Genuine amber can sometimes be very hard to determine according to my friend who is a jeweler and a gemologist . Sometimes the only way to find out is a destructive test (in your case) by determining the specific gravity of the material , ie removing and stripping the hilt .
The hot pin test OTOH will tell you if it is plastic or horn and possibly amber (depending on its state) ; If it smells like plastic it is plastic, if it smells like burning hair it is most likely horn , if it smells piney (can't find a better word right now) it may be amber .
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