Darksword Knockoff Animal Shelter charity sale

Scabbards included and throwing in sharpening as well as polishing costs as part of the monies donated. 100% going to Animatch

" To do so, we have decided to grind off our logo and sell these copies for 150$ each, with scabbards and belts and donate 100% of the sales to Animatch."

Sharpening add $30 ^^^^^ 100% of the sale going to Animatch

"Consider picking one up knowing that 100% of the proceeds will be going towards a worthwhile charity."

Proceeds after costs?

The page does use/mention 100% a bunch

www.darksword-armory.com/animatch-dog-adoption-fundraiser/

Either way, India knock off, Chinese forgery, real deal: it doesn't matter. Not. One. Bit. It's for a charity fundraiser- the sword is just a gimmick for the donation. As I stated earlier, charity donations usually come with a t-shirt or bumper sticker, sometimes you get your name in the charity's monthly bullitin. But this fundraiser comes with a sword- and that's pretty cool. The sword can be hung on the wall as a decoration to enhance the ambiance of the "man cave", it can be used for a Youtube destructive video test, it can be used for practice, or it can be sold at a yard sale. Since it's a gift in exchange for a tax deductible donation, it doesn't matter what you do with it or where it came from- throw it in the trash if you like, it doesn't matter. The quality and origin of the blade, in this case, is not important.

If I got the sword, I would look to see if it appeared to be well made or not, and if not, I would use it for decoration. If I thought it would hold up, I would use it as a daily beater and practice cutting, practice sharpening, and use it to experiment with making new hand grips or whatnot. Knowing me, I might even use it to try my hand at home made heat forging.

I think you missed the point. Yes charity is great and all, especially if you have a special inclination towards animal shelters but the argument wasn't aimed against charity, it was aimed at DSA once again making these just plain weird stories about their swords/business. Why even bring up the whole "knockoff" story? Why not just say, "Here's some seconds for sale, all proceeds going to charity!"
It all seems too much to be true which is what grinds my gears. It's like those people who are guilty but they can't shut up about whatever they're guilty of and either keep denying fault or just talking about the situation, suspect or not.

Yes it's great and all the proceeds are going to charity, but does that really justify the BS? I don't think so. Because you know what's just as easy if not more sure as buying a sword for $150 and the proceeds going to charity? Just sending a charity $150.

Also how can it be a tax write off for you the buyer if you're not actually donating the proceeds? Seems the only one that would be getting the tax write off (depending on how Canadian tax laws work I guess) would be DSA. I mean you are buying the sword from DSA and then DSA is donating that money to the charity, I don't think this works as a tax write off for the buyers in this situation. If we were "gifted" a sword for our contribution to the charity I could see that working as a deductible donation. Since that's not the case I don't think it works that way.

Personally, having some experience with marketing and people engaged in it (myself included!), I'm willing to assume that their marketing/PR department/person (whoever that is at the moment) is simply laboring under the unfortunate misconception that the professional way to do things is to turn every single little thing into a whole song and dance production...

Would you think it appropriate for the DSA pr agent to inadvertently pledge half again as much money as the Animatch goal?

Animatch must build a new Centre, otherwise we cannot continue our mission to care for homeless dogs. Now, more than ever, Animatch needs your support. The goal of $200,000.00 will provide a safe haven for dogs in transition. Animatch places 350+ dogs every year; where do those 350 dogs go if we are not there to help them? There are just too many abandoned dogs to give up. So, please consider helping. "It always seems impossible, until it’s done."

Any coincidence there in "about 340 swords" and an annual placement of 350 canines?

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Off topic to the charity

I don't spend much time browsing DSA information and pages but the amount of misinformation is no less than astonishing.  Take a new venture, Halstein Forge.

On the face page of it
Our high quality knives are individually hand forged with our special blend of Damascus Steel, composed of five different types of steel, resulting in a rich blending patterns and contrast, maximizing the beauty and elegance of pattern welded steel.

Then on each product page
.........is forged with blend of blend of 1075 and 8670m steel, giving a stunning contrast to the folded steel layering.

One could parse the entire DSA site and find similar inconsistencies.  Often excused by Eyal and others as editing needing to be done.

The business continues to be endorsed by not just SBG but some other venues and the bottom line appears to be "a buck is a buck"  Best spent, or not, is an individual's right to spend as they want to but I personally can't respect the endorsements very much.  Hence, may also have a little less regard for those endorsing misconceptions and outright lies.

I... don't feel comfortable making a judgement, there. Not enough data, cannot compute.


I'll say this much - whether there are actual shenanigans going on behind the scenes or not, DSA absolutely frigging sucks at communicating with their audience.

Maybe it's incompetence, maybe it's dishonesty, I don't know; but either way, it sucks.

If I had the cash, I would consider getting in on this. Even if the sword broke, its still free steel to use in a project, along with fittings and a scabbard

Just a heads up - DSA just reduced the prices to these 4 models to $110 usd for a "last clear out liquidation".

I'll probably pass... But curious if anyone has tried them out yet?

Just for the record they do have a two handed fantasy Viking sword for $110 but you better hurry because they only have 73 left. 

www.darksword-armory.com/medieval-weapon/swords-armors-weapons-sale/two-handed-viking-sword-replica/