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Post by Lachox on Mar 4, 2012 13:08:20 GMT
Hi forum: A iaidoka friend want a cutter -he have a iaito-, and he ask me for this vendor in ebay: myworld.ebay.com/ninja-katana/?_ ... 4340.l2559 Anyone know about them? I know a few "details" for the pictures (non alternate ito, for example), but I want a more accurate information about this swords. Thanks very much, I read your opinions.
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Post by DavidW on Mar 4, 2012 14:17:59 GMT
Eh, ebay swords are hit and miss. I know that one ebay vendor, Huawei, makes very good swords, with customization services as well. What kind of a sword does he want (tough one for beating, performance geometry for mat cutting, traditionally clayed DH sword, etc)? There are better brands to buy from (Hanwei, Ronin Katana, Cheness, Munetoshi, Musashi, etc) than on ebay.
The vendor you linked to seems to be based in Longquan. Many ebay sword vendors are based in Longquan, so I dunno if that's a good or bad thing...
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Post by Lachox on Mar 4, 2012 15:20:21 GMT
Yeah, I know what you say; in fact, I use a Huawei O katana for my kata in iaido. And I know that buy swords on ebay are a Russian roulette with the vendors, and the "dimension of the Longquan forges" thing; but I want another perception or judgment or experience about this vendor specifically.
Thanks for the advice, ever is a good warning for the buyers.
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Post by Lonely Wolf Forge on Mar 4, 2012 16:37:15 GMT
they seem overpriced to me for what you get....they look like standard run of the mill lonquon swords with artsfeng fittings. Id suggest Ronin Katana, Dynasty forge, or Kris Cutlery over those any day,
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Post by Maynar on Mar 4, 2012 19:46:32 GMT
Actually I think the prices are fairly good, some good blades for low sticker price. I also notice some offerings include free shipping. That's a good thing...
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Post by ineffableone on Mar 4, 2012 20:07:18 GMT
Yes I know them and got my sword from them. They were called ST-Swords. Here is my review of my sword forum.sword-buyers-guide.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=124My suggestion is if you have difficulty understanding broken English, then don't go with this vendor. If you can be patient and figure out broken English then they are a decent vendor. They have decent quality for production swords. You might find issues you would with any production line sword. Shimmed tsuka, nonalternating ito, etc. Though I found the blade quality quite good. That said they are very nice, decent with communication (though not native to English and maybe using translation software) and ship with reasonable speed. I was and am quite happy with the sword I purchased from them. Before I got my sword, there was some issue with St-Sword on the old proboards SBG forum. Someone bought what I think was a factory second, and was unhappy with the quality. I think a lot of the trouble came from translation issues in the communication. Before that incident others had bought from them and were quite happy, infact they had started to get a growing hype for a decent ebay seller like Huawei has now. Then one unhappy irate customer ended that hype. In summery, if your friend finds a sword on there they like, and has the patience and ability to understand broken English, or can speak Chinese, then I would say they are a decent seller. I took the risk of buying with them after hearing all the negative comments from the unhappy buyer, due to them selling a sword unlike any other out there. I felt they were worth the risk for such a unique blade, and I was not let down.
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Post by ineffableone on Mar 4, 2012 20:33:14 GMT
Oh to further suggest if buying from them, be sure as a customer to do your part in communication, send simple expressive messages to them explaining what you want. As I mentioned they are very nice, and if you explain what you want, expect they will work with you as best they can. Understand you might have to message them a couple times explaining in different ways to be sure your understood properly if you need to get something across that is complex. Check their responses carefully and make sure they understood what you were asking. As I mentioned their English is not the best, or filtered through software, so the grammar and spelling can be off. This can make things difficult to understand if your not patient. If you can't understand a message just message them back asking them to explain again as you couldn't understand.
I know this sounds like a lot of work, actually I am making it sound more complex than it really was for me.
Here is an example of the response I got after mentioning their website buttons did not work with firefox browser. They aren't just an Ebay seller, but have their own website too.
or this when explaining I was just waiting to set up my paypal to order
As you might notice some grammar errors, some words a bit off from actual meanings but if you give it a try you can understand what he is trying to say.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2012 15:29:38 GMT
Sheng has a number of store fronts on eBay. TS-Trading, ST-Swords, Ninja-katana, St-Nihonto, a new one called something like Custom-Swords or similar to that plus his own website not located on eBay - st-sword.com.
As was already mentioned - he has fair english - so communication should be clarified several times for your security if you deal with him.
I have, currently, a custom order katana that should be arriving soon and an "off the shelf' purchase that I made a week and a half ago. That one will probably arrive before my custom order.
During the custom order process, I worded my emails with him several different ways to confirm the correct specs with him as I wanted them. He kept replying "your custom work order no problem with me to do". The only downside was I placed the order right before the Chinese New Year celebration. I won't EVER do that again!!! :x :oops: :roll:
Would I recommend Sheng? he could be as good OR bad as any other choice when dealing with eBay vendors. After I conclude my dealings with him on the two orders I have in, I'll know better. If you look at all of Sheng's ebay stores you'll find near 100 percent positive feedback from all of his clients. That's how I base my purchases on eBay. And then lay down my money, cross my fingers and roll the dice. Quality communication, product and service is subjective and relative to whomever is on the giving or receiving end if you know what I mean.
"I have some beautiful beachfront property in Nevada...TRUE! ... we just have to wait for California to relocate slightly to the west!"
Like anybody out there- and over there....they want your business and the adage applies with them all - Caveat Emptor = buyer beware.
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