I would be worried that it would fray with continued use. Not something that you want to have break in the air. If you want to test it out, you can always secure the sleeve to the rod with some hot glue. This is easily removed (compared to CA lol) if you want to try it the other way. However, if I had this heli, I would want the metal rubbing the plastic guide. Remember that carbon fiber is conductive, and could cause interference if running inside that metal sleeve. Very slight chance, but it's still there.