My review is based on the fact that these cost a quarter of the equivalent at a big box store and way less than the bestI don't make a living pulling cables but I have, at times, helped installers run network and power cables at home and the office. So I do have some exposure to expensive brands of fish rods. I am putting in a home theater system with a projector in my daughter's playroom and I decided to do-it-myself as a bit of weekend therapy. Now, knowing I was going to use the rods only a few times I did not want to spend more than was necessary. So these rods seemed to fit the bill and I figured I could return them if they were really bad. I imagine I'm a fairly typical user of this product in that you buy it for one or two projucts and that's it. A professional would not find these durable enough for daily use.Yes, they are a little thin but I was only putting cables into mostly internal wall spaces and not needing to run them over and around complicated obstacles. Unless of course you count insulation and AC wiring cables! I found no problem with the brass ferrules and not once did I have any issue with the ends breaking off but remember I was only using them for a day. It might have been helpful if they were a little thicker pushing by insulation but it really wasn't that bad. Once the extra flexibility was really helpful. I was using only two or three at a time.One last thing - I have seen the price of the rods change by $10 or so from one day to the next, Use camel camel camel dot com to check on pricing if you are not in a rush