Buying Tefillin

Hi,

This probably isn’t the best place to ask this, but I wasn’t sure where else to ask.

I am interested in buying a tefillin. The only tefillin my rabbi uses and recommends is quite expensive, well into four digits. While he didn’t insist I had to buy this very Mehudar tefillin, he instructed me not to cheap out and to do some more research.

Is it unreasonable to ask them for sample pics of the parchment so I can choose the best one for the price? My rabbi said I would find the money and sure enough I got $620 from a company a week or so later.

If anyone has any recommendations or comments about reputations that would help me out a lot. There is so much behind the scenes when it comes to the production, it’s hard to know who to trust. Looking to spend in the $600-1000 range.

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Thanks for reading. Chodesh Tov!