Barb,
I don't know the "offical" reason, but I do have my own experiance with Seven Foot Knoll. My back mast was straight when I got the HL. I didn't and still don't have a place to dislay this piece. So I placed it backin it's box after inspecting it the first time and kinda forgot about it. It wasn't until they started talking about the problems with the back mast that I took mine back out of the box to re-inspect it. The rear mast was bent almost 45 degrees. It seems that the plastic bag gets chaught around the mast, if you don't pack it just the right way. I re packed mine with the bag not quite covering the whole mast and it didn't seem to snag like it had before, when I put the two halves of the styrofoam back together. That's just one "Wackos" experience.