I am guessing this is the pump that I put together. The reason that the rod is slightly bent in the middle was because it was rubbing against the front lip of the ule body. Since I didn't want that to happen, I bent the pump rod a little down, then back up. It worked fine and pumped smooth as silk when it left my hands.
I have also had an issue trying to use a hitman mod. One thing that you can do is bend the pump rod a little bit to make up for the upwards movement that will occur when you are using the hitman mod (does this make any sense to anyone?). What I have found is that when you use this hitman to pump most of the force is used to push backwards, but since you aren't pushing directly backwards, the back of the pump handle kicks up a little bit and contacts the guide rod. This will cause enough friction to mess up your pump stroke.
I also put a little bit of lube on the guide rod as well. Just tinker with it for awhile and you should be able to get it working right. PM me if you would like any more info.
I buy and sell mag parts..
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