I spoke with Scott today and am very pleased with the superior customer service I received. The male ferrule is in fact hand fitted and glued to each section of the blank. The Scott rep said although it may have left the factory that way, it probably was more likely that the bond was broke by rough handling during shipping. Regardless, they said to return the rod and they would perform the repair free of charge, waiving the usual $35 shipping and handling fee. Turnaround time was quoted as a day or two. They even offered to ship out a loaner, if needed. I could not be more pleased with the courteous, professional handling of this matter. I am also glad that the problems they have had in the recent past with repairs seem to be behind them. I will send off the rod this week and report back on the repair time. Again, I am a huge fan of Scott Rods and happy to receive such attentive customer service.