I just received my Ringwraith sword today. I can't speak to a comparison with older versions since I haven't actually seen one of the original releases up close. Hopefully someone with experience with the original can offer some insight.Ronin wrote: Wed Mar 30, 2022 6:30 amNo problem. Yeah, I didn't realize how expensive international shipping is now until recently when I sold a lightsaber to a fellow in the UK. Cost me a $100 for a hilt sized box.XerachCruz wrote: Wed Mar 30, 2022 1:41 amThanks. Too bad BUDK doesn't ship outside of the US.Ronin wrote: Tue Mar 29, 2022 11:11 pm Sting Scabbard (LOTR) and Ringwraith sword both in-stock now at Budk.
As soon as they're available at Castle Kon, that will be my next purchase. It will be a bit more expensive with shipping costs and taxes when arriving here than buying it from a European store, but it won't be in stores here for many, many months and I'd rather not wait.
I'm just hoping the Ringwraith sword doesn't have any issues. I wanted to buy the Witch-King sword but seeing the over-grinding done on the crossguard in this new run made me hesitate. It's frustrating. Is having a flawed replica better than no replica? Or do I hold out for another run after already waiting years to get one?
Some observations about the one I received are that the surface etching looked to be fairly pitted and organic in appearance to begin with, but is ground significantly more smooth on the majority of the blade. This is mainly evidenced on the transition from the area beneath the central peak of the guard to the edge of the blade.
The blade also seems to be off axis a bit. The central peak of the guard doesn't actually line up with the central ridge of the blade. Since the blade is asymmetrical, I thought it may have been my eyes and went to look for other refernce material to get a comparison. I noticed that the image on the box cover is off axis as well (although that one is off in the opposite direction). It may just be a difficult sword to put together. Overall, it does look and feel good.