Well, now that I have opened mine (Got it today...third time I posted about it) I must say that I am VERY DISAPPOINTED!
I cannot believe how cheaply made this saber is! >:( We're talking Scrooge McDuck cheap...
Some of the details are okay, but nothing compared to a real vintage or replica Graflex! This thing feels like it's made of pot-metal, and poorly at that.
It definitely is WAY too light, and is off balance. The grips are too short, sound is HORRIBLY crippled (muddy and muted), and the blade squeaks like a 200 year old rusty barn door hinge.
The Blade holder has an even more noticeable casting seam running DEAD CENTER down the middle of the "Bulb tension band" than the Anakin ROTS (At least the Anakin had it slightly canted to the side and hidden to some extent). The bunny ears look like they would break off if you looked at them wrong.
The "metal" is so soft that I was afraid the threads would strip just unscrewing the pommel to put batteries in... At least they got something right though... The switch has a lot more tightness to it than previous sabers, meaning that it is harder to turn off while spinning (which is a CHORE with this saber).
The blade is standard MR fare, and DOES have the dark spot in the middle from the board's solder joint, gappy leds toward the tip, and you can SEE the LED ladder bouncing in the blade diffuser...
I did note that the "lumps" under the Red button and the "Glass" (more like badly cast cloudy plastic) eye are not as extreme in person as they seem in photos.
In my opinion, this is the way MR is "getting back" at LFL...
This was
SUPPOSED to be the "Holy Grail" of FX's... Turns out that it is a battered 7-11 big gulp on the side of the highway.
I don't know whether to love it just because it's Star Wars... or to hate it because this saber SUCKS and I feel cheated. (By MR, not the person that sold it to me)
I see SOME possibilities for this saber.
- Display piece to collect LOTS of dust
- Vader ROTJ conversion fodder
- doorstop
- Sound board donor
- Light-up Paperweight
- disappointing costume prop
To quote Darth Vader:
"You have failed me for the LAST time MR!"