They should be a lot cheaper then that.
I don't pay very much at all for the Western Aris. I was selling the Aris for $99.00 at one time.
I quit selling them when the local rep told one of my customers that I didn't know how to install toilets.
The tank wobbled on the Western Aris.
And neither the rep for Western, nor any of the Kings Men could stop it from wobbling.
So, even though the customer was getting a $75.00 rebate from the city of Seattle for the toilet, and I had felt so sorry for the woman, that I had thrown in a free flange repair and shutoff ( $100.00 of free work ) she complained that is was a "cheap" toilet and reported me to the BBB and the State Attorney's office. She said I shouldn't be installing and selling cheap toilets like the Western Aris.
Her complaint, is the only complaint that I've had since I opened for business in 1992.
(The only complaint in eighteen years)
I have never sold another Western Pottery toilet.
Whey would I after that?
They are a cheap toilet, and I can't make a silk purse out of a pigs ear.
The Toto Drake has a cradle for the tank to set down into.
The Western Aris doesn't, so the two bolt tank rocks back and forth on the thick rubber washer.
The Drake lid fits flush
The Aris lid hangs over
The Drake has a 3 flush valve.
The Aris has a 2" flush valve.
The Drake has a rounded, sweeping trapway for a better siphon, that rarely ever clogs
The Aris has a smaller trapway, with sharp bends, at one point it drops to the floor, and the last bend is a sharp 90 degree bend.
The Drake has a sliding float fill valve.
The Aris as a cheap ball cock.
I get less then 1% returns on the Drake
The Aris is a cheaply made toilet, period.
These two toilets should never be compared.
They are in totally different classes.
One is a cheap builder grade toilet with cheap components, the other is a high performance, well designed and well inspected product before it ever leaves the factory. Much more time and effort has been put into the Toto during manufacture.
Aris, Builder grade
Drake, High performance upgrade. I get many repeat sales from the Toto.
Below is a picture of the Western Aris,
notice the sharp bends on the trapway.
Love Plumbing & Remodel has an A+ rating with the BBB and an A+ rating with Angies List