Hi Marcus,
Please correct me if I'm wrong but I've spoken to both Recon1 and Shirogorov about this on multiple occasions and have received quotes for pricing, so I'm fairly sure this information is rock solid -
Recon 1 will handle getting the knife to Shirogorov regardless of if you're the guy who bought it from them. I've called and asked. Now I'm not sure if they care if it's a Recon knife or Russian knife, mine was a Recon knife, so I didnt need to ask.
Regardless, all they do is hand the knives over at a shoe\w they're both attending to avoid shipping risks into Russia, where it is illegal to ship knives TO not FROM. You have little risk of having a package seized coming out of Russia if your shipper is prudent.
Now you also have the option of handing any knife over at Blade or whatever other show directly to Shirgorov as well. You may also ship it, which many have successfully, but, I personally wouldnt take the risk.
As for the warranty work costing money, the quotes I received to have my knife refinished, both the blade and handles, resharpened, and new screws, was like....50 bucks. I believe that included shipping. To stonewash the blade, anodized the handles, replace hardware, and sharpened/reassemble knife. Sounded more than fair to me.
I'm not sure why they charge money for warranty work, however reasonable, but I believe they have fixed rates for everything and so long as it isn't part replacement, like a clip or handle side, they're very agreeable.