# Any Invictus owners on SS?



## Polythoral (Jul 17, 2012)

I'm looking into getting a high end custom (3000USD or so is my budget) and Invictus has been my main interest so far. Was wondering if anyone here has one, had one, or has played one and can tell me how they feel about it.

Also, what alternatives should I consider? Viks look really nice, but I haven't paid attention to them too much ever.

Also, if it helps at all, I'm mostly interested in a figured top wood (actually kinda set on a bookmatched ziricote top currently), maple fretboard, wenge or walnut body. 24 stainless steel frets, fixed bridge of some sort (Hannes ideally), 2 BKP humbuckers. No super odd/extreme body (or headstock ideally) shapes.


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## Zado (Jul 17, 2012)

Daemoness are know for being actually a good deal too.Also take a look at jaden rose,ran guitars,skervesen,siggery(pretty cheap)...


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## Valennic (Jul 17, 2012)

Vik is outside of your 3k budget if that helps you decide 

Daemoness is an option, but I'm fairly sure that he's not taking orders at the moment so he can reduce his backlog. Couldn't hurt to send him an email though. Jaden Rose is a good one, Fred Brum here can attest to that, and Strictly 7 is a nice choice, they've been putting out good guitars lately. There are way too many to list, so hopefully others here will list more


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## Ayo7e (Jul 17, 2012)

Acacia could be an option.


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## Polythoral (Jul 17, 2012)

Well, lots of other options listed, and thanks for them, but no opinions on Invictus here? D:


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## MaxOfMetal (Jul 17, 2012)

Nothing I've seen of Invictus so far has made me believe they are worth $3k, considering that $3k opens your options to far more established builders with a much longer track record for making amazing guitars (Suhr, Jackson, Anderson, Artinger, Myka, McNaught, and Thorn). Not to mention there is quite the premium these days for buying a guitar from another country.

No offense to the guys at Invictus by the way, and I'm not at all questioning their price. They're just pretty new to the game, and I haven't seen a lot of their output.


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## Stealthdjentstic (Jul 17, 2012)

Yeah even just to import my 8 from the US I got customs raped. Definately look locally before anything.

I dont even want to think about the customs on my inc. vik


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## Winspear (Jul 17, 2012)

I'm pretty sure Daemoness are above 3k base price? That's less than 2000 GBP.


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## iRaiseTheDead (Jul 17, 2012)

Definitely check out Daemoness. With him you'll be in the 2000-3000 range depending on how much detail/graphics/inlay work you have him do. Real nice guy too.


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## PeteyG (Jul 17, 2012)

This past weekend I played an Invictus 8 string, what I was led to believe was the best of their guitars at the event I was at where there were a few others. I wasn't impressed by it and would certainly not pay $3k for it, or any figure approaching that to be honest. There were quite a few more issues with the construction than I would hope to see in a custom guitar of that price. An example of this was that the 8th string had a smaller spacing to the seventh string than any of the other strings had to one another, enough for it to be an irritating hinderance to my playing. 

My personal experience and every personal account from anyone who has experienced them, including some past and present endorsing artists, leads me to believe that Invictus will, and do, call a product finished when it still needs a lot of work done.

As others have said, get in touch with Daemoness, with Dylan I can guarantee that you're employing a luthier who will not settle for a product that is "good enough". I live a five minute walk from his workshop and have experienced numerous products of his, and I'm blown away by each and every one. Not only this but he really does improve on each build, so perhaps if you have to wait a while you may get a much better guitar than you could ever hope for.


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## Necris (Jul 17, 2012)

I'm not sure the guys at Invictus haven't quite mastered jointery work yet (look at the seam between the two pieces of the top).


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## teamSKDM (Jul 17, 2012)

Ran, and decibel are other fantastic options. And mayones. Or you can just become a bau5 and get endorsed by Ibanez and get an LACS!


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## mphsc (Jul 17, 2012)

^ confirms what I've heard. I almost went with them but put another deposit on a KxK & a Siggery instead. Shame to hear.


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## Prydogga (Jul 17, 2012)

I don't know why so many people who have the money to go to basically any builder want to to straight to this very new, and not exactly unique looking builder. I've seen many testimonies that make me want to stay very clear of Invictus. I'd suggest looking elsewhere, especially if you're not in the UK.


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## Levi79 (Jul 17, 2012)

I do like the way Invictus stuff looks and I've always defended the guy getting called out on copying, but I've been seeing some bad first hand impressions and some pictures of badly done work. Not saying any of those things are worth any weight, I'm just saying what I've seen. However I've seen nothing but great things about Acacia. So I strongly recommend them. And they have one of the tastiest headstocks ever.


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## Polythoral (Jul 17, 2012)

Thanks for the info guys, working on sending a quote request to Daemoness now, will do several others too tonight. To be honest, the main reason I went to Invictus first is I just loved their guitars looks, especially because they seemed to have tons of experience with natural tops. I'm rather uninterested in any fancy finishes, just a beautiful wood top. Daemoness' recent finishes are kinda tempting though, not going to lie.


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## MikeSweeney (Jul 17, 2012)

Go RAN you cant go wrong with RAN


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## Danukenator (Jul 18, 2012)

Here's the way I feel. Invictus may be a new company that has done copies. Neither are a good reason to condemn a company. Everyone has to start somewhere with something. Invicitus however has had a very public split that raised many questions by their lead endorsee and has many photographs that show iffy craftsmanship. That top that was posted was NOT properly glued together.

There are many other amazing luthiers that offer unique guitars and many others that can craft amazing copies. In a massive market, why settle on a guitar maker that may drop the ball?

EDIT: I just saw your price range. With that kind of cash, many doors to many amazing makers are opened.


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## Polythoral (Jul 18, 2012)

Danukenator said:


> Here's the way I feel. Invictus may be a new company that has done copies. Neither are a good reason to condemn a company. Everyone has to start somewhere with something. Invicitus however has had a very public split that raised many questions by their lead endorsee and has many photographs that show iffy craftsmanship. That top that was posted was NOT properly glued together.
> 
> There are many other amazing luthiers that offer unique guitars and many others that can craft amazing copies. In a massive market, why settle on a guitar maker that may drop the ball?
> 
> EDIT: I just saw your price range. With that kind of cash, many doors to many amazing makers are opened.



Are you talking about the Vildjharta dealio? I felt they seemed to have genuinely not been really at fault there and were greatly honest about it. It wasn't an Emperion level thing. Nonetheless, I can't argue the top that was posted, and like I said, definitely looking into many others now!


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## Necris (Jul 18, 2012)

If you're going to go into business of building and selling custom guitars consistency is a key and when you can't maintain or reach the high standard of quality associated with the idea of a custom instrument the blame falls squarely on you and your company. For example: If you put a piece of hardware on the guitar that doesn't work it's the manufacturers fault for sending you crappy hardware, but it's your fault for putting it on your guitar and letting it leave your shop. If you weren't aware the hardware was crap that's a Quality Control failure.

When asked what Invictus hadn't provided them with that made them terminate their endorsement they answered "Playable Guitars".

Direct Quote from the Page:



> Fan:"If they weren't good enough wtf were your requirements?"
> Vildhjarta: "@'fan' Playable guitars."



https://www.facebook.com/vildhjartaofficial/posts/10150690433632322 can be found there within the first few comments.


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## Polythoral (Jul 18, 2012)

=/

Leah said they held up well against her Blackmachines. :x

You've all scared me enough to send quotes to 4 other places (I actually went through getting one the other week from Invictus) with the moreorless the same specs I gave to Invictus and see if they end up within my budget, then do more research/questioning from there.

Thanks erryone!


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## Stealthdjentstic (Jul 18, 2012)

Are you really stupid enough to take endorsee word 110%? Cmon...


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## Polythoral (Jul 18, 2012)

Stealthdjentstic said:


> Are you really stupid enough to take endorsee word 110%? Cmon...



Well, in all fairness, likewise why should I take ex-endorsee word 110%?

Edit: And to clarify, I'm not taking any side 100% as of now. I'm weighing everything at once. I've said quite a few times now I think that you guys have provided enough reasons and evidence for me to be sketchy on it and to definitely look into other places and request quotes from them.


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## ej207t (Jul 18, 2012)

i'll have to add my 2 cents and say yes, if you're in the UK definitely check out daemoness (im HANGING for one myself). If you're in the states you could check out GMW, KxK, or Bernie Rico (HANGING for one of these too), though im not too sure if his black saturday special, which looks like it may have backfired on him, will affect your order should you decide to go for one.

i probably wouldnt try getting something like a custom jackson / esp / ibanez unless you're a real big fan. not to knock those big boys off but i got my gmw 7 string for the same amount of money as my jackson sl1. we're talking custom vs standard here.

the gmw absolutely shits all over my soloist. the soloist was my hero guitar for years and when i got it i was like '... hmmm yeah i love it but....'

it wont be long before i get another gmw 7 thats for sure.


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## Polythoral (Jul 18, 2012)

ej207t said:


> i'll have to add my 2 cents and say yes, if you're in the UK definitely check out daemoness (im HANGING for one myself). If you're in the states you could check out GMW, KxK, or Bernie Rico (HANGING for one of these too), though im not too sure if his black saturday special, which looks like it may have backfired on him, will affect your order should you decide to go for one.
> 
> i probably wouldnt try getting something like a custom jackson / esp / ibanez unless you're a real big fan. not to knock those big boys off but i got my gmw 7 string for the same amount of money as my jackson sl1. we're talking custom vs standard here.
> 
> ...



Haven't checked GMW or Bernie Rico yet, and entirely forgot about KxK. Will check all them now. I actually just got a quote from Acacia already, absolutely amazingly lower than I expected. I even went as far as to ask for ziricote inlays in my maple fretboard and it turned out way below the Invictus quote. Interested to see the quotes I get from Daemoness, RAN, and Bowes.

I also think I may be next on the Decibel wait list, contacted Darren to see. Prettttty sure I'm 13 or 14, not sure though.


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## Stealthdjentstic (Jul 18, 2012)

Forget BRJ, he is way behind and has been feeding people bullshit excuses for 2 years now. Definately hit up Bowes, he is pretty affordable right now and is a really nice guy.


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## Polythoral (Jul 18, 2012)

Stealthdjentstic said:


> Forget BRJ, he is way behind and has been feeding people bullshit excuses for 2 years now. Definately hit up Bowes, he is pretty affordable right now and is a really nice guy.



Good to hear, his pricing looked good and the pictures I seen looked nice, but I had never heard of him. Stumbled on him through Decibel's liked pages. Would love to support someone someone seemingly starting up.


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## DjentDjentlalala (Jul 18, 2012)

Speaking the truth,the trend looks at Invictus.I would say go for a Suhr,or grab a used ESP (hard,really really hard)


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## Lorcan Ward (Jul 18, 2012)

Polythoral said:


> Well, in all fairness, likewise why should I take ex-endorsee word 110%?



Because we don't have to sugar coat products for the fear of getting dropped or in trouble. People here will give you their honest opinion.

There hasn't been a Invictus NGD on this site yet and I haven't tried one so I can't say anything about them other than what the pictures show. They do have an eye for fancy tops and can get some really nice woods. They have taken on a lot of artists and have a moderate waiting list so it won't be long until we get several people's opinions on them. 

For a Daemoness with a crazy inlay your going to be looking at 3000-3500USD but it will be worth every penny, the guy is a perfectionist and makes some incredible guitars.


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## Valennic (Jul 18, 2012)

Stealthdjentstic said:


> Forget BRJ, he is way behind and has been feeding people bullshit excuses for 2 years now. Definately hit up Bowes, he is pretty affordable right now and is a really nice guy.



Brian's not taking individual orders at the moment, he's in the middle of a 7 string run that he's working on . When he opens up his next run I'd jump on it if I were you though TS. He's a top notch dude, keeps you updated at every turn, and he does a full rebuild at the slightest flaw. He's a perfectionist from hell. 

Also if it helps TS, I'm getting one from Bowes soon. If you have interest you can PM me or what have you, I'd be happy to help you out or what not.


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## TimSE (Jul 18, 2012)

PeteyG said:


> This past weekend I played an Invictus 8 string, what I was led to believe was the best of their guitars at the event I was at where there were a few others. I wasn't impressed by it and would certainly not pay $3k for it, or any figure approaching that to be honest. There were quite a few more issues with the construction than I would hope to see in a custom guitar of that price. An example of this was that the 8th string had a smaller spacing to the seventh string than any of the other strings had to one another, enough for it to be an irritating hinderance to my playing.
> 
> My personal experience and every personal account from anyone who has experienced them, including some past and present endorsing artists, leads me to believe that Invictus will, and do, call a product finished when it still needs a lot of work done.



100% agreed. I was at the same show, played the same invictus guitars and completely agree. 

I have only played 1 Deamoness and was a while ago but still, it was amazingly impressive and I would drop that price tag on one.


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## Prydogga (Jul 18, 2012)

Valennic said:


> Brian's not taking individual orders at the moment, he's in the middle of a 7 string run that he's working on . When he opens up his next run I'd jump on it if I were you though TS. He's a top notch dude, keeps you updated at every turn, and he does a full rebuild at the slightest flaw. He's a perfectionist from hell.
> 
> Also if it helps TS, I'm getting one from Bowes soon. If you have interest you can PM me or what have you, I'd be happy to help you out or what not.



Same deal here, also a big recommendation for Bowes from me, if you can get in on his next run after this big one that's full.


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## Daemon (Jul 18, 2012)

I'll be a happy owner in something like one week.
I played their guitars during all the Uk Tech Metal Fest.. they're so gorgeous and awesome to play, really mate.
If you want to go for an invictus, don't hesitate. Plus your spec are excatly the things they like to do !

Here a pic of my guitar :






Jointery is perfect.
Go ahead mate


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## TheFashel12 (Jul 18, 2012)

Check out Guitar Logistics , they may suit your needs 

Guitar Logistics - Built to Spec - gallery


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## Polythoral (Jul 18, 2012)

TheFashel12 said:


> Check out Guitar Logistics , they may suit your needs


Holy shit, that ziricote SG they have in the gallery looks amazing. Wow.

Got a few more quotes back, RAN ended up way out of my budget. Bowes gave me an amazingly low quote for what I all asked and I may go for it when a spot opens! Still waiting on Daemoness to get back to me.

Also, apparently I'm 23 on Decibel's wait list.  NOWHERE NEAR WHERE I THOUGHT.


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## Daemon (Aug 25, 2012)

To every haters, about the "joint thing" : This guitar is the very first guitar of Matt( Invictus Apprentice ) and it's no way a customer guitar, so stop.


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## MisterMcCruff (Aug 25, 2012)

I don't think it was meant as a full on attack on Invictus or even Matt. It was more a heads up that they're a new name in the game and, despite building some killer looking axes, there have been more than a few first hand instances of people being unenthused. 

I've only ever seen their proto's being played and I know both Leah's and Pin's went back for tinkering. 

I'm neither defending nor condemning them but I think there are a few kinks that they should have ironed out before marketing themselves as a high-end custom luthiery company.

Fingers crossed, those issues have been rectified and they will be a genuine option for UK customers but time will tell.

(On a completely dickish tangent, it pisses me off that they arse around with all their photos in instagram. They source awesome wood. Let us see it.)


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## oliviergus (Aug 25, 2012)

Invictus actually released a video recently:
Invictus Guitars SSH 8 String Demo - YouTube

It both sounds pretty good and looks nice.


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## Stealthdjentstic (Aug 25, 2012)

Amazing, people are almost stupid enough to pay for invictus stuff? I would seriously listem to Petey and not that endorsee. Theres a picture of some of their guitars on fb with the truss rods sticking out.

Go with someone reliable like Bowes/Tom Drinkwater/Acacia/GL/Aura/etc..


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## MikeH (Aug 25, 2012)

EtherealEntity said:


> I'm pretty sure Daemoness are above 3k base price? That's less than 2000 GBP.



I got quoted 2150 GBP for a fairly heavy list of specs, which is about $3,400 USD.


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## Purelojik (Aug 25, 2012)

i'll agree to an extent with Stealth. It makes me wary that a company tries to get a lotta endorsees before puttting out substantial product first. 

I was checking out the pictures in their facebook after reading this thread and while i do love their choice in woods and whatnot, i just cant get along with the shapes they use. Its subjective yes but there are certain general things that appeal to the eye that these designs fall short of. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.329060243844099.79312.114876545262471&type=3

the tuning pegs are kinda wonky to me and the anemic lower horn just offsets the design as a whole.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=289663557783768&set=a.138004322949693.37520.114876545262471&type=3&theater
The eye is drawn to symmetry and balance. This is in any art form. I don't know it could just be me but when i look at a shape of theirs i cant help but think there's something wrong here...

then take a look at some of the established builders and hell even some of the forums builds and then ask the same question..


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## Vicious7 (Aug 26, 2012)

*shrugs* They look alright to me. It's not like he's doing the Devries route, his spec sheet is ambitious and I may actually consider asking a quote down the line, gallery looks good too.

Though, OP, you may try Skervensen guitars, they seem to have a good rep on here, and for some reason they're able to churn out a new axe in around month........but they do look nice, and chatting with them, not only are they nuts, but seem passionate about guitars, so after my other two axes arrive, I may just save up for one of their's too. XD I think I'm addicted.


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## USMC_OriginalSin (Aug 26, 2012)

It wouldn't hurt to check out black water guitars. The dudes in Texas, so you wouldn't be paying import/customs fees and hes done a few killer looking guitars.


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## loktide (Aug 26, 2012)

(deleted post)


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## SamSam (Aug 26, 2012)

From personal experience I can recommend Daemoness, KxK and OAF without hesitation. I own flawless pieces from all three and excluding the OAF I have played several other instruments they have made. All of which were perfect


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## UnderTheSign (Aug 26, 2012)

To the OP: You're in the US so you have PLENTY of builders with a good reputation in the country. I would advise you to check with them first before going international as shipping, handling, taxes, currency rates etc will rape you. Instead of spending $3k on a $2-2.5k guitar, why not get an actual $3k specced guitar? 

You're not asking for sparkling pink unicorns dancing on the frets or anything like that so pretty much any decent luthier should be able to work with your specs.



Daemon said:


> To every haters, about the "joint thing" : This guitar is the very first guitar of Matt( Invictus Apprentice ) and it's no way a customer guitar, so stop.


I'm sorry, but when I did my apprenticeship at a company that built higher end (2k+) oak and walnut dining tables, I once screwed up a glue joint as well. Ya know what the boss did? Looked at it and pushed it right through the table saw to let me redo it. I'm not trying to bash anyone here but when you're a company that makes stuff in that price range, it doesn't matter who built it or who bought or received it, you simply don't let that stuff leave the workshop, let alone upload pics.


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## Lorcan Ward (Aug 26, 2012)

They have a decent size waiting list at the moment with a lot of non-endorsee orders so time will tell if Invictus can deliver.


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## IB-studjent- (Aug 26, 2012)

I'm sorry, but when a builder can't get the top on correctly most of the time, I highly doubt they're worth anything close to 1k. There're are many great luthiers that will build you something that would make you very happy, just think about it wisely, 3k isn't an easy sum to let go. Strictly 7 has been making some solid guitars, and if you saved up a little more, you can get a daemoness. Hopefully this helps


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## IB-studjent- (Aug 26, 2012)

MisterMcCruff said:


> I don't think it was meant as a full on attack on Invictus or even Matt. It was more a heads up that they're a new name in the game and, despite building some killer looking axes, there have been more than a few first hand instances of people being unenthused.
> 
> I've only ever seen their proto's being played and I know both Leah's and Pin's went back for tinkering.
> 
> ...


While I respect your opinion, but I don't think they should be making guitars YET if they have yet to master the essentials of guitar building, let alone charging premium prices for them. They have potential, but they need to step up their game big time. They have a creative edge to their builds, so hopefully they get it together and make some badass guitars


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## Polythoral (Aug 26, 2012)

I just would like to say, I've already commissioned a build with Black Water now, and will probably be getting a Decibel next when my number comes up it the near future.

Feel free to continue debating though, it's interesting to read.


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## USMC_OriginalSin (Aug 27, 2012)

Polythoral said:


> I just would like to say, I've already commissioned a build with Black Water now, and will probably be getting a Decibel next when my number comes up it the near future.
> 
> Feel free to continue debating though, it's interesting to read.



Interesting. I recommended blackwater to you and I didn't recognize you as already having an order with aaron and i couldn't put two and two togeather to realize this was an old thread. I need to start checking the whole "date posted" thing


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## Polythoral (Aug 27, 2012)

USMC_OriginalSin said:


> Interesting. I recommended blackwater to you and I didn't recognize you as already having an order with aaron and i couldn't put two and two togeather to realize this was an old thread. I need to start checking the whole "date posted" thing


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## AscendingMatt (Aug 27, 2012)

check out strictly 7!


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