Re: Tea tray (cha pan) cracked

Some of the dark wood infusion trays (cha pan) are NOT made from hard wood, just stained; some others that are have not been from hard wood that is well cured. Yet others are not well made. These are the majority of products. On the other hand, even a well made one can crack because of the constant change in humidity, because of the nature of its function. I owned a few which had all failed me. I now have one that is one whole piece of wood (really big) without joints, but the two that I use most often are made from bamboo. Bamboo ones are relatively much cheaper and a lot more versatile. You can buy much better designs and production quality these days even outside of China. However, I usually buy mine when I am on China trips.