Yeah, I've held the EFX shield in person as well. I had a great time meeting Bryan and talking over it. The EFX shield has the duller look the way it does because it's an exact copy of the screen used Avengers shields used in the final battle. The shield is great, it's thick and sturdy so it weighs about the same as most of the aluminum shields you see out there, if not a little more. The only thing I personally didn't like about it was the leather on the straps. I think it's too light weight of leather, but that's no EFX's fault, as it matches the screen used leather exactly, that's the fault of the prop team on Avengers. I personally will be putting in a preorder and getting one of these (I hope). 8D