I was put on this thread after I made a tread on my first saber. I have to say I am on their forums and you see people talking about lack of communication as well as no updates on orders. But this is what I have to say, until I find designs I like for a reasonable price I will be forced to do business with this company or use my money else where and not even have a saber.
I have looked at two other saber builders and was not impressed with the prices nor did I come across any saber hilt designs that jumped out at me. This is why someone such as this stays in business. You focus on the low end market and you get more people because lets face it, those that are heavy into cosplay or even dueling will spend way more money than the general public that would like to have a saber as a novelty collectible or even just a display piece to show off. I fall into the latter group and only want a working saber for collectible reasons as I always wanted a more realistic saber dating back to the plastic toys that came out long ago.
To thoses that are running business like this, if you want to hurt his business offer entry level sabers for the same cost. If you can do that and have better quality control and better quality finished product you will deal a huge blow to this guy business wise. But if you focus on trying to make as much as you can you will always be put under by someone that under sells you. Its just like where I work at, we give work away for free because it creates customers for life that will eventually bring in more money in the long run. These sabers should be the same way, priced where they are affordable for the widest range of people but at the same time allows you to thrive by having a huge customer base.