I've had a 1322 since 1996, a 126 1MH since 1997, and a 1204 since 1999. They're all still in one piece, and I've fished them as hard as, or harder than, any other rod I own.
Time bombs? Not in my experience. If you have a bad one it'll break right out of the box. First or second time you fish it. After that? Most of the time people are asking more from it that it can give--it's not a Harnell after all.