Spot on Vestlenning ,,, I remember just after my pal bought his first Border bow and trying to giving me a hard time for spending 70 quid on a Sure fire torch ,,I said to him (you just spent £500 quid on a stick), don't tell him but I was a bit jealous at the time, but here's the funny bit so was he, a couple o weeks later he bought the same torch..
As for the Alan wood, all I see is a knife, and I'm knife snob ,as much a l sucker for the name as a pretty blade, but I cant see anything special about the AW blade to distinguish it from half a dozen other blade smiths around here, and charging a third of the price.
Strictly between me and you , if I rolled out a trade blanket and say you had the choice between a AW knife and a very nice 2nd hand Winchester Rifle ( both around the 500 quid mark mind ) which would you chose ? Hmmmmmm, I could buy a nice original 1864 Mansfield & lamb US cavalry saber for that cash. Even as a collectors piece it doesn't make any sense, for 500 quid I could buy an original WWII Commando Fairbairn Sykes. But as you said if you like blade pay the cash and that's OK by me to. I hope you get your Woodlore trade Monkey Boy, I know how you feel to I had to hang for 18 months for my sword to turn up, judging by the pictures only, the finish on that two wright and son knife's look ace and every bit as good as the AW to me.