I bought this shinai during the all US national tournament '14. It's my first shinai I've ever purchased from kendo style. For the past six months, I've used this shinai for regular practice here in NYC and at tournaments. It's thin, light, and well-balanced. Here's the strange part... it hasn't splintered at all, though the bamboo's quite dry and the nakayui's stretched quite a bit. For me, shinai from every other vendor tends to start splintering after a few months. I still intend to use t...