Webers arent smog legal here in CA, and dont really want the hassle of switching it for smog every year. If you do seriously do it for 439, then ok I guess i not gettin hosed too bad lol.
As for buying a rebuilt for less.......I did just that last year. Bought a 'remanufactured' carb for $149. It lasted all of 1 year and went to complete crap. This is the one I am having rebuilt now (by a different company of course). In just 12 months, the throttle body bushing went bad (and they SWEAR they changed it!), idle solenoid went bad, the choke is stuck open, and they said there is scaling inside it from past water damage. I guess you get what you pay for in a $149 remanufacture