John:
Funny thing, but after our discussion at the SOS, I went home and looked through all my etched bayonets. And, guess what, I found a bayonet that I would not buy today from anyone. And, this, too, came from a MAX-certified dealer (a different one from yours).
A while back, I found myself in the possession of a couple of daggers that, as time went on, I liked less and less. I was suspicious of them and suspected that they were not kosher. I thought long and hard about getting into the political arena of proving them to be fakes, but decided not to do that. Heck, one of them was even in a well-respected book! My decision was to go back to the dealer and say that I didn't like them and would like to return them after 2 years of ownership. The dealer got mad and called me names, but did take them back. He also charged me a restocking fee that I paid to avoid the hassles. I also paid it since I felt that I should have done this review and research right away instead of waiting 2 years.
My advice to you is to try to return it to the original vendor. You have nothing to lose.
Wayne, as for you, I didn't know that you were not MAX certified. This puts things into a whole new perspective.
But, then again, I saw many a MAX certified dealer with obvious fakes on his tables at the show.
John
