Saber Forum

So, I have seen a lot of questions about blade differences and which are best to purchase. Of course, being inquisitive in this sort of hobby is perfectly all right, but I would like to provide something to look at in order to see a different way of looking the blades. Ok, here we go.

Note for beginners: the blades offered by Ultrasabers are quite awesome. They are made of a very durable, polycarbonate blade that is very difficult to break. Compared to the blades of regular FX sabers offered by Hasbro or Master Replicas, they do not compare. In terms of Mid-Grade blades and Ultraedge blades, there is some difference. Mid-Grade blades are offered both in Standard and Ultraedge. With the Heavy-Grade blades, there is the same thing, both Standard and Ultraedge. Now, the Standard grade blades are durable. Very durable. They can take a lot of beating. Difference in Heavy-Grade blades is the fact that they can go up against other types of hard material, like training bokkens.

Ok, I am comparing 4 different types of blades here: Ultraedge mid-grade, standard mid-grade, Ultraedge heavy-grade, and standard heavy-grade. There are different lengths for the sabers, but it does not seem to make too much of a difference in terms of illumination.

Here are all four sabers together:
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4154/5446526624_017523ef46.jpg)

Here is a pic of the inside of the blade, showing the thickness of the blade itself.
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5212/5446519864_7ba79d14f6.jpg)
You can see (from left to right): Standard Mid-Grade, Ultraedge Mid-Grade, Standard Heavy-Grade, and Ultraedge Heavy-Grade

Here is (from left to right): Standard Mid-Grade and Standard Heavy-Grade
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4134/5446518294_babf507330.jpg)

Now, here is the funny thing. In trying to show comparison pictures with the sabers, I found out something that I kind of all ready knew. Ultrasabers are bright. VERY bright. It was tough getting different pictures at different angles in order to show how the light is distributed. Here is an example.
Note: all pictures are using the same power light source. The blue saber is a Standard Issue which uses a blue S4 light. The ones of the red sabers are from some older sabers, so I believe they are using Luxeon III LED’s. Either way, they have new batteries and are at the same power. Just to let y’all know.

This photo is of a Ultraedge Heavy-Grade(Note the Bullet Point)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5217/5445926647_bf584b81f8.jpg)

This photo is of a Standard Heavy-Grade.
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/5445928425_8be7f09ca8.jpg)
As you can see. Very bright and very hard to see a difference.
The one thing you can see thugh is a thinner blade from the Standard blade than the Ultraedge. That is due to the clear polycarbonate wall on the outside. I will talk about this a little later.

So, what I did was try to get different angle of the blades in order to see the difference.

Both of these blades are Heavy-Grade. The Ultraedge is on the top and right.
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4076/5446535442_09cb7e0f67.jpg)
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4139/5446536912_7d27174c03.jpg)
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4101/5445942393_c6cba0ef2d.jpg)
Sorry for the finger in that one
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5018/5446552104_d7fd157233.jpg)
You can see a small difference in light distribution across the carpet. The main thing that you see though is that the Ultraedge has a thicker blade due to the fact that the Standard blade has a thinner, outside polycarbonate wall in order to have more durability. Though the wall is the same width in the Ultraedge, you cant see too much of a difference due to the white blade. In the last picture, you can also see the meaning between the Standard Grade being the “brighter blade” versus the Ultraedge’s “fuller blade.”

Here are some blade comparisons of some Mid-Grade sabers.
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5214/5445946155_e466323f4a.jpg)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5173/5445945137_dc9bbea564.jpg)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5135/5445947619_3eb74b9482.jpg)
Again, the Ultraedge blades are on the right. You can see the difference in light being spread across the blade. Though both are very bright, you can see how they look side by side.

Another Note: I had to get very different angles for these pictures. Normally, the blades are Very bright. Just wanted to point that out. Some of the red saber pictures came out a little dull due to the distance of myself and the blades. I even had to add some external light around me in order to change the light effects a bit. So if you do purchase an Ultrasaber, they will be much bright then those. Just look at the pics of the blue blade at the top. An efficient blade comparison pic is difficult because you need to be there to see it. You can see a slight difference in most pictures, but nothing very drastic.

Ok, again, I tried to do this in order to help everyone out. If anyone has any ideas or comments, post them here and let me know what y’all think.
Thanks and MTFBWY!

I noticed the Ultra Edge gives the color a slightly different look in person. More of a Pastel look(at least with green). How does the Red look in person? Is it RED or more of a light red/pink in UE?

It does look different in person. But its hard when the person hasnt bought an Ultrasaber, hah. Ultraedge does give more of a pastel look. In pictures, it seems to be more of light red. The Standard grade blade usually appears to be a little more lighter because of the white. The clear blade brings seems to show the true color a little better. But normally, the red is a true red, cameras usually dont pick it up though, and the white blade doesnt help that either. My friend tried a red filter on a red saber and it gave the saber a cool, blood red effect.

So Ultra Edge doesn't hurt the color too much then?

No, it does not. It does not diminsh the color, just balances the light lot different on the blade depending on which blade you get. A red blade will look red on all the blades. Its really hard to capture it on camera because of the way it picks up the color. The reason it looks a little lighter is because I tried to capture it a different way in order for people to get a perspective on how the light is on the blade. But trust me, the red does look red and it does look great, no matter what blade you get. The way the blue blade balances out is about the same way any of the other colors do.

thejedimasternick is right it doesn't really make the blade dimmer it just washes the color a bit but not to the extent where it is a big deal i have two red led sabers and i love ultra edge blades there the only blades i use in any of my ultrasabers and great post thejedimasternick  this is very useful information i have yet to see a comparisons of ultra heavy blade until now i may have to get one with my next saber order :)

thejedimasternick, thank you. I just pictured red+ultra edge=pink for some reason. Glad to know that's not the case.

No problem at all. Very glad to help.

Oh, and I thank you as well Boss. Sorry I almost forgot!

i just tried my ultra edge blade on my blazing red saber and i am now choosing the ultra edge blades . i personally think the the blade didnt look pink at all, it still looked red. i would have tried it on my consular green prophecy but i dont want to sound stupid , i cant figure how to get the blade out of the emiter. the guardian blue with the u.e. still looked blue (i dont know if that makes sense or not) but it wasnt as bright , it seemed  a tiny bit dimmer. and the v.a. with the ultra edge was the same as the red. also with the ultra edge blades , they dont show the battle scars as easy as the mid grade blades. thanks jedimasternick, for making me see the difference between the two blades. all of my blades will be ultra edge from now on.

If you still cant figure out the blade thing, just get an allen wrench at the top retention screw.

i didnt see that there was a spot there for a allen wrench, thougth it was just a hole ( big DUH on my part).

Great review on the blades thejedimasternick. Plus we are both named Nick, so it was that much better :P

Both of you are named Nick? Me Too! Glad there are some other good saber Nicks out there!

hi... and for dueling purposes, obviously heavy grade blades are better because of the thickness and durability.... but... how good are he mid grade blades?? how hard can you duel with them before they crack or break?? Oh and... great review by the way!!

I know from personal experience that the ends of the blades WILL break off and fly into no where land  :-\

 order
yeah they are good for light to medium dueling if you plan on hardcore dueling with them i suggest you buy some extra blade tips with your order cause like wairth said expect them to fly to no where land :(

gabrielc reminded me of something else to add. Well, kind of. Yeah, both the blades are good for dueling, but I just came to a thought. If you do a lot of show performances or you find yourselves in places where you show off your sabers, I would highly recommend purchasing two of the same blades. I know this sounds like a lot, but it comes in handy in the end. Why? One is for dueling and sparring, the other is a show blade that you use for "visual" pleasing. The saber can withstand a lot, but over time, there are scuff marks and scratches that will not come out. These marks are somewhat visible when you are using it. Not too much though, so I wouldnt say this is any sort of priority. But, it is something to consider. If you end up buying a saber and getting another, dont be afraid of switching the blade out and using one mostly for dueling while you save the other. Of course, this is just my own opinion and this is what I have learned from my own experience. Sabers will get damaged eventually as time goes by, so that is just inevitable. But, sometimes it doesnt hurt having "show" or "shiny" blades to use occasionally.

What people keep confusing/forgeting is:

-noone thinks of the extra waight of the blade, my Aeon with the UEHG si uber heavy (blade vs hilt), and ill have to put some lead (yes lead) at the pomel part, so it balances near the emitter.

-all of us think, thicker is better. Well it is, and it's not. The sad part is, that almost none of us will acutaly ever need a heavy grade blade, simply becouse the mid grades are exelent for sparing. Not full out, but hey: im scared to swing my UEGH's around hard cuz i realy dont want to hurt anyone. Those things hare scary.

What most people want (imho) is the brightest blade posible, with the colour if your choice, and something you can actualy duel with, and hit the oponents saber. But all that fear and wanting the best (thickest) comes from our past expiriances with MR's or Hasbro FX sabers, where they are extreamley fragile. One drop on the flour and it's over. If you are extreamly lucky you get away with a scrach, and even than you are sad, cuz its the exact film replica.

No matter what blade you get, it's going to be STRONGER than any FX saber you saw before, and is good for sparing and dueling.

My 2 cents

Just a quick thought - Maslac brought up a good point, the mid grade has an advantage in that it's a little safer to spar with (not to say that full out sparring without protective equipment is recommended because IT IS NOT!).  When my friends (who have little experience and therefore control with a blade) use my sabers, I like to give them ones with mid grade blades so they're less likely to seriously injure somebody - considering people compare the heavy grade blades to bokken they could cause some serious damage.

I've had the tips come off too, although it was on a blade I got from a source outside of Ultra - none of the blades I've bought on this site have had that problem yet (knock on wood).  It's not even due to a durability thing though, I'm pretty sure it's just that the tips are held on by glue and if you hit hard enough, you compress the air inside the blade which pushes the point off after enough stress.  The heavy grade blades are thicker and therefore don't bend as much, preventing this.

Random story concerning the safety of these blades - I have seen somebody get their tooth broken from a fairly light hit coming from a mid grade blade, so do NOT underestimate them.

Very Nice Post "The Jedi Master Nick", this is what I have been wanting to see up, a direct comparison between the ultra edge, and the normal edge blade.  From what I can tell, the white core is larger and more evident in the ultra edge, but the color itself is distilled........  where as with the normal edge blade, the white core is smaller (which I'm fine with), and the Color is FAR MORE EVIDENT than with the other  ;D

This just helps me prove my point, I stand by the Normal Edge Blade as the Superior Aesthetic Blade!!!!!!!!!!  ;)

This thread needs to be kept.  Impressive photos and comparisons!!

I have sabers with both ultraedge and standard.  I have one standard and i'm not fond of the weight of it.  For show and light sparring I'll stick with Ultraedge mid-grade.  I'm not into compititions or anything, my neck of the woods doesn't have enough interest to host things like that.  So you should really think about what yer gonna do with your saber before you decide on a blade.  Also I like the ultra edge cause it carries the color right to the outside of the blade, the standard looks like light in a tube.

I agree, but I have to add that while in person the Ultra Edge looks better, on camera the standards tend to look better to me.  Reason being is that the UltraEdge blocks/absorbs some of the brightness from the LEDs.  When you film a standard saber (especially Guardian Blue... yum) you get a sick brightness that just isn't matched by the UE counter parts.  At least that's how it tends to read to me.

great review... i am happy that i decided to pick ultra edge heavy grade for my saber

Hey are the heavy grade blades actually heavier than the regular ultraedge (the mid-grade one) or are they the same?

They are heavier than the mids, hence twice the thickness.

well could you tell me by how many pounds or ounces it is heavier by?

I just measured using a food scale.

Mid grade: 6.5oz
Heavy grade: 11oz

These are approximate but very close to dead accurate as far as my food scale goes.

M.A.V.

Thank you SO much it will help me decide which to get for an initiate V2 staff. By the way does anyone know which is the best type of saber type for the initiate V2 in the Consular Green Color?

I'm not entirely sure what you mean so let me give you some basic info to help you rephrase your question.

The Consular Green is a single LED color that is quite bright.  Every saber uses the same type of LED so no one saber gets a better or worse version of the color.  If you mean what looks best with the CG blade that is a personal preference.

Did this help?  If not post again and we'll see if we can't get you an answer!

M.A.V.

What i meant was which blade will balance the whole thing so that the blade doesnt make the initiate have a weird balance point and which blade makes the color consular green lookthe brightest/best.

AH!  Very sorry but now I understand.

This will be another matter of personal preference and you won't really be able to decide that without actually holding one.  However there is good news.  I would recommend trying out a 32" blade.  They don't come standard in that size but Deep can cut it down for you if you put the request politely in the comments box on the shipping page.

BUT:  It would be best if you consider this info first.  If you are going to do a lot of heavy dueling, get a Heavy Grade.  They are amazingly durable.  If not, get a mid grade.  And I recommend getting them at the full length of 36".  Reason being you can cut down your blade at any time (there are tons of threads on here referencing just that).  All you need is a pipe saw, scissors and a hot glue gun.  That way you can be very precise and get the balance to exactly where you want it.

This is of course my own person opinion.  Others can and will disagree, and that is the beauty of the forum, you get many different truths, all from unique points of view (thank you Obi-Wan).

M.A.V.

Thank you so much for helping me out with that. I know now to get that. So i thought id put my personal modifications listed.
Blade LED Color: Consular Green
Blade Size: 36 Inches
Blade Option: Heavy Grade
Tip Type: Round
Batteries: No
Retention Wrench: Yes
Quantity: 2
Total: $151.98

Congratulations!  Enjoy both sabers and enjoy the forums!

M.A.V.

I just noticed that it would be cheaper if i just bought an initiate v2 staff with the same customizations. Anyway thanks a million for helping me out.

WOW! I think im gonna put a hold on those sabers because i just found out about xsabers.com

There is no timeline currently on xsabers so it might be better to order your sabers now.  Also, you won't be buying sabers from xsabers, you'll be sending your saber to Ultra for upgrades and customizations.

M.A.V.

Dude you just saved me time AND money. Thanks for the info. I had no idea that you would send your saber to him to customize, i thought you would just give him an idea of what you wanted.

It's not very certain what the CSO is gonna provide.  Artorius and I gathered that Ultra will be doing custom work on sabers that you either send in or purchase from US.  However, I wouldn't entirely rule out the idea of him building custom sabers for people - the only thing is, he's very particular about product quality, and from what I can tell he'll be doing it alone so he may avoid building sabers from the ground up in the interest of time.  I'm sure he doesn't want people to be waiting in a massive queue while he constructs a complicated custom saber.

Thanks for letting me know. So when the time is right, I'll purchase a phantom initiate staff. Then I'll probably send it in for customizations later when xsabers is up and running.

I dont know anymore. All this stuff is starting to mess with my brain.  :-\

thanks for the blade comparison information.. I was looking for something like this for a while.  ;D

So I have a few questions I hope someone can help me with here:

What's the difference between the standard and ultra edge tips?
Are the heavier grades for more durability or just weight?
What's more realistic to the movie?/Looks more similar: Ultra Edge or Standard?
Is one more expensive than the other and why?

Sorry for all the questions, just wanna make sure I'm creating the right one with no disappointment.

Nice. I personally like my Blazing Red blade I got in the Ultra Edge Heavy Grade blade, sometimes blues in standard/Heavy. Adegan Silver looks way good I think in either Ultra Edge blades =]

This was very helpful, thanks for the post! I got a Heavy Grade on my Blazing Red Bellicose due to the suggestions linked on the forum from the actual product page. I wanted to have a true red but Ultra Edge does look pretty awesome regardless of color. Definitely going Ultra Edge on my next purchase.

I feel as though there needs to be less hot glue used on the inside for the film. Not hating or bashing, just giving an idea. Maybe the blades themselves would be brighter then? All are nice blades though either way

Well my question is what looks better with violet amethyst ultra-edge or standard?

great review! I personally cant decide between the two (UE/STRD)  so i just got both rofl.