frankly... i see tons of threads where people either show stuff off, smash down other members, mention getting ripped off by other members, but rarely see an actual review thread. so, i figured "what the hell".
i won a raffle last week, and recieved my prize in the mail the other day, and finally got around to actually having enough time to post a review up as i have been meaning to.
was i asked to post this? nope.
am i getting free stuff for posting it? nope.
will i post up the sellers info if they ask? yep
am i being honest about said prop replica? yep.
kinda dumb doing a review without mentioning who made the thing? maybe. we have some "official" traffic through here, and i would rather not "out" someone who wouldnt wanna be "outed".
i am going to grade this across 4 lines.
1: accuracy
2: color
3: quality
4: value
first up. lana's kryptonite necklace.
accuracy - honestly.. dunno. the shows version changed a bit each time they seemed to show it, but the prop replica does differ from the action figures replica (which isnt accurate). its a pretty nice looking piece though, and its a rare anal person who will start counting the sides of a crystal on a necklace when looking at your collection. i had the rare chance a year or so ago to fondle one of the necklaces made by the original maker and the chain is crazy different from anything i have ever seen, so im not deducting points for not sitting back and matching link for link. also, the hero one had bubbles, this one doesnt
score - A
color - AMAZING. best deep emerald green i have seen in a long long time (my own green K included). matches the shows deep green perfectly.
score - A+
quality - pretty good. honestly, the shows had a bit sharper cuts on the facets, and the necklace was a little bit diff., but not overwhelmingly so (i.e. its not like the replica was made with an omega styled necklace while the show used a twisted box chain). besides the corners being a little rounded, the clarity of the stone is nice, no bubbles, and its a pretty decent size. a side bonus being the chain metal is magnetic, so mine is on display hanging from a magnet in my "lead box" display
score - A
value - i gotta go with damned good value (not cause i won it). when these were first on the market, i forget who i got mine from but i recall paying somewhere in the neighborhood of 50$ or so shipped, and the only real diff. i can recall between the 2 was the gemstones "finish" being more crystal like, and the facets being sharper. for all i know this original piece wasnt accurate, or might have been the wrong size. i am working off memory for the comparison. therefore i am not comparing memory to what i have, as that wouldnt be fair. the point being that this is a damned good replica of a piece that isnt in the show anymore. if you didnt get one when they were first offered up, the price is pretty fair for what you get. bubble free and a beautiful green color.
score - A+
all in all if you are a smallville fan and DONT have this necklace, its worth snagging if you have the extra cash. in the grand scheme of things (comparing buying this to say, an mpp replica), its a pretty cheap prop price wise, and well worth the cash if you are a smallville nut.
Next up. Clarks Red K Class ring.
accuracy - damned damned close. i had the chance to fondle one of the promo rings, and own one of them, and then a replica of the promo ring as well. i had to sell both over the years, and this one is a great replica of the ring. big, heavy, and looks like a real class ring (just happens to have smallville stuff on there instead of my class stuff).
score - A
color - hard to grade a ring on color, but since there are 2 parts on the ring, i will give 2 scores. 1 score for the ring, 1 score for the gem. on the ring, its a pewter base and is, quite obviously a silver/grey color. the paintjob on this one was a bit spotty though, and it honestly looks like a silver ring misted with gold colored paint. no black wash for the letters, etc.
score on the ring - B-
on the gemstone, its a red K gemstone, and well, the stone is a nice red color. doesn't quite match the ruby red of the promo but its pretty close
score on the gemstone - A-
quality - this is where we hit a snag. on the ring itself, its a decent value. any class ring will run a few hundred bucks easy. the promo rings and the replica promo rings sell in the 300$ range regularly. but, on the flip side, having the gemstone have a big air bubble in it kinda kills the whole effect of the ring. you dont notice the engravings on the side, or the name of the school, you notice the big air bubble. if you look at the ring anywhere inside the "5'" rule, you notice the spotty paint as well. but, considering i spent about 40$ on this instead of 300 bucks, i am willing to forgive a little. its not what it should be, but it also didnt run 250 dollars more.
score - C to B- (yea, wishy washy grade, but its a well made prop, just a crap paintjob and a bubble in the gem. not like its a pinhole ridden casting or a bubble ridden superman crystal)
value - i won the ring off an ebay auction many many moons ago, and i picked it up for what was about 5 bucks less than it normally ran. the only faults i have with it are the paintjob and the actual gemstone there. if i follow the "5'" rule of propdom (if it looks good from 5 feet away, awesome.) then it's fine. when it's up close and personal, the paint problem shows itself, and the gemstone has an air bubble dead center of it. very very easily noticed up close and personal, but on the shelf in the corner? cant tell at all. if you need a ring, and dont feel like plunking down the roughly 300$ the promo and replica promo's go for, its a great value. however, i think more work needs to be done on the stone itself for it to be a truly great replica. i spoke to a jeweler friend of mine who declined to work on the ring if i found the correct stone since its made of pewter. he was unable to assure me the ring would still look ok once he popped the resin stone out and the new stone in. so, the ring stays as is. i would rather have a replica that looks ok from a distance than not have a replica at all, or at the worst have a squashed/dented/broken one from trying to dislodge a gemstone and put a new one in.
score - B- , great for the cash, but the stone problem really kills it for me. if i wore it every day as a normal ring, this would score a D easily. as a replica though (plus it being made of pewter means wearing it every day is a bad idea), it sits on a shelf and looks nice, so the grade stands as its.
thus endeth the first review thread i have popped up in a long damned time.
score overall for both (and seller) is B for the replicas, and A for the seller. hell of a shipper, the replicas look terrific on the shelf, and i dont feel that i wasted any money on either one. i have been in the hobby a few years now, and i have gotten my share of crap kits, poorly done finished props, and somewhat horribly abused screen used stuff. i have had things take months to get to me, sellers who ignore emails, and some projects that are over 4 years in the works now. this guy was quick with the emails, fast with the shipping, and you cant ask for better than that.
i didn't opt for pics as a: i am feeling a little crappy tonight and dont want to take pics and resize and upload em, and b: we all know what the props look like on the show, and any variant between them and the ones i got is so damned tiny i doubt it would show up on the pics without me putting a big arrow pointing to em.
thanks for the read
chris
i won a raffle last week, and recieved my prize in the mail the other day, and finally got around to actually having enough time to post a review up as i have been meaning to.
was i asked to post this? nope.
am i getting free stuff for posting it? nope.
will i post up the sellers info if they ask? yep
am i being honest about said prop replica? yep.
kinda dumb doing a review without mentioning who made the thing? maybe. we have some "official" traffic through here, and i would rather not "out" someone who wouldnt wanna be "outed".
i am going to grade this across 4 lines.
1: accuracy
2: color
3: quality
4: value
first up. lana's kryptonite necklace.
accuracy - honestly.. dunno. the shows version changed a bit each time they seemed to show it, but the prop replica does differ from the action figures replica (which isnt accurate). its a pretty nice looking piece though, and its a rare anal person who will start counting the sides of a crystal on a necklace when looking at your collection. i had the rare chance a year or so ago to fondle one of the necklaces made by the original maker and the chain is crazy different from anything i have ever seen, so im not deducting points for not sitting back and matching link for link. also, the hero one had bubbles, this one doesnt
score - A
color - AMAZING. best deep emerald green i have seen in a long long time (my own green K included). matches the shows deep green perfectly.
score - A+
quality - pretty good. honestly, the shows had a bit sharper cuts on the facets, and the necklace was a little bit diff., but not overwhelmingly so (i.e. its not like the replica was made with an omega styled necklace while the show used a twisted box chain). besides the corners being a little rounded, the clarity of the stone is nice, no bubbles, and its a pretty decent size. a side bonus being the chain metal is magnetic, so mine is on display hanging from a magnet in my "lead box" display
score - A
value - i gotta go with damned good value (not cause i won it). when these were first on the market, i forget who i got mine from but i recall paying somewhere in the neighborhood of 50$ or so shipped, and the only real diff. i can recall between the 2 was the gemstones "finish" being more crystal like, and the facets being sharper. for all i know this original piece wasnt accurate, or might have been the wrong size. i am working off memory for the comparison. therefore i am not comparing memory to what i have, as that wouldnt be fair. the point being that this is a damned good replica of a piece that isnt in the show anymore. if you didnt get one when they were first offered up, the price is pretty fair for what you get. bubble free and a beautiful green color.
score - A+
all in all if you are a smallville fan and DONT have this necklace, its worth snagging if you have the extra cash. in the grand scheme of things (comparing buying this to say, an mpp replica), its a pretty cheap prop price wise, and well worth the cash if you are a smallville nut.
Next up. Clarks Red K Class ring.
accuracy - damned damned close. i had the chance to fondle one of the promo rings, and own one of them, and then a replica of the promo ring as well. i had to sell both over the years, and this one is a great replica of the ring. big, heavy, and looks like a real class ring (just happens to have smallville stuff on there instead of my class stuff).
score - A
color - hard to grade a ring on color, but since there are 2 parts on the ring, i will give 2 scores. 1 score for the ring, 1 score for the gem. on the ring, its a pewter base and is, quite obviously a silver/grey color. the paintjob on this one was a bit spotty though, and it honestly looks like a silver ring misted with gold colored paint. no black wash for the letters, etc.
score on the ring - B-
on the gemstone, its a red K gemstone, and well, the stone is a nice red color. doesn't quite match the ruby red of the promo but its pretty close
score on the gemstone - A-
quality - this is where we hit a snag. on the ring itself, its a decent value. any class ring will run a few hundred bucks easy. the promo rings and the replica promo rings sell in the 300$ range regularly. but, on the flip side, having the gemstone have a big air bubble in it kinda kills the whole effect of the ring. you dont notice the engravings on the side, or the name of the school, you notice the big air bubble. if you look at the ring anywhere inside the "5'" rule, you notice the spotty paint as well. but, considering i spent about 40$ on this instead of 300 bucks, i am willing to forgive a little. its not what it should be, but it also didnt run 250 dollars more.
score - C to B- (yea, wishy washy grade, but its a well made prop, just a crap paintjob and a bubble in the gem. not like its a pinhole ridden casting or a bubble ridden superman crystal)
value - i won the ring off an ebay auction many many moons ago, and i picked it up for what was about 5 bucks less than it normally ran. the only faults i have with it are the paintjob and the actual gemstone there. if i follow the "5'" rule of propdom (if it looks good from 5 feet away, awesome.) then it's fine. when it's up close and personal, the paint problem shows itself, and the gemstone has an air bubble dead center of it. very very easily noticed up close and personal, but on the shelf in the corner? cant tell at all. if you need a ring, and dont feel like plunking down the roughly 300$ the promo and replica promo's go for, its a great value. however, i think more work needs to be done on the stone itself for it to be a truly great replica. i spoke to a jeweler friend of mine who declined to work on the ring if i found the correct stone since its made of pewter. he was unable to assure me the ring would still look ok once he popped the resin stone out and the new stone in. so, the ring stays as is. i would rather have a replica that looks ok from a distance than not have a replica at all, or at the worst have a squashed/dented/broken one from trying to dislodge a gemstone and put a new one in.
score - B- , great for the cash, but the stone problem really kills it for me. if i wore it every day as a normal ring, this would score a D easily. as a replica though (plus it being made of pewter means wearing it every day is a bad idea), it sits on a shelf and looks nice, so the grade stands as its.
thus endeth the first review thread i have popped up in a long damned time.
score overall for both (and seller) is B for the replicas, and A for the seller. hell of a shipper, the replicas look terrific on the shelf, and i dont feel that i wasted any money on either one. i have been in the hobby a few years now, and i have gotten my share of crap kits, poorly done finished props, and somewhat horribly abused screen used stuff. i have had things take months to get to me, sellers who ignore emails, and some projects that are over 4 years in the works now. this guy was quick with the emails, fast with the shipping, and you cant ask for better than that.
i didn't opt for pics as a: i am feeling a little crappy tonight and dont want to take pics and resize and upload em, and b: we all know what the props look like on the show, and any variant between them and the ones i got is so damned tiny i doubt it would show up on the pics without me putting a big arrow pointing to em.
thanks for the read
chris
