The cord-wrapped handle is a great idea, offering more of a real sword-like look as well as a firmer grip. My hands tend to get sweaty and slip around a bit with long practice, particularly with the sealed lacquered finish on most bokken. This wrap really helps (though it needed a touch of glue to get it to stay in place). The two-piece guard design is a nice enhancement too. Though you really don't need the guard at all for many applications it is nice looking and appears stronger than the original. It's still a fairly cheap piece of wood, compared to an ironwood version, but at this price (it was $9.99 when I bought it) you really can't go wrong. A nice enhancement over the basic bokken. Recommended. 5 stars

This bokken is only for looks and not hitting ant thing I used it for less than five mintues and broke. It has a nice look and feels good but does have blemishesand. Also say if you accidentally hit something even a little hard it breaks. The company does a lousey job of wrapping the sword too. The barcode sticker failed to come off in one piece and I ended ripping off some of the finish of the burgundy version of this bokken. I spar with my friends all the time and would have to recommend the bokkens from karate depot instead of this inadequate piece of whatsit. Anyone,honestly, that tells you differently is wrong. 1 star

I'm pretty new to Kendo and this is my first bokken. If you are looking for a sword to spar with, do not buy a bokken. You will break it. They're just heavy sticks afterall. Shinai are better for sparring.

As far as this bokken, I love the cord wrap. I bought 2 of these (one for me, one for my wife) and the wrap on both is very secure; it doesn't move or need glue. The hand protector is a nice touch for some realism if you must have it, but considering that it's only going to be used for solo practice, you don't need it. You can also remove it very easily if you decide you don't want it. 5 stars

It's a nice boken, it feels nicely balanced, looks good, and has a nice price.

The handle wrap was the main reason for my purchase of this item; it keeps the boken in your hands even if they are sweaty. I was a little wary of the wrapping to come undone, so I just placed a few drops of super glue on the ends and a few of the places in-between, just to make sure it stays in place. It's a good practice sword and it serves its purpose, worth the buy in my opinion.

Another reviewer has stated that his boken broke when it was struck, this may very well be. However, it is not because of faulty craftsmanship, it is because the boken is not meant for contact. It is purely a device to help you hone your sword handling skills without chopping off your arm, which you could do with a real katana.

If you want a contact sword to spar with friends, I suggest getting a shinai. Unlike the boken, a shinai is actually meant for sparring and will not break under normal use. 4 stars

Please beware that the picture DOES NOT represent what you receive! I purposely selected this boken for the Natural Wood Cord wrapped handle with a dark tsuba and band to match the rest of my set. The only part of what I received that is similar to the picture is the dark cord wrapping. The boken itself was a stained much darker than pictured and the accompanying tsuba and band were tan/white respectively. 4 stars