The short form public service announcement: the guy who makes those sword and shield replicas as seen at
fiberglassblades.com won't be taking any more orders ever again very soon. If you want any of them, order them!
The long rant:
I've been hoping to get a good-quality replica of the Master Sword and Hylian Shield (from The Legend Of Zelda series) for some time now. There are many of them on ebay and elsewhere, and yet they often look quite different from each other. Oddly, the supposedly "official" Master Sword I saw at ThinkGeek.com looks undetailed, the hilt is especially bad (and is probably the worst I've seen). There are other ones where the shape/colour/size of the blade or hilt is wrong, or it just looks overall cheap or shoddy. The shields similarly have a range of quality and accuracy.
The best replicas I have ever seen are from
fiberglassblades.com. (No, he didn't ask me to advertise for them.) It's just one guy making various sword and shield replicas; from Zelda, he's got the Master Sword and Hylian Shield from both Ocarina Of Time and Twilight Princess. From Ocarina Of Time he also has the Mirror Shield (N64 version, not 3DS). Ooh, shiny. They are primarily fiberglass as opposed to steel, so they are light, decently durable, and "convention-safe", if I wanted to use them in
cosplay as opposed to just
display. I'm not a cosplayer, though, but again, these are the most accurate I've seen, which is important for display. They're probably the best I can find as long as I don't need them for battle.
(And if you're wondering, I'm leaning towards the Ocarina Of Time versions.) These are the same ones used in
The Zelda Project, which is a testament to their accuracy.
I guess, as usual, it's "you get what you pay for". I could get any of the inexpensive, cheap ones from other guys, or I could spend $495 (US) each on a sword (with sheath) and shield from this guy. So, $990, before shipping, which will be another $75. Not to mention possible customs fees since I'm in Canada. Ouch.
I emailed him last Friday (after seeing that he mentioned in his ebay auctions that he wasn't planning on doing many more) and he said that he would be taking orders for
only another week, and then he's done with doing these. So that means I have to decide ASAP, like in the next couple days, before it's too late, if I really want them.
If there is regret, I know that if it's easier to regret spending too much money (which can eventually be saved up again), than to miss out on something that will never be made again. So logically, I know I should,
if for sure I want it. I guess the question is if I really want this enough to forego what $1000 could otherwise get me. Rent/mortagage? New computer? The other current-gen consoles I don't have and a few games for each?
Would it be socially unacceptable if I told anyone that if they are going to give me birthday or Christmas presents this year anyway, to just give me the money they would have spent instead? Especially since it'd be after I would have bought these?
Am I just overthinking this and should I just go for it?
