If you're picky about your hand tools, this pencil isn't for you. I ordered two pens. Both bowed. One had an end latch on the bottom of the handle that extended to the other side. When they arrived they were covered in a thick, rough varnish that looked like it had been burned. There were large streaks of this varnish at the end of the handle (this covered a gap in the wood that I found later). After putting the handle on the hammer, I felt it was wrong. The wooden bow moves the head a good 1/2 inch or more off center. This won't work for me. I took a piece of hickory from my wooden box and made my own handle (which I had to do to get started). I used one of these as a template, so I used some of that. Hope you have better luck than me.