Frequently Asked Questions

What does Kult Of Athena mean?
Athena was the ancient Greek Goddess of wisdom and battle. Compared to Ares the god of war, she represented battle with intelligence and wisdom behind it, not just war for war's sake. A "Kult" or "Cult" was the name given to a God's followers. It did not have the negative connotation people seem to think of now. So Kult Of Athena is basically followers of Athena. An appropriate name for a company that sells swords. Besides it just sounds a lot better then GetSwords.com.

Do you really worship Athena?
No, it's just a name.

Where are you located?
1485 Davis Rd
Unit A
Elgin, IL 60123
USA.

That's about 40 miles from Chicago.

Do you have a retail store?
Not at this time.

What are your hours?
You can order online 24 hours a day 7 days a week. If you need to call us, our phone support is generally available Monday through Friday from 10:00AM-6:00PM, Central Standard time. However we are currently closed weekends.

Can I pick up my order?
Yes we can hold your order for pick up. Please mention this in the special instructions at the time of check out. We'll wave your shipping charges. However, please wait for us to contact you and let you know that your order is ready before coming out to get it. We'd hate you to travel a long way if your order is not ready.

Why are your prices so cheap?
We actually have had quite a few people ask us this. Put simply, we just work on a smaller mark-up then many dealers. We work hard to keep our prices low, and try to sell items for what we think they should sell for, not as much as we could possibly get.

I've seen the same items selling for hundreds of dollars more somewhere else. Are your items the same? What's the catch?
We sell the exact same name brand products as other dealers. There is no catch. We all get them from the same places. All of our products are brand new, not rejects or factory 2nds (except in our blow outs section). You could pay a lot more for these exact same items elsewhere. But, don't be fooled, there is absolutely no difference in the product you will receive. As a matter of fact, because we quality check our products before shipping, there is a good chance the products you'll receive from us will actually be BETTER then from other places charging more. We know from experience, that most places do not even bother looking at the items they sell you. They just order them in and ship them out, loose, broken, rusty or whatever. It takes a lot of time to quality check shipments, and most dealers do not want to be bothered with it.

Is ordering online safe?
Absolutely. Millions of secure credit card transactions occur on the internet without a problem. When you place an order on our site, your information is encrypted and stored on a remote server. We must then login through a secure and password protected connection to retrieve it. When you actually think about it ordering through a secure internet connection is safer than using your phone. When you give your credit card number out over the phone, that conversation is bounced through the open air off of satellites and back to earth in an unencrypted form. Anyone with the right scanning hardware can listen in. Most people will give their credit card to the waiter at a restaurant with out a question, and all he has to to is write down the number to steal it. When you order from us, we are the only ones who can see your information, no one else. What many people don't understand is that when they hear about internet credit card fraud, it is usually directed at the merchants not the customers. In other words, people placing internet orders with stolen credit card numbers. These numbers are obtained in various ways, but not from people ordering from a secure website. The bottom line: Ordering from our secure shopping cart system is absolutely safe.

What currency are your prices in?
We are a US based company and work exclusively in US dollars. If you are ordering by credit card from another country, the credit card company will take care of the exchange automatically.

How does a pre-order work?
If you order something marked as a pre-order, that simply means we are taking advance orders for an item that has not yet been released. Usually in cases like this, it will be a very sought after or limited edition item. Placing a pre-order will secure your spot in line. If you select to pay by credit card, your card will not be charged a cent until the item is ready to ship. We only accept pre-orders up the the quantities of product we know we are going to get. These items are already on order with the manufacturers. We do not place our orders after the fact like some places. When dealing with limited editions this is very important. What this means to you is that if we take your order, you WILL get it. If combining multiple pre-orders and/or in stock items in one order, keep in mind that all items will ship as they become available. In this case your shipping cost will be more then listed due to the multiple shipments.

How do you ship?
We normally ship via UPS Ground. We will also use US Priority mail for smaller packages and P.O. Boxes. International orders are shipped by US Airmail, Global Express, or FedEx whichever works out best for that order. All orders are insured when shipped. A tracking number will be emailed to you when available. Please note that tracking is not available with international air mail, our most cost effective international shipping solution.

Do you offer express shipping?
Yes we can ship your order express. It is not offered as an option in the shopping cart because the cost is very dependent on the weight of the package and the destination. Also express shipping of a large sword can be surprisingly expensive. If you need to have your order shipped express, you should call us for the cost.

How much is shipping to....?
You can determine shipping for most orders directly from our site. Simply place the items you are interested in into your shopping cart and select your shipping location. The cart will currently calculate shipping for the US, Canada & Europe. For other locations, if you would like us to provide you with a shipping quote, please send us an email with your address and the items you are interested in.

What does"Battle Ready" mean?
Swords marked as "Battle Ready" are made to a higher standard than your average display weapons. The blades are usually made of carbon steel, as opposed to the more brittle stainless steel and feature longer and stronger tangs. In general "Battle Ready" swords are functional weapons that will live up to some usage. However, "Battle Ready" does not mean indestructible. Any sword can be broken. Use common sense with your sword. A sword being listed as "Battle Ready" does not constitute a guarantee that it will withstand any abuse you can throw at it. Battle ready swords are generally designed to cut and should not be used for blade to blade combat, see below.

What does"Stage Combat" mean?
Swords listed as "Stage Combat" are specifically designed for combat reenactment, stage and film fights, and other activities where they will be hit edge to edge together. Using a sword in this capacity is very different than how a sword would have been used historically, and as a result the sword must be made differently. Stage combat swords feature extra strong tangs and thick blades with thick edges. Stage combat swords will generally weigh more than a "Battle Ready" equivalent and are not made to be sharpened.
Swords listed as "Stage Combat" will hold up to a fair amount of usage, but will wear out with time. No sword is indestructible, and "Stage Combat" swords are no exception.

Is this sword "full tang?"
Many people love to ask this question with out really understanding what it means. This literally means that the blade tang(the part that extends into the handle) is the full width of the grip. Swords made this way are very rare, though we do have a few. Even historically swords were not made like this, the tangs were made thinner to allow for the grip to be built around them. What you probably want to know is if a tang is functional. A true full width tang is not necessary or in some cases even desirable in a functional weapon. Many dealers use this term incorrectly to describe a "full length" tang, adding to the confusion. The items we have that are marked as "battle ready" all include large thick tangs that are forged as one with the blade, just as the originals were. Because it is more difficult and there for expensive to make a sword this way, it is usually only done on battle ready, functional weapons. Decorator swords including most movie replicas are made with "rat tail" tangs where the tang is welded to the blade.

Why do you list the same sword more than once with different prices?
Some swords are available in different versions from different manufacturers. Sometimes you will see two or more swords that look the same but have very different prices. Usually the cheaper ones are just that, cheaper versions of the same sword. Also you will occasionally see an official movie replica and a cheaper look-a-like. The licensed replicas are the true collectibles. The look-a-likes offer an option for people who want the style of the originals, but can't or don't want to pay for the real thing.

How come you don't list everything you can get like other places do?
We have a different philosophy than most "Sword Sites". We never wanted to be one of those places that list thousands of items but do not really stock any of them. As consumers, we always found this practice to be misleading, frustrating and a bit dishonest. These types of sites "imply " that they have the items you want when in fact they will need to order them in after the fact. Only on the internet could a business get away with selling items they do not have. Would you shop at store where you could only see pictures of the items you want, and then wait while they order them in after you've already paid? Neither would we. We have access to literally hundreds of thousands of items, but we have chosen to limit what we sell on our website to specifically selected items. All of the items we sell have been handled and inspected by us, selected for value and a good quality to price ratio. Nearly everything we list, we keep physically in stock. Operating a list based pseudo-"store" like most sword sites, has inherent problems for the customer. In addition to the increased wait times, there is a lack of product familiarity not having the items on hand. Let's face it they've never seen half the items they'll try to sell you, they just got them off of a supplier's list. There is also the increased incidents of back ordered items. Not having the items and not knowing if their suppliers have them, results in frequent surprise back orders. We see these sites listing items that have been long discontinued, not because they still have them, but because they've never tried to order them. We do not believe in subjecting our customers to this type of frustration. The fact remains, that we can get most items you will see on other sites, usually faster and cheaper than them, so if there is something specific you are looking for, please let us know.

Do you make all of these swords?
No. We are not a manufacturer, we are a retailer. We offer products made by many different manufacturers from many different countries.

Can you make me a custom sword?
No. See above.

Do you have a print catalog?
Not at this time. Our product line is changing constantly. Printing and reprinting catalogs is simply not cost effective. We prefer to save that cost and pass the savings on to you. Our website is our catalog. We may print some catalogs in the future.

Do you sell wholesale to dealers?
Not at this time.

Can you get me an item I've seen somewhere else but is not listed on your website?
Probably. We have access to literally thousands of items not listed on our website. If you can provide us with information on it, we will let you know if we can get it. We can usually get you a better price as well.

Do you offer price matching?
Yes please see here.

Can I get a special discount?
You are getting a discount. We do not like gimmicks. We do not believe in posting inflated prices on our site so that we can pretend to lower them for people under certain circumstances. We work very hard to offer the lowest pricing possible. We believe in giving our bottom line price to everyone, all of the time. We want our customers to know they are getting a good price and not have to worry that it could have been lower if they waited for a special sale, joined a certain club or used the secret handshake. By nature, having a "special" price for certain groups, people, or situations means that everyone else is excluded from that offer. We believe in equality for our customers, so everyone gets VIP pricing. Please stop asking for additional discounts, we do not have that kind of profit available. We don't think we should have to raise prices by 20% just so we can lower them back to make some people feel like they are getting a special deal. It is far better for everyone that we dispense with the gimmicks and just offer low prices.