The cut of wood is good (no knots or large imperfections). The grain is parallel to the length of the bokken. The weight feels right and is well balanced. It is smooth to the touch; I ran my fingers along it and no splinters. I plan on using this for solo and non-hard-contact exercises so I can't really comment on its performance when really whacking things. *super picky details* The sides of what would be the blade are just slightly rough, as if finished by a power plane and then smoothed over. There were three visible nicks approximately 1/32nd to 1/16th inch deep. I know these are just tiny imperfections, but I thought I would point them out anyway. The hand guard is made of hard plastic, and in my opinion is fairly useless. *end super picky details* This is still a great training tool for the price, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a decent bokken.