I had hoped to receive a boom that would at least last a few months, given the price of this one.As soon as I used it, I was completely let down.Without exerting a lot of energy, it is quite impossible to slide the arms out.It was by no means fluid.A tremendous amount of noise is also produced by this boom.On a recent low-budget commercial shot, I was boomerang, and the sound operator repeatedly inquired about the source of the noise.The boom was squeaking, as we soon found.I suppose this is in part because of how the boom was built, but possibly more importantly is that it was made of inexpensive plastic.