You are correct Peter, the plunger seems a bit lighter gauge but not to the point of being a Dollar store POS. the screen seemed to be the same gauge as the Bodum, and yes, the screen / pot etc was pretty much interchangeable size wise. I have 3 glass pots for the bodum so had one to compare to. The real test will be when I put a finer grind in this one and see how it presses out. Sometimes I find that yes, even on a french press, a finer grind works a LOT better on some coffee's for the flavor, yet they can put a back pressure on the plunger. I think this is where most people bust their presses, fine grind, clogging screen, press harder... crunch, coffee and class all over the counter. The critical part I am thinking is going to be the outer edge that it doesn't cave in with the pressure and let the grounds sneak by.
One trick I have done is to put coffee in, stir until tornado brings grounds to bottom of pot, say 10 seconds, then put the plunger assembly in and press down to about half in inch below the water line to keep all grounds submerged. When you are ready, press away, If it is stiff to push down, back it off about to the surface, that back flushes the screen, then slowly push down and you should have no further problems bottoming out.
We shall soon see.
Aaron