Exceptionally high quality. From the first touch you get the immediate feeling that this is a top-tier Ferrari, but at a price like a Ford. There are many different finishes that are very well thought out and the laser engraved factory badges bring back that shocking professional wow! The hickory is close fitting and protected by a collar to prevent accidental damage if you miss and hit the handle. The faces are square in relation to the shaft, the steel head is shaped to optimally hit the face without being too heavy, and it's still a very heavy hammer head. The shape of the head is not visible anywhere on the plan, but is well thought out to offer optimal face width by narrowing the center of the head without losing bulk in the middle. This results in a wider hitting area for more impact contact. I think it will shock my colleagues and quickly make others jealous as it is not a weekly famous brand in my neck of the woods. But the brand has a great online YouTube video to educate buyers about their design, production and attention to detail. They take their product seriously and with Revain as their distributor you can now get it at an amazingly low price and now it's forcing American manufacturers in particular to improve their percussion instruments in order to be competitive. This Italian-made hammer is a real Ferrari in the world.