Post by Sithlord7 on Apr 25, 2009 10:45:42 GMT -5
I was going to try to wait to do this one until I'd had a chance to review the Hasbro Obi, but I can wait no longer! On to my second review ever!
I chose to order from Ultrasabers because I had heard nothing but good things about them, and I am too lazy to customize a saber myself!
I chose the Obi Wan hilt for its superb balance and a green blade because, well I like green. Now I plan to review every aspect of this saber so this will get a little lengthy so bear with me.
Ordering: Not too much to say here, it was very simple and easy to order.
Customer Service: Here I do have a complaint. Shortly after I ordered I received an email with a link telling me that if I had questions I should go to this forum. So I did and in the process of looking through these forums I found a thread that I could contact them(Ultrasabers) to get the status of my order. So after about three and a half weeks I wanted to see if they were close to shipping, their website said 4-6 weeks. Instead of getting back to me with my order status they brushed me off and fed me the standard website line of "it takes 6 weeks to ship". I sent back a strongly worded email saying that if they don't want to or can't tell me my order status to just say so. They got back with the far more reasonable answer that they were backed up a little and it was taking 6 weeks to sent out the sabers. I'm not really that patient to begin with, but this was a fairly minor annoyance, and in their defense they did get it to me before their 6 week estimate.
The Saber:
The saber arrived in the standard Hasbro box, and incredibly the only immediate giveaways that it had been altered in any way were that the boxed was opened and the blade was a different silver color. The craftsmanship is excellent, the saber looked untouched, and the original sticker they slather on these things were still there. Of course I removed all the stickers immediately.
Here's the saber as you get it:
Sorry, but the hex wrench for removing the blade was not included/
Here is a better view of the blade:
Here is a close-up from the emitter:
Here is a close-up from the pommel:
Here is a wider view with the blade removed:
The blade is removed by simply loosening this hex screw close-up shown below:
Here is the saber completely disassembled, as you can see it still uses the standard Hasbro battery/sound module:
Due to the limitations of cameras, as you all know by now, pictures of these Force FX sabers never quite tell the true story. Let me assure you though that this saber appears at least twice as bright as a Force FX blade in person. I would just like to point out that while brightness in these pictures is about what it should be, in person the blade appears to be a little deeper green. Below are a couple of pics demonstrating how bright the blade is. They were both taken directly under a bright fluorescent fixture, which as many of you know would almost completely wash out a standard Force FX saber.
It also makes a handy flashlight!! ;D
Under a single incandescent fixture:
In semi-darkness:
And, finally, in total darkness:
All in all, I am extremely satisfied with the purchase. The blade distributes light quite evenly and feels like it could withstand at least moderate dueling. Plus, being able to remove the blade is just icing on the cake. I know some of you may see the price for these things on their website and think
(I know I did!), but in the end the quality of the conversion and the sheer joy of having a brighter, more durable, and removable blade with the color/hilt of your choosing makes it worth it.
I chose to order from Ultrasabers because I had heard nothing but good things about them, and I am too lazy to customize a saber myself!
I chose the Obi Wan hilt for its superb balance and a green blade because, well I like green. Now I plan to review every aspect of this saber so this will get a little lengthy so bear with me.Ordering: Not too much to say here, it was very simple and easy to order.
Customer Service: Here I do have a complaint. Shortly after I ordered I received an email with a link telling me that if I had questions I should go to this forum. So I did and in the process of looking through these forums I found a thread that I could contact them(Ultrasabers) to get the status of my order. So after about three and a half weeks I wanted to see if they were close to shipping, their website said 4-6 weeks. Instead of getting back to me with my order status they brushed me off and fed me the standard website line of "it takes 6 weeks to ship". I sent back a strongly worded email saying that if they don't want to or can't tell me my order status to just say so. They got back with the far more reasonable answer that they were backed up a little and it was taking 6 weeks to sent out the sabers. I'm not really that patient to begin with, but this was a fairly minor annoyance, and in their defense they did get it to me before their 6 week estimate.
The Saber:
The saber arrived in the standard Hasbro box, and incredibly the only immediate giveaways that it had been altered in any way were that the boxed was opened and the blade was a different silver color. The craftsmanship is excellent, the saber looked untouched, and the original sticker they slather on these things were still there. Of course I removed all the stickers immediately.
Here's the saber as you get it:
Sorry, but the hex wrench for removing the blade was not included/
Here is a better view of the blade:
Here is a close-up from the emitter:
Here is a close-up from the pommel:
Here is a wider view with the blade removed:
The blade is removed by simply loosening this hex screw close-up shown below:
Here is the saber completely disassembled, as you can see it still uses the standard Hasbro battery/sound module:
Due to the limitations of cameras, as you all know by now, pictures of these Force FX sabers never quite tell the true story. Let me assure you though that this saber appears at least twice as bright as a Force FX blade in person. I would just like to point out that while brightness in these pictures is about what it should be, in person the blade appears to be a little deeper green. Below are a couple of pics demonstrating how bright the blade is. They were both taken directly under a bright fluorescent fixture, which as many of you know would almost completely wash out a standard Force FX saber.
It also makes a handy flashlight!! ;D
Under a single incandescent fixture:
In semi-darkness:
And, finally, in total darkness:
All in all, I am extremely satisfied with the purchase. The blade distributes light quite evenly and feels like it could withstand at least moderate dueling. Plus, being able to remove the blade is just icing on the cake. I know some of you may see the price for these things on their website and think
(I know I did!), but in the end the quality of the conversion and the sheer joy of having a brighter, more durable, and removable blade with the color/hilt of your choosing makes it worth it.
Like I said I love the green blades and the Obi hilt, so voila!!! As to their customer service, as I reflect on it, it wasn't bad really. I was just a little miffed at the answer they gave to my first email. But they were very courteous and the saber did arrive in time, so to anyone still considering buying from these guys, there is a reason they are so well liked in these forums, and they do a good professional level conversion very well.
}}Force Power{299} 
