came out wrong. I know their limitations, which are many, and when I stay within these limitations, I am usually satisfied with the end product. I’m also careful to ask only for things that are reasonable from this type of seller and within their capabilities to pull off well. They day I get something faked or the quality drops sharply, it’s over for them. As of now I only buy from one seller and I only buy what I believe they can make well and so far I have not had any big disappointments. On the other hand, the market gets flooded with these mediocre swords and they become the new standard, hurting the larger manufacturers and vendors in the long run. So what’s the big deal if they are happy with it? Nothing I guess since many watching the review would be just as happy with the same thing. I’ve also seen people posting pics on fb of very cheap swords, some with obvious fake hamon and all kinds of red flags and people saying “beautiful”, “amazing” and so on. Just from watching the vid for a few seconds I can see the sword they got is worth about $80 at most and definitely not perfect by any means. and I got everything I dreamed of, the sword is perfect!” Well, close to that anyway. ![]() “I asked for red ito with the shiny gold tsuba and a black shiny saya. I’ve seen countless video reviews on youtube of people saying great things about what are essentially pieces of junk or at least clearly average. ![]() Positive reviews by people that don’t really know what they’re reviewing hurt the rest of the sword buying communities in my opinion. This still wouldn’t do much in the long run though because they’d probably just start up with a new name anyway. Really, the only thing that would temporarily hurt them when they pull this kind of crap is to give negative feedback. This is part of the price we pay when buying from an obscure seller in China and not a more trusted and established vendor like KOA, SnA or SBG, who have excellent and worry-free cs. I for one have gone lightly on them when there were minor issues in fear of being blown off and never receiving my sword or money or because I would want to try again at some point. They sell many, many swords to people who either don’t know any better or don’t care and if they occasionally have one buyer call their bluff and have to make a refund, there are 10 more who buy their swords anyway. We, the very few who know more than a couple of things about swords, are a tiny percentage of the sales these guys make. I think we want to believe that we will get gold for a nickle but the truth is that deception, or at least colorfully stretching the truth, is the order of business for many of the Longquan ebay sellers. Personally, I think the old adage “if it seems to good to be true, it probably is” is being ignored time and time again with the typical ebay sword sellers.
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