Well then, this may be like sitting at the lunch ramp on a sat. morning with a 6 pack .  Cheap entertainment.    All I can do for now is to educate my potential customers about warranty and my longjevity with out bashing anyones name.  Like I've said before "home court advantage"    Thanks again    David G.

I really don't want to get in an argument regarding the merits of manufacturing sheets vs buying sheets.  Some of what Wags said is true, but please don't make the mistake of lumping all manufacturers into the same lot due to the failure of some that didn't do things correctly.  Lots of carpenters can purchase the same lumber and same nails and use the same tools, but the results are vastly different.  I wouldn't want all of them building a home for me.

And as far as "Just because you use similar materials.........doesn't mean you get the same quality"  Well, all I can tell you is that each and every test available to all the "big" companies is available to the regional manufacturers as far as physical properties are concerned.  And many test favorably.  Not all.

The economics stink over the last few years, but doing a complete 180 with your business is not the easiest decision in the world, if you don't agree with that statement, then you are not being honest with yourself.

Really, I don't want to discuss this a lot, but just be fair and be educated if you are going to lump a bunch of businesses and products together.

Matt of course your correct. But I have not seen a smaller mfg have the chemists or equipment on staff to do the tests the big guys can.  I was at Avonite's poly plant a few years ago for serveral days. I was impressed when they rejected several tankers of resin, and, in fact, shut the plant down the next day, while they waited for more tankers to arrive with resin. It did not meet their specs.  They have 3o r 4 chemists that do nothing but quality control, plus spectomoters sp? etc.  We have one of the larger small mfg here in Phoenix, I have been to their shop dozens of times.  Trust me when I say they have nowhere near the checks that a company like Avonite does.  With that said, does it mean all SS made regionally is bad ? Of course not, but, most of the cultuered marble guys that got into the business are no longer in it, there is a reason.  Air curing makes it very easy to build in stress into the sheet, which may not show up for years. 

It is much like material coming from Asia,  some is great, some is marginal and some is horrible. When you can buy a white for $200 a sheet, why would you want to try to make it ?