Soundsmith having Issues because of COVID

Right now the major dealers Acoustic Sounds, Elusive Disc and Music Direct have 25% off sale of the upper-range Soundsmith Cartridges.  I am going to guess, that dealers do not purchase these cartridges out-right from Soundsmith, and that there is some amount of consignment.  So, right now is an opportunity to obtain great cartridge's at a nice discount, that can be rebuilt at a fraction of the cost (making them a good investment), and support the brand. I own both Carmen and Paua, and recently had the Paua rebuilt - it came back with an 'upgraded suspension", and with aural memory being what is it, did sound better especially with 1000-ohm load versus 470-ohm. 

@nandric,

I can 'only' speak of  my 1st hand 'actual' experience, and assuming you are as knowledgeable as you present - in the world of QA - consider this Objective Quality Evidence (OQE).  The rebuild of my Soundsmith Paua was delayed because of a work backup that Pete had, and that Peter rebuilds every top-tier Soundsmith cartridge.  Retips are unlikely to be performed by Peter (unless there is a particularly difficult cartridge) and the lower cost Soundsmith cartridges such as the Carmen which rebuilds at only $199, are done by his staff.  I bought a Carmen as  a 2nd cartridge for that very reason, knowing that when it comes time to rebuild the turn-around will be faster.  But, for my Paua I am willing to wait for the "Master-Builder".