From another forum:
There is no way you are going to get a right answer on this.
Acrylic is just plastic. Cell cast is better quality. Machined PVC is nice. The best build is Bubble King hands down. Flippin' works of art. ATB is another top builder, Vertex Alpha series. Other top builders are Warner Marine, MSX, Tunze. Better build quality and materials cost more money though. It is up to you to decide what you are willing to pay for.
The pump is the heart of the skimmer. What do you think is worth the money? Laguna based pumps such as Red Dragon and Askoll are very nice. Super build, many electronic protection features. Ultra quiet. Sicce is a very common good pump. Tunze.... Then you get to cheap loud and crappy pumps. Not very good, but super cheap to replace. Do you think it is worth paying $600 for a Red Dragon. Some folks do. Some folks think Quiet ones are all they need.
So what do you value? Built like a tank? Silent operation? Consistent long term performance? Easily replacable parts? Disposable stuff?
Personally, I would own any skimmer Warner Marine makes. (HOB, cylinder, cone) I would go with a MSX over a Octo (but OCto Ex is solid stuff). You want what most folks compare their cones too, (and copy) get an ATB. You want the Rolls Royce, get a Bubble King. You want great performance for cheap, get a Vertex IN series.
