I much prefer wood tips because to me they sound better. However, due to a change in finaces (my wife retired), I went with nylon tipped because they last much longer. But I found a solution: Pulse drumsticks at Musician's Friend. They are Vater seconds. Vater rejects any stick with color variation, which does not bother me at all. The other musicians I play with said they like how the Pulse sticks look. They may say "Pulse", but they came from the Vater factory. I am on the second pair, and so far they last as long as any other wood-tipped stick I have ever used. At six pairs for twenty bucks, I can afford to use wood tips again. Peace and goodwill.