Stan, I ordered a laser pointer from the states and took 5 1/2 weeks, EVERY order from Tresna (I've only made 4) were here in Yellowknife within 7 to 10 days, from China to Hong Kong, to Vancouver, to Edmonton, to Yellowknife.
Welcome to World Wide Shopping and a couple of gems I found, and, the beauty of this site to share what experience\research we come up with and share it with others!
I also am pleased with East euro stuff such as SOBA, Gortz, Glanze, etc., through local suppliers, and like any shopper, caveat emptor!
Cheers,
Chas
P.S. I can't find the link to show it, but these guys Brand for like 60+ companies around the world, like Fowler, KBC, MSI etc. for measuring stuff and as you saw, 1/2 price by purchasing direct. Just like my 'Busy Bee' Lathe is the twin brother of the Griz 4000, all from the same factory.
On a totally OT point, apparently the flood of Chinese product availability we see only accounts for about 10~20% of their GNP.