****ing repros

[itfciain]

I am getting sick to the back teeth of these - I have had two purchases arrive with the past couple of days, one from here and one from RS and both contained repro weapons. I have dealt with both sellers before and know that these are genuine mistakes - and I am sure that they will both put them right.

However, we need as a community to be more diligent when selling these things - I am not above criticism and I have sent out both a repro Jawa Blaster and a repro Leia Blaster before (although in my defense both passed the drop & float tests). The ones I have received have all failed the float test and to be honest were pretty obviously repro as soon as I opened the packet.

I had a run in with a seller last year who swore to me that the weapons that the sent me were genuine - because he'd bought them back in the 90's - I have bought other collections from people on here and on RS that have contained repro weapons - the little ****ers get everywhere and God knows how many are being sold on Ebay as the genuine article (I have lost count of how many times I have been told something has come from a childhood collection only to find it containing tones of repro crap)

It is embarrassing for both parties when this comes up and although most sellers deal with it well, we need to make sure that we check these things as carefully as we can before selling on the boards

The float test is a great way to start - put any weapon that you are going to sell in a cup of water - unless it is a Yoda Cane, Gammy Axe, Logray Staff, a Teebo Axe or an Amanaman Staff, if it sinks it is fake. Next thing to do is check it up against other weapons in your collection - if it looks different then check it up against the TIG reference site - http://www.imperialgunnery.com/imperialblasters.htm

And anyone thinking of buying these repros off Ebay - please realise what you are doing to the hobby - you may only want them for display but later on down the line these will fall into the hands of people who either can't be bothered to check - or who are willing sell these as genuine

rant over

 

[JuniorChubb]

Repros, the scourge of the galaxy...

A repro spotting class at FF3 might be a good idea. I am hot on weapons and can usually spot them a mile off, but not so hot on ewok accessories and scoping sabres...

A class from the experts could help a lot of people, the only trouble is most of the people attending this event are already experts :lol:

The longer I have been on SWFUK the more anti repro I have become, I won't even display repros at home now where I would have been happy to a few years ago.

 

[jedi_masters]

Name and shame Iain!!

In all seriousness repro's are a big problem and as the years gnomon it will only get worse. I mean, look at what repro stuff you can get on eBay now, taun taun rains, ev 9d9 arms and legs. Problem is people will buy them but will they be honest enough when they come to sell and state it comes with repro parts??

 

[Doomseeker]

How about everyone that is attending FF3 and has a ton of repros all get together and ceremoniously melt the ****ers down!! Seriously, destroying them will certainly help stop them getting back out there and potentially working their way back to other collectors.
The repro market is bad, but it could be worse. Look at the Transformers market where there are companies in China using the original molds and reissuing reproduction items which are almost impossible to detect unless under closs inspection, a bugger for anyone who buys exclusivley on ebay.

 

[JuniorChubb]

Wow the Transformers situation is bad, the original molds :shock:

I am happy to bring my repros for the bonfire or the bon-melt if that's more appropriate...

 

[Doomseeker]

Wow the Transformers situation is bad, the original molds :shock:

So I'm led to believe, not good at all. In some cases you need to actually have an original in your hand to compare alongside a repro to spot the difference!

 

[db94]

It was only when I was looking to complete my figures and replace all the lost weapons early last year that I realised just how bad the repro problem was - so many sellers on ebay making half arsed claims "I bought these weapons in good faith from a reputable dealer so they must be legit"

Luckily I stumbled across a guy called iainitfc and he quickly became my preferred weapons dealer Was suspicious at first though as his prices were cheap and he had absolutely everything I asked for!

like a lot of people in this community I am very fortunate to be able to relax and buy from the good guys without the worry of being mislead (thanks) but I feel for those good guys when the get shafted, yep lets destroy every repro when come across.

Colin

 

[jedi_masters]

I agree with you Colin, I am in the middle of putting a loose collection together and Iain is/will always be my first call, especially weapons.

 

[Doomseeker]

I can sympathise with newbie collectors who just want a complete looking figure but surely the'd be happier knowing that the figure is 100% original.
I'd even go as far as suggesting that anyone who is selling anything at the moment pull the repros from their listings and discard them....should we make a drive to keep this UK community 100% repro free no matter the circumstances??? Just a thought

 

[Jedi_june]

Damn lain that sucks, hope the sellers work it out. Repros are a problem especially for someone like me who just started collecting. I always do the float test for weapons I receive, being that 90% of the time I'm buying on eBay. I only came across a repro when I bought a no coo stormtrooper and I put the blaster in a glass of water and it went straight down to the bottom. Once that happened I threw it in the garbage ASAP. What's crazy thou is what I've been hearing, that some fakes are starting to pass the float test :shock: that is very disturbing. We just need to keep our knowledge up and when we come across a fake just throw it out and let the seller know that they have fakes. Right now the only dude I mess with for vintage is lain!!!! He never let's me down.

Better "Repros" = Dark times ahead

 

[CRAZYHAZY]

Sorry to hear this Iain.

Hate this repro shite :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :x :x

float test, drop test , the plastic is more plyable on orignal weapons too

TIG has a great weapons guide too.

think yodas snake also sinks, and lightsabres both float and sink!! :?

So i think before these weapons are sold off as original, the sellers can do his/her utmost
to verify if their genuine.

Still some slip through the net

 

[Sandpersonsflipflop]

http://www.loresdelsith.net/rincon/armeria/index2.htm

Assuming the info is correct which I think it is!?! I found this link quite useful as it highlights the physical differences to look out for.

Dan.

 

[itfciain]

Sorry to hear this Iain.

Hate this repro shite :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :x :x

float test, drop test , the plastic is more plyable on orignal weapons too

TIG has a great weapons guide too.

think yodas snake also sinks, and lightsabres both float and sink!! :?

So i think before these weapons are sold off as original, the sellers can do his/her utmost
to verify if their genuine.

Still some slip through the net

Yes, you are right about the push out light sabres - they are a right pain in the arse to check - the hand held ones (Luke Jedi & Bespin) should all float so are easier to check

I'd forgotten the Yoda Snake - although I haven't seen too many repro versions of this knocking about

What annoys me is repro versions of easy to find weapons - I sell the genuine article for £1.00-£4.00 in most instances - so why bother buying repro ones - just doesn't make any sense

 

[JuniorChubb]

The float test is the tip of the icberg lads, never enough for me on its own...

Many ebay seller use the 'passed the float test' line when passing on repros because some of the newer repros float...

Many accessories have different results on the float test. Colour, flexiblity, feel, drop test should all be applied to every weapon and the TIG guide is a must until you become confident in your own detective skills.

 

[Pomse2001]

Great thread guys, but burning the repro weapons will not help. Because they will just make some new ones

Not buying repro weapons is a good idea, but if you see a rare figure variant with a repro weapon for a very low price would you then not buy the variant ?

 

[Doomseeker]

Great thread guys, but burning the repro weapons will not help. Because they will just make some new ones

Not buying repro weapons is a good idea, but if you see a rare figure variant with a repro weapon for a very low price would you then not buy the variant ?

But it would help to reduce the number coming into our community.

You're right you would still buy the figure but throw the repro away, but I don't think that we should encourage repros by selling them on the forum even if it is made clear, just get rid of them all and be as best as we can be a 100% repro free site?

 

[escapist]

I have only recent started trying to complete my loose figure collection and have discovered that I have a large number of repros from figures I picked up randomly over the last year or so (at least going on the float test and checking TIG - I hope i'm right at least!).

Since joining her at the start of the year, I am gradually replacing them through Iain and a few other sellers and my eyes have been opened to how bad the repro situation is (and its not just weapons!! I couldn't believe they repro'd stromtroopers!!)

Anyway I have started just keeping the repros in a baggie. Now I'm 'toying' with just giving them to my son when he's old enough to not eat them That way, if they get lost, then it doesn't matter. They do make great play fodder at least!

 

[Jedi_june]

Great thread guys, but burning the repro weapons will not help. Because they will just make some new ones

Not buying repro weapons is a good idea, but if you see a rare figure variant with a repro weapon for a very low price would you then not buy the variant ?

I would buy the variant and toss the repro to the garbage where it belongs!

 

[Jedi_june]

but I don't think that we should encourage repros by selling them on the forum even if it is made clear, just get rid of them all and be as best as we can be a 100% repro free site?[/quote]

Amen to that my brother :lol:

 

[olisuds]

Sorry to hear this Iain.

Hate this repro shite :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :x :x

float test, drop test , the plastic is more plyable on orignal weapons too

TIG has a great weapons guide too.

think yodas snake also sinks, and lightsabres both float and sink!! :?

So i think before these weapons are sold off as original, the sellers can do his/her utmost
to verify if their genuine.

Still some slip through the net

Yes, you are right about the push out light sabres - they are a right pain in the arse to check - the hand held ones (Luke Jedi & Bespin) should all float so are easier to check

I'd forgotten the Yoda Snake - although I haven't seen too many repro versions of this knocking about

What annoys me is repro versions of easy to find weapons - I sell the genuine article for £1.00-£4.00 in most instances - so why bother buying repro ones - just doesn't make any sense

I liken Repro's to an infestation of fleas! They get everywhere and it sometimes feels like a never ending battle. Even when you are thorough about checking for repros there is a horrible nagging feeling that there are others you just dont know about or are so well made its exceedingly difficult to know for sure.

Because of the variety of different repros out there it can be very confusing and there is a lot of conflicting information and rules that dont always apply.

Sabers and DT sabers are a good example of this.

The float test does not always determine whether a (pull out) saber is legitimate or not. I wish people knew this because it causes a lot of wrongful paranoia with buyers claiming there sabers are repros when they are not. Some (many) legitimate sabers sink. The older lettered sabers all seem to float as do DT sabers although its not surprising that a hollow piece of plastic floats hence most repro DT sabers also float.

Other than having experience examining the saber details by eye another very useful tip is to use a black light. Careful because UV is harmful to the figures if used in large amounts with extensive exposure. I have a blacklight torch pen and I take the saber in a dark room and just flash the light once on the saber. if it fluoresces then its a legit saber. i've never seen a repro that does this. Its harder to notice the fluorescence with a ben saber but when you compare it to a repro (which almost has a purplish hue under UV) it is also quite aparrent.