Have had four good barrels (a 2L and 3 5Ls). Make sure you prep it when you receive it!I see some people complaining about leaky barrels, and I'm sure it happens, but so far we've had no problems at all. I bought the barrel wax, but so far it's completely wasted. Just make sure that when you get it you put the spout in (and make sure it's closed, far left or right), then fill the keg with boiling water and put the top cork in! This is 'tempering' and will make the oak swell to prevent leaks. If it's leaking after a couple hours (when the wood has had time to swell) then it's time to deploy the barrel wax. If that still doesn't work you might have a bad keg (hasn't happened with these for me, cross fingers).Then when you're ready to use it (after at least a day tempering), remove the spout, pop the top cork, then flip it upside down and let it drain from the 'top', just because that has a larger hole. There will be a lot of charred oak shards, which is fine! This just shows your good stuff is in contact with charred wood.If you go a long time before you use it again and the inside dries out, you might consider re-tempering it before you use it.