I do not believe price is a good measure of the quality level but more often indicates how much the consumer is willing to pay.
*Genuine Applause*
Any material good or service will sell at a price the market will bear. Capitalism at work. Prior to the advent of the internet, the strategy of price segmentation by region broke down the market into smaller pockets of pricing. Interestingly enough, Amazon has gained such a dominant market share that Amazon will price segement the market for the same item being sold to different zip codes.
Back to the topic at hand. That stock is a reproduction of a genuine stock. The quality and durability of the reproduction is unknown.
I'm not so sure regarding this... what does the real deal do that this knockoff doesn't deliver?
Is it not possible that the real Minimalist stock is not over priced to begin with?
The power of Branding is impressive isn't it. Take two of the exact same item in construction and quality with the only difference being in Brand names, and you'll get a price differential between the two that is supported only by perceived quality, not actual quality. It's the Jedi-mind trick of Marketing.
Perhaps the polymer is stronger on the real item, but can't say either way based on the info I have here.
But that's just it... how do you know that this is "low quality" from just an ebay ad?
...Unless someone on here has purchased the ebay one, no one can really speak to the quality of it.
However, why don't you buy one and let us know how it goes?
With so many manufacturers out in the market these days it is very hard to determine what level of quality any given part has been built to achieve.
Just my thoughts that if the price difference is enough I might try the cheap version and make my own decisions as to its quality for my use .
Herein lies the pitfall of purchasing an item from the internet. You are not able to inspect the item for yourself in the real world. You have to rely upon the assumptions that the descriptions are correct, the pictures are correct, the customer feedback is correct, the policies, diligence, and reputation of the website operator.
Buying any item sight unseen from an internet retailer demands that the consumer leverage all of their critical thinking abilities. The OP did this by asking the forum for help. That's a good thing. Now he (or she) is developing the critical thinking abilities on how to spot reproductions from genuine, increasing his (or her) ability to determine and assess credibility.
Gun enthusiasts are the best group of people I know. They are also the cheapest group I've ever dealt with.
This is true in general or else the adage "If the price is too good to be true, then it probably is" wouldn't exist. We're wired to attain what we need at the lowest cost, whatever that may be. It's such a strong instinct that it can temporarily override an individual's critical thinking abilities.
