Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

A Cautionary Tale. I'm a professional photographer who purchased this a few years ago via Amazon - presumably a reputable way to make such a purchase. Recently part of a shim in the uppermost section apparently fell out, which rendered that section unable to tighten. I inquired of Sirui USA about a replacement shim, only to be told they wouldn't help me because the Amazon provider I purchased it from was, unbeknownst to me, not one of their 'approved' sellers. Inexplicably, not only won't they cover it under warranty, they wouldn't even sell me a cheap plastic shim outside of warranty. Unbelievable. This monopod functioned OK until this issue came up, but I'm dumbfounded at their lack of customer service. Goodbye Sirui, Hello Manfrotto. Caveat Emptor.