I got my shipment 5 days earlier than quoted and was very pleased! The bos were in perfect shape. I love the heft and feel, very little flex but vibrates warmly when I do my grip drill. Just a beginner here but I'm super happy with the product and service thanks guys! :)  Permalink

I received my Red Oak Bo Staff earlier than expected along with a Straight Hardwood Bo(But I'll post a different review for the Hardwood Bo), which was great. When I opened it i was very pleased with the appearance. The Red Oak stain was beautiful and i loved the heavy feel. Unfortunately after further inspection i found a deep scratch along the side and the beginning of a crack at the top. I can tell that eventually the crack will split the wood if i make contact. I would love to have this bo in my collection, but the poor handiwork killed my hopes. From the reviews i can tell the customer service is great; i hope i can get this problem solved quickly.   Permalink

I love bo staffs so do think I should buy 1 of these and how tall should i get im 51 inches
  Permalink

Receive days before schedule unfortunately the staff was crack. They didnt want to send another one because they thought the same thing would happen again. Also they dont offer free shipping outside of us yet. But good comunication though  Permalink

I ordered one of these staffs for my grandsons. When it arrived I removed it from the shipping tube only to find that the staff was cracked all the way through!
I returned the staff and received another one.
To my disappointment I removed this staff from the shipping tab only to find that it was cracked almost as bad as the first one. Though the new on also had dent and divots all along the length of the staff which the manufacturer had attempted to hide by filling with wood putty! The more I inspected the staff the more dents and divots I noticed! I love Karate depot, I'd consider myself a loyal customer! I've been a customer for many years, and I don't blame KD. for any of this! The manufacturer obviously has a quality control problem! I will remain a loyal customer!   Permalink

I recieved my staff (6ft)several days early while it was wrapped everything looked great, but once it was unwrapped you could see that it was nearly broken in half.  Permalink

I bought one of these and it was broken when I received it! I don't place any blame on Karate depot due to the fact that it came straight from Macho (the manufacturer).
But I was disappointed to remove the staff from the shipping tube to find that it was cracked all the way through!  Permalink

The staff came quickly and was in good condition. Our only complaint is that is is still quite heavy for a "youth" staff. We will probably hang on to it but our 10 year old son will have to grow into it. He is able to maneuver it but it is too heavy for him to use if he wanted to add any speed to his practice.  Permalink

The 5 ft bo that I ordered arrived very quickly, and it lasted through alot of tough sparring sessions.
I will order again.
Great Value  Permalink

ordered a 5 ft & 6 ft Straight Oak Bo Dec 2010.
After 11 months of tough sparring, my 5 ft bo finally started splintering. That's ok, great value for the money.

I then figured that I would use my beautiful 6 ft oak bo.
Upon the very first strike, it broke into two pieces. Very dissapointing  Permalink

Don't know how/where this bo was stored before shipment... because, after peeling off the plastic-wrap, I had to wipe off pervasive mold with a disinfecting wipes; not the best customer experience. Barring that, the bo has a nice feel and heft. [I bought a bokken at the same time whose top-third was askew. KarateDepot very graciously replaced it at no charge and recommended I destroy the warped one; I think I'll turn it into a shorter bokken for a different practice feel]  Permalink

Great price, very fast shipping !!!!
Glad we found you   Permalink

I have two of these and they are good for training with one glaring issue. The weight is good (heavier side) and they are relatively straight. The problem is that both of them have begun splitting along the grain. As you know, this little issue can make working with them interesting. If not for that they would make a good training weapon but because both have done this I can't recommend them.  Permalink

this is a good staff to train with. because of its good weight, when i use this staff it is makes me faster. it makes solid strikes on targets  Permalink

Awesome Bo   Permalink

I ordered this on Sunday, and got it that Wednesday (with standard shipping)! Now that's fast. The entire transaction, from ordering to tracking to receiving, went smoothly and I couldn't ask for more. It even came with shipping labels in case I wanted to return it. I actually am going to keep the cardboard cylinder it came in as it makes for a nice carrying case for them.

I ordered two 6-footers. The staff itself is good for the price: well-weighted, slides easily in the hands, and it feels pretty strong (haven't pounded on any heavy bags or anything yet, though). Neither of the two that I ordered are perfectly straight (if you look down them, they look a little crooked, and they won't roll on a flat surface), but they definitely look straight if you're not inspecting them closely, and it in no way hinders the useability (it actually seems more authentic that way).

I sparred with them today, and they felt good. They actually felt more lively than I thought they would, but I could still definitely see how a man could put some power behind blows with these. There were some nicks afterward, (probably from the blunt swords we were also using), but I sanded them down, and oiled them with some Minwax Tung Oil Finish (which I hear will give me moderate protection, not the best, but it's all I had around at the moment so I went with it). When I oiled them, the stain seemed to mix with the oil so that the sanded part looks just like the rest of it now, which I thought was nice (I hope that's not bad, I'm no woodworker). I'm not sure I trust the finish it comes with 'cause it seems to scratch off, so you might be well-off protecting it somehow, as red oak is known for being very porous and therefore it's important to protect it from water. If you do oil it, the porous nature of the wood may bleed back some of the oil with the first few coats, so be aware of that. If I could do it over again, I'd probably go with Waterlox Sealer varnish, which I hear offers really good protection for red oak, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

Overall, I'm glad to have ordered from karatedepot.com and will definitely keep them in mind if I need any other items. If the karatedepot guys are reading this, I would like to say that what set you guys apart initially was your price and your shipping, so I hope you continue to offer good deals. I'm definitely going to put these items through a lot of punishment, but I've got high hopes for them.  Permalink

to my surprise it was shiped right on the day it was sopposed to I opened it today (christmas) and first thought it looked amazing a good wieght to it and powerful so I couldnt wait to test this baby out went to the backyard to train a lil and I didn't hit the stick on anything til I felt...a splinter,lol I quikly took it out and noticed the staff had a pretty good sized crack that at the same time was hardly noticable so yeah it would've split in two if I did any rough training so that dissapointed me  Permalink