Quoted from Bmanpin:I received mine the other day. It's smooth however seems too short can't make the skill shot even. Same spring but when comparing it to original length is slightly off it seems. Probably will put the old one back in at this point.
Mine was too short as well. Then I compared it to the original shooter rod and noticed the new one had one extra washer on the egg side which was causing the other end to be a fraction short. After removing one of the washers it works perfectly. Hopefully this helps you out.
Added over 2 years ago:
On the new mothra one, it had two washers on the egg side. One before the spring by the egg and one after the spring. On the old shooter rod there was only one washer after the spring and not the one before the spring. So I removed one of the washers and it worked. Before the strike was weak because that tiny difference was causing it not to get enough length to strike the ball.