I've never handled a real Nautilus, so I cannot say how the balance/feel compares. Overall, it's nice. A bit blade-heavy for my tastes. But still very flippable. Had to swap one bushing right out of the box because the handle would bind up, but that's not unusual. The only real complaint I have is that the handle gap when open/closed is less than half of what is shown in the product pictures. This makes it more difficult to initiate some tricks and can cause it to pinch easily. When doing something like an ice pick aerial, the handles will actually strike together from the force and damage the finish. Still, not bad for under $50.