I love these mallets. They look and feel great. With a really balanced weight to them.
The end of life for all my sets has been the same though. The neck has cracked a few centimetres beneath the head. Fair enough - I've had them for two years now, and they have seen some heavy use (up to 15 hours a week with children, nurseries and special needs groups). It's just such a shame as everything about them is really nice quality (I love the look and feel of them) aside from their predictable demise.
If you're buying these for yourself, you can't go far wrong. They're lovely and will reward you for years to come. If you're sharing them around and not supervising, don't be surprised to see one of the necks break and a loose head bounce across the room.