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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 16, 2015 0:23:04 GMT
I'd personally prefer that my daughter have a folder than a fixed blade... much easier to EDC (once she's old enough). Slip joints, not so much... I think the best bet would be a lockback with easy opening features, since kid's fingers/hands aren't too strong at that age
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 15, 2015 20:21:22 GMT
'82, eh? I wouldn't be born for another two years or more. Every now and then I start feeling old, then I come here... Gee, thanks. I was born in 1973... no kidding - 1970 here Here's the tri-sword from The Sword and the Sorcerer Here's a short vid of the sword in action
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 15, 2015 19:26:35 GMT
My first knife was when i was about 5 years old. one of these Cool! I hope you didn't get a pink bunny suit for Christmas though In all seriousness though, that's a nice little knife for a kid. I kind of remember getting either a Case or Shrade for my first knife.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 15, 2015 16:09:25 GMT
Welcome to SBG and your new obsession
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 15, 2015 15:28:33 GMT
Conan the Barbarian - I think I was 11 or 12 when I saw it at the drive in. Awesome swords, Hmm, Excalibur has been a sword I've wanted for a long time, but from reading reviews, etc., the only one I'd want to get would be the Albion Discerner, which is out my price range for the time being. The Sword and the Sorcerer - the tri-sword was one of my favorites when I was a young kid, but now looks hokey (hey - I still like the movie though ). The number one sword I'd like to commision based off of a work of fantasy would be a very specific one from the Dragonlance series... not saying which one yet!
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 15, 2015 14:04:47 GMT
I've shipped items to many parts of the world and have sadly had to say no more than once to people who wanted a particular item(s) I had on the classifieds - while the customs forms might not take too long to fill out, there are a few things to contend with when shipping an item overseas: is the item legal in the country you're sending it to? Will it be seized and destroyed by customs if it is indeed not legal? How do you (or the person who bought the item from you) try to recover the loss? Some of our Aussie members can attest to the fact that knife and sword laws are ridiculously strict in the land down under, and probably know of someone (or themselves) who have had their items impounded/confiscated by customs, never to see them at all. The same can be said for other countries in the mid East, and elsewhere in the world as well. In the end, I think it comes down to the fact that as the seller, it gets really difficult to trust shipping companies to deliver the goods you just sold.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 15, 2015 13:31:01 GMT
I want to share what I think is a really great program by a company known for it's superb products and customer service... Knives for Kids by Knives Ship Free. IMHO, it's a really great and useful tool to help parents discuss and educate their kids about the importance of safety when using a knife, especailly if it's the child's first one. Not only that, but your child will get his/her knife for free (actually, only about .05 cents) - what's not to love about this. Sure, there might be some people who will try to game the system by ordering when they don't have kids themselves, but I sincerely think this is an awesome opportunity for parents to share something valuable, both as a physical object and as a resource with their kids.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 14, 2015 2:28:10 GMT
more crossguard lightsaber discussion: Jedi vs. Sith
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 12, 2015 23:30:25 GMT
I may have missed this on their website but what happens if the smart gun gets wet? Meathead the Bulldog pees on it or oops I drop it in the lake? That was never addressed in the web page I linked to - although they did mention the US military did conduct tests on the system, so I can assume that they would have covered water immersion tests, and other extreme environmental tests. They did not say what the US gov't report said, stating it was confidential/secret, but did go on to mention how because of the testing, the smart guns are restricted for sale ONLY in the US and to friendly nations. Great question btw.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 12, 2015 17:02:53 GMT
Call be a dinosaur but I like the days when man was the Warrior not technology. Technology has a bad habit of failing you when you least expect it. I use a GPS in the woods but I always carry a compass. Gunnar, I appreciate what you're saying, that basically, training and instincts are better than relying on newer technology - but even that compass you use as a backup is a form of technology, older, but technology still Shootermike - thanks for your input as well. I also agree that shooting long distance (hell, any distance in any situation) can be and is an art. These rifles are amazing at what they can do, but I agree with your assertion that it does indeed take away how to "learn" to do it the right way without the need for fancy gear.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 12, 2015 12:54:48 GMT
I'm not much of a gun enthusiast any more, not having used one for at least 10 years (used to be really good though, since my eyesight is still at 43 yrs old 20/15 and I had lots of practice growing up with my extended family). But seeing as I did grow up on a farm where my grandfather ALWAYS (concealed) carried his .38 revolver, and also lived in a household with relatives (5, & 10 years older than me) who at some point in their lives joined the military, I was raised to respect all kinds of weapons, including guns/rifles, and as such, went hunting/target shooting on many occassions with friends and family. OK, enough of my background... I recently saw some promotional vids/docs for a new Precision Guided Firearm (restricted sale to the US and "friendly nations" only). I'm really impressed with the capabilities of the rifles, even if they are cost prohibitive. Here's a link to their website: TrackingPoint Precision Guided FirearmsWhat do you all think? This will definitely help people who aren't great marksmen hit the targets they're after... do you think it's a good idea? I also know some people are purists, and wouldn't want to own/shoot any of these, but can you explain why? Thanks in advance.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 10, 2015 12:24:29 GMT
But are they just look-alikes, or are they also falsely branded as a well known maker? I agree that the sword is probably not that good from the description/pictures, but like Suho said, there's nothing in the description or title that makes one believe it's a sword made from a well known maker... (probably) bad sword from India=yes. Probable knock off=no.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 10, 2015 4:07:10 GMT
Man, a trip to Alibaba was eye opening. I didn't know that fakes had become so sophisticated, brand names and packaging and all. It's hard to believe that they can sell on a relatively known site like that. I'd seen ones that look almost exactly like an original, but with some small detail changed to make it legal and under a different name, but the direct copies look extremely convincing. As such I voted Not That I Know Of. Distressing, to say the least. That's the distressing part - unless you buy from reputable dealers or get the help from people who have lots and lots of experience, you don't know if what you're getting is real or a counterfeit. I don't think I've ever bought a counterfeit myself, but am wary of buying from smaller businesses (which is ironic, since I own a small business selling knives, swords, etc. myself) and places like Amazon - I found a vendor there selling counterfeit Buck knives that looked a lot like real Buck knives except they didn't have the correct stamping on the blade (very minor mistake). I've bought lots of stuff from people on forums too... unfortunately though, its getting to the point that unless the person is very well known, I'm wary of buying/trading like I used to. There was recently a post on one of the FB groups I belong to where someone had been offered a Microtech Jagdkommando knife (usually sell for over $850) as part of a trade deal, but after asking around, it was found out that the knife was actually a Chinese knockoff because the Microtech logo was upside down and the knurled handle was slightly different than the real model. Here's the real one Here's the one on Alibaba
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 10, 2015 2:31:55 GMT
Man, that brings back the days when I was in school learning to play my Fingergut Les Paul look alike (don't remember the brand name), and then later, a Cort (almost like a Fender, except it had two humbuckers and built in electronic effects) I bought at Sears... like you said though, they weren't marketed as Gibson or Fender models, just replicas of the more expensive guitars. Even though I was around 14 at the time, I knew exactly what I was buying, and it sure wasn't a knock off guitar marketed as a real Gibson or Fender. Today though, you see too many counterfeits passed off as the real deal.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 9, 2015 18:39:12 GMT
Definitely better than the original.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 9, 2015 18:38:20 GMT
I am also a guitarist, and this is an increasing problem among guitars as well. There is a distinction between a knife/guitar that copies a design but uses a different brand name or logo, and one that is counterfeit that not only copies the design but that also is falsely labeled with the original's brand name - often going so far as to lie about what country it was made in (to reflect where a legit product would have been made). It's one thing to copy the design of a Gibson Les Paul or a Fender Stratocaster, but when you also label your products as Gibson or Fender you are flat out engaged in intentionally misrepresenting the products. Suho, I've seen those knockoffs as well. I remember when I first got into playing guitar in the mid 80's and bought a cheap Les Paul replica... it played ok, but definitely not a real Gibson. Like you mentioned though, I've seen lots of guitars posted (again, mostly on Alibaba and other similar sites) as the real deal, which is really bothersome. It's really sickening how low some people will go just to cheat others out of their hard earned money.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 8, 2015 20:25:10 GMT
See - I would buy something like those benchmade knives myself. I am not a huge knife affectionado, and I actually am not familiar with the benchmade name. I would simply buy it because it looks like a nice knife and fits within my budget. Long story short, I would unwittingly buy it as a generic $50 knife, rather than a $50 benchmade knife. That may be a big problem when dealing with counterfeiters as well - how do you reach people like me who have no interest in the expensive brand name knives, but end up buying a fake simply because its a well prices knife regardless of name? You could try educating us, but chances are that if we are not big on collecting them, we will not actively seek out this information. The second question is whether this counts as being wrong? The seller is intending to fool the customer with malicious intent. In my case, I am not a victim, since I was never under the impression I was buying an original, nor do I particularly care. As such, you could argue that there was no harm done to the buyer. Likewise, I would likely not buy a benchmade knife anyways cause of the price, so the original company which is being ripped off isn't losing a sale through my actions. Yes the counter fitter still gets money, but you oculd argue that they did not receive the money through the act of counter fitting itself. The unfortunate fact though is that many of these counterfeit items end up either on the streets (sometimes sold at gun shows by vendors if you can believe that) or are sold as the real deal on eBay, Amazon, etc... I've seen quite a few (Benchmade, Buck, Spyderco, etc) being sold on both eBay and Amazon that were fakes, but was only able to verify after doing some research/reaching out to people. Buy a couple dozen at $11 a pop, sell them for $150+ on eBay... that's the trap... intentional malfeasance and intent to rip people off.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 8, 2015 19:48:16 GMT
please remember though the link is for educational purposes only - don't buy these or any other knock offs... you're only helping bankroll the thieves.
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 8, 2015 19:41:27 GMT
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Post by LG Martial Arts on Feb 8, 2015 18:29:22 GMT
Here's what I mean about the proliferation of cheap knockoffs - all of the knives displayed are fakes, but some are almost identical to the real deal: Fake Benchmade knivesThe link is only for educational purposes only - please don't buy anything from these thieves.
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