I agree with sending the rod directly to St. Croix. I had two rods that my dog chewed to disaster. They have a no question asked warranty return (for a fee, which I do not remember). The bonus was they also offered upgrade opportunity, you basically paid the difference if you wanted a higher end rod, it did not even need to be the same rod. I upgraded from a two priemer's to a Bass Tournament and a Musky Tournament rod.