I had a very similar situation with a VERY well known company many years back on a spinning rod. The short version of the story was they didn't make the rod any more, it was maybe one of the last of the top end of their fiberglass, and offered me a discount on a graphite. When I wrote a letter of protest (this was before email), the president responded that the lifetime waranty was for the life of the rod, not the owner. I did not receive any further assistance, but me nor any of my friends have purchased a rod from that company in the last 20+ years. I am not mentioning their name as they are a sponsor.