Tub overflow drain assembly broken? Polypropylene or brass replacement better?

Trying to decide if I should go with plastic or brass.
Which is more reliable and durable?

Need to know the pros and cons for this rental house repair.

I just removed my existing old brass overflow drain assembly. the tub drain horizontal pipe was leaking and came apart. It leaked at the nuts, and gasket inside was corroded. Also for some reason, the horizontal leg of the drain was in 2 pieces, instead of one, like the picture below shows.

The arrow shows the piece that broke off my drain assembly. It looks like it has some small threads. Does that piece screw in?
or is it irreparable?

 

If what you removed can be saved by just buying new washers and gaskets. If the flip level link rusted away, don't use the original stopper but instead install a stopper at the tub drain.



Yes, that bottom piece is a very fine thread. Plastic is alway easier because there are times you do have to cut the pipe for the right length. Your problem is the connection to the drain. Another thing is the angle at the tub overflow. Some overflows and the tub sides could be angled differently. Use your old one as a reference. The thick overflow washer allows wiggle room if the two don't quite match up. Plastic overflow allows some flexing if needed to match things up.

This is a Kohler 11677