Yes the edges are sharp. yes the wood could use a sanding. it's still worth EVERY PENNY. a speedweve of the same materials (wood and metal instead of plastic) but a minimally higher quality costs $80 anywhere else. the plastic ones on here aren't any better than this one. if you have a metal file and a sheet of sandpaper in your toolbox and about 10 minutes of time, you can fix all the issues listed in the negative reviews. I haven't had a single rubber band break, but they carry rubber bands at the dollar store if they do end up breaking. don't get the larger looms if you're worried about it breaking, i got the 14 hook one and that's all you really need. for bigger patches you can work in sections and it's easier than dealing with the mess the hooks can become during shipping or during use. I'm not too bothered by the fact that the surface isn't concave either, like other reviews said.. i haven't found a single model of speedweve that has a concave center honestly. i promise you I'm going to be using this thing until I'm an old grandma. I'm here begging all my friends to wash and send over their holey socks because i love darning with this thing so much 😂and i HATED darning before i got this beautiful little contraption.