When did softer ABS swords first appear: 1994, 1995 or 1996?

[Illerejug]

Hello! I'm a few weeks out of my second (!) Lego dark age, and I recently bought a used 6090 Royal Knight's Castle that came with a mix of rigid and soft dark gray swords. I'm curious which type of sword is correct for that set.

I know for a fact the rigid (and more shiny) dark gray swords were still in use as late as 1993 in Dragon Masters sets, and I also know for a fact that the flexible (and less shiny) dark gray swords were being used in 1996 in Dark Forest sets, but I don't know when the transition happened, or what sort of swords the Royal Knights sets should be expected to have.

Unfortunately the set inventories on both Peeron & Bricklink are not reliable on this point.

Do any of you know when the switch happened? Or more specifically, if you have a 6090 that hasn't been mixed with other sets' pieces, can you check whether it has the rigid (more shiny) dark gray swords, or whether it has the flexible (less shiny) ones?

Thanks!

[Stiel]

Definitely soft. In fact, I'm surprised that your Dragon Masters have the rigid version. All of my sets from 1993 and later have soft swords.

Edit: I always thought the change occurred around 1992, but now that you ask, I'm not so sure. Anyway, it was before 1995.

Edited May 19, 2010 by Stiel

[Illerejug]

Out of curiosity, which of your 1993 sets have soft / dull swords?

My 6048 Majisto's Magical Workshop has a rigid / shiny sword, and it's from 1993. I'm the original owner of that set, and its pieces have never been mixed with other sets. It's either been on display or in storage.

I also have a 6105 Medieval Knights from 1993 that hasn't been mixed with other sets, but it's in storage and I won't be able to check it until later in the week.

[Stiel]

Out of curiosity, which of your 1993 sets have soft / dull swords?

6020.

See later post as well.

Edited May 20, 2010 by Stiel

[soc399]

1993 was the last year I got a bunch of Castle sets before my dark ages, and I'm pretty sure all the swords I had as a kid were the rigid ABS. I remember being pretty disappointed with the plastic used in my Fantasy Era swords, since they bend so easily. Sorry I can't shed much light on the original question, but I agree that it was sometime after 1993.

[Stiel]

My 6020 and 6105 sets (6105 is apparently from 1994) have soft swords. That's all I have from the Dragon Masters line. My copies of 6009 and 1695 (from 1992) have rigid ones.

One possibility is that they stopped producing rigid swords in 1993, but they still used up those already produced, so some sets come with the old version sword and some with new version sword from that era. This is just a guess though, any confirmation from others would be nice.

[UsernameMDM]

Interesting. I bought castle stuff in the 80s all the way up to KKI and never had a soft ABS sword. My first was in Fantasy Era.

[Illerejug]

I just checked my 6105 Medieval Knights (never mixed with other sets), and it has the softer swords. So indeed the time-frame is probably is 1993-1994.

I'd love to hear from anybody who has a 6090 (or other Royal Knights set) and is confident that they have not intermingled their pieces.

[Randal]

Aw. You've shattered my love of castle lego. I really only had a few sets from long ago, one being the yellow castle, so I had a lot of hard grey plastic weapons. To know that If I go out and get Castle Lego today, that the swords and polearms will bend and flex is disheartening.

I also wish I hadn't given all my lego bricks away after reaching adulthood, as I'm only rediscovering my love of Lego now that I have children getting their own sets.

Edited May 20, 2010 by Randal

[Stiel]

Aw. You've shattered my love of castle lego. I really only had a few sets from long ago, one being the yellow castle, so I had a lot of hard grey plastic weapons. To know that If I go out and get Castle Lego today, that the swords and polearms will bend and flex is disheartening.

Don't take it so hard. First, the change is only for swords. Spears, halberds, polearms etc. are made of the same hard, shiny material even today. And for the swords: I don't mind it much, the rigid ones also bend a little, the soft ones just a little more, it's really not that much of an issue. Also, it's easy to understand the reasons behind the change (e.g. less accident-prone).

[castlestrike666]

In fact, I'm surprised that your Dragon Masters have the rigid version.

My Dragon Masters, which were the first sets I had, also contained the rigid swords, and not the soft ones.

I'm also more fond of the hard version than the soft, if it was only for the look. They look more shiny, like real swords.