I know I have been gone awhile...

[CD Smith]

$150 for hand-carved art like that does sound cheap. I wonder why it's so cheap?

Wait... "Please Note: This Cane is designed for users that weigh up to 200lbs. and up to 6'2"in Height."

"The finest oak in the Ukraine" must not be all that sturdy. Lets me out, I'm a good 30 lbs and 2 inches over that limit.

I won't complain. Like I said the one I have now is a really badass dark green metallic snakeskin finish, fully adjustable aluminum, even guys three or four hundred lbs and a few inches taller than I can use it. And it was only $30.

[ecchi]

Originally Posted by CD Smith

$150 for hand-carved art like that does sound cheap. I wonder why it's so cheap?

Not cheap for hand carved art if you know where to shop. I collect hand carved netsuke, and I rarely pay over $20 for a good new one (ironically often a lot more for second hand ones - but they are antiques) and over 50% of the new ones I have, I got for under $10. The trick is to buy from China, the Chinese work for a lot less per hour than we do, and will often carve wood/bone/etc in the evenings for extra pin money, then sell for peanuts!

Weirdly the most expensive netsuke style item I ever tried to buy was at auction, and went way over what I could afford to pay. That one was not hand carved, it was mass produced plastic and given away in a box of Crackerjack!