United Cutlery Museum Collection Sting
May 17, 2016 4:19:46 GMT
Post by campoli on May 17, 2016 4:19:46 GMT
Hey everyone!
Been a little while since I've posted, been busy wrapping up my final year at university with graduation on the horizon.
I recently acquired something I've been dying to get my hands on since the fall of 2015, and never thought I would: a United Cutlery Museum Collection Sting.
Introduction:
In the fall of 2015 I bought a regular edition United Cutlery Bilbo's Sting and I was happy with it, but it was only a week or two after I purchased it that I discovered there was such thing as a "Museum Collection" Sting; "high carbon spring steel, forged in Spain (not China), silver plated metal hilt parts with hardwood grip and genuine silver vine detail". Only three thousand ever produced and I knew two things: they were sold out everywhere, or were at least 400 dollars CAD, *plus* shipping *if I did manage to find one* on a website. And I hated myself for not waiting and buying the regular edition, when I could have maybe scrounged up a few more dollars to put toward a Museum Collection Sting. After days of biting my nails I let it go, and was content with my Bilbo edition. But the day I made my peace with it, I promised myself, "If I ever find a Museum Collection Sting for around 200-300 CAD, I'm buying it, I owe it to myself."
Why did I owe it to myself? Ever since I was nine or ten years old, after watching The Fellowship of the Ring for the first time, I dreamed of embarking on great adventures like my nine heroes of the Fellowship of the Ring: I bought a Sting toy, I had my father make me a wooden replica of Sting (which was probably my favourite thing to play outside with), I carried around a little, crappy Lord of the Rings bookmark golden ring on a chain. I owed it to the young boy who spent summer afternoons pretending he was cutting orcs and goblins or sitting beneath a tree by a little river pretending he was in the Shire; I owed it to the young boy who grew up but never ever forgot. "But my adventure turned out to be quite different..."
A curious thought struck my brain and I checked the internet again for a Museum Collection Sting. After quite a few minutes of searching, I found one on a most obscure collectibles shop website called Toy Wars (those of you who may wish to acquire one, do it now). 199 USD, plus ten percent off if I signed up to their newsletter. 180 USD? I liked the sound of that. I arranged to sell my Bilbo edition Sting online, with a couple of other things I had lying around to make up for the cost. After a couple of weeks, those sales went through, and I ordered the Museum Collection Sting for about 100 CAD, a *parking ticket* in comparison to the 799 USD list price.
It was advertised with no Certificate of Authenticity or wooden display box: I was okay with that. I was cautious and read reviews, apparently its common for them to be shipped this way these days.
Disclosure:
I am not affiliated with United Cutlery or Toy Wars in any way, shape or form. Just a fan trying to write an informative review on a sword that seems to be lacking one.
First Impressions:
It arrived as advertised with no display box or certificate. This Sting is beautiful and wondrous to behold, an extremely convincing reproduction of the ancient Elven blade: it looked as though it bore many years of service, and as if it actually had been found in a troll hoard, bested the spiders of Mirkwood, and accompanied Frodo across Middle Earth. This is the Sting I was meant to have, and that I owed my little self from fourteen years ago.
The inscriptions are absolutely pristine: not merely engraved like the regular edition Frodo's Sting but carved. When I placed it atop my bookshelf, the room lit up with a silver charm.
I was slightly put off by the fact that the UC MC Sting is advertised with a hardwood grip. It's easy to tell wood from whatever else in terms of touch, and to me, it certainly doesn't feel like hardwood. It is *not* a solid wood grip, that is certain. It may be a sort of hollow hardwood casing, because when flicked or tapped, you can hear the blade and tang ringing within. But this ailment was forgiven due to its sheer beauty. Oddly enough however, it feels worlds different than the plastic material used for the hilt on Biblo's Sting.
The blade was protected in an oil, but it spread a little too far for my liking down the blade and onto the cross guard and had hardened inside and between all the nooks and crannies of the Elven inscription. I tried everything I could to get the crusty oil off, and it wasn't budging. So I tried more and more, rubbing alcohol and a Swiss army knife to pry out the loosened goo. It worked like a charm, but to my dismay, I rubbed some of the dark paint-patina out of the cross guard (I was okay with it then, it looks weathered, and used ... but now it's beginning to gnaw at me more and more, you can see it in the attached images)
Specs:
The sword measures 22 1/2" long with a 15 3/8" high carbon steel, leaf shaped blade: the hilt being 6" long and cross guard 5" across. I am not sure what the precise weight of the sword is, but I believe that there is a considerable weight to it in comparison with the regular stainless steel Sting of Frodo or Bilbo.
Practicality:
While United Cutlery advertised the Museum Collection line as fully functional, I wouldn't go looking for a function for this beautiful piece, so there will be no test cutting report, but I will add that it is rather sharp.
Conclusion:
The cost of the Museum Collection Sting was far worth the items reputation. It is truly, exponentially more beautiful than the standard editions and I feel fortunate to own one of only three thousand ever produced. While I am no expert on silver plating and or hardwood paneling or casings, I cannot say for certain whether the materials advertised for this Museum Collection Sting are genuine materials (even the silver vine detail of the hilt), but they certainly look believable and suggest a feeling of authenticity that lends to the belief that there is ancient relic of a bygone age in my living room.
I hope you enjoy the pictures! I tried to get some more intimate ones than what you'd find out there.
Misc:
Does anyone have any suggestions regarding a remedy for the rubbed out portion of paint in the crossguard? Any harmless metal paints that can be used to touch it up a bit? Thanks!
Enjoy!
Dan
Been a little while since I've posted, been busy wrapping up my final year at university with graduation on the horizon.
I recently acquired something I've been dying to get my hands on since the fall of 2015, and never thought I would: a United Cutlery Museum Collection Sting.
Introduction:
In the fall of 2015 I bought a regular edition United Cutlery Bilbo's Sting and I was happy with it, but it was only a week or two after I purchased it that I discovered there was such thing as a "Museum Collection" Sting; "high carbon spring steel, forged in Spain (not China), silver plated metal hilt parts with hardwood grip and genuine silver vine detail". Only three thousand ever produced and I knew two things: they were sold out everywhere, or were at least 400 dollars CAD, *plus* shipping *if I did manage to find one* on a website. And I hated myself for not waiting and buying the regular edition, when I could have maybe scrounged up a few more dollars to put toward a Museum Collection Sting. After days of biting my nails I let it go, and was content with my Bilbo edition. But the day I made my peace with it, I promised myself, "If I ever find a Museum Collection Sting for around 200-300 CAD, I'm buying it, I owe it to myself."
Why did I owe it to myself? Ever since I was nine or ten years old, after watching The Fellowship of the Ring for the first time, I dreamed of embarking on great adventures like my nine heroes of the Fellowship of the Ring: I bought a Sting toy, I had my father make me a wooden replica of Sting (which was probably my favourite thing to play outside with), I carried around a little, crappy Lord of the Rings bookmark golden ring on a chain. I owed it to the young boy who spent summer afternoons pretending he was cutting orcs and goblins or sitting beneath a tree by a little river pretending he was in the Shire; I owed it to the young boy who grew up but never ever forgot. "But my adventure turned out to be quite different..."
A curious thought struck my brain and I checked the internet again for a Museum Collection Sting. After quite a few minutes of searching, I found one on a most obscure collectibles shop website called Toy Wars (those of you who may wish to acquire one, do it now). 199 USD, plus ten percent off if I signed up to their newsletter. 180 USD? I liked the sound of that. I arranged to sell my Bilbo edition Sting online, with a couple of other things I had lying around to make up for the cost. After a couple of weeks, those sales went through, and I ordered the Museum Collection Sting for about 100 CAD, a *parking ticket* in comparison to the 799 USD list price.
It was advertised with no Certificate of Authenticity or wooden display box: I was okay with that. I was cautious and read reviews, apparently its common for them to be shipped this way these days.
Disclosure:
I am not affiliated with United Cutlery or Toy Wars in any way, shape or form. Just a fan trying to write an informative review on a sword that seems to be lacking one.
First Impressions:
It arrived as advertised with no display box or certificate. This Sting is beautiful and wondrous to behold, an extremely convincing reproduction of the ancient Elven blade: it looked as though it bore many years of service, and as if it actually had been found in a troll hoard, bested the spiders of Mirkwood, and accompanied Frodo across Middle Earth. This is the Sting I was meant to have, and that I owed my little self from fourteen years ago.
The inscriptions are absolutely pristine: not merely engraved like the regular edition Frodo's Sting but carved. When I placed it atop my bookshelf, the room lit up with a silver charm.
I was slightly put off by the fact that the UC MC Sting is advertised with a hardwood grip. It's easy to tell wood from whatever else in terms of touch, and to me, it certainly doesn't feel like hardwood. It is *not* a solid wood grip, that is certain. It may be a sort of hollow hardwood casing, because when flicked or tapped, you can hear the blade and tang ringing within. But this ailment was forgiven due to its sheer beauty. Oddly enough however, it feels worlds different than the plastic material used for the hilt on Biblo's Sting.
The blade was protected in an oil, but it spread a little too far for my liking down the blade and onto the cross guard and had hardened inside and between all the nooks and crannies of the Elven inscription. I tried everything I could to get the crusty oil off, and it wasn't budging. So I tried more and more, rubbing alcohol and a Swiss army knife to pry out the loosened goo. It worked like a charm, but to my dismay, I rubbed some of the dark paint-patina out of the cross guard (I was okay with it then, it looks weathered, and used ... but now it's beginning to gnaw at me more and more, you can see it in the attached images)
Specs:
The sword measures 22 1/2" long with a 15 3/8" high carbon steel, leaf shaped blade: the hilt being 6" long and cross guard 5" across. I am not sure what the precise weight of the sword is, but I believe that there is a considerable weight to it in comparison with the regular stainless steel Sting of Frodo or Bilbo.
Practicality:
While United Cutlery advertised the Museum Collection line as fully functional, I wouldn't go looking for a function for this beautiful piece, so there will be no test cutting report, but I will add that it is rather sharp.
Conclusion:
The cost of the Museum Collection Sting was far worth the items reputation. It is truly, exponentially more beautiful than the standard editions and I feel fortunate to own one of only three thousand ever produced. While I am no expert on silver plating and or hardwood paneling or casings, I cannot say for certain whether the materials advertised for this Museum Collection Sting are genuine materials (even the silver vine detail of the hilt), but they certainly look believable and suggest a feeling of authenticity that lends to the belief that there is ancient relic of a bygone age in my living room.
I hope you enjoy the pictures! I tried to get some more intimate ones than what you'd find out there.
Misc:
Does anyone have any suggestions regarding a remedy for the rubbed out portion of paint in the crossguard? Any harmless metal paints that can be used to touch it up a bit? Thanks!
Enjoy!
Dan