But my new rod is broken. We helped with a beginner's ff clinic last weekend and I loaned it to a student. All the donated rods were in use and I worried that if he shared one with his wife it might not be an equitable arrangement of time. My bad.

Anyhoo, I was helping her and turned my back for a second and he managed to get the fly hung up. What the heck he was doing holding the whole thing by the tip section, I do not know. I guess our otherwise excellent clinic instructors needed to spend some time on what NOT to do with a flyrod, too.

Your advice on taking the guides off the old tip section in order to save them for the new?

Sympathy gladly accepted, as well.