I need a skeleton somewhat better than the standard Pser offerings. I see Daz now do a pair of M3 and V3 skeletons, but at 42 bucks even after a discount that's a little steep, not to mention that if you want further textures those are 20 dollars more. Then here we have those by BTD and Andi3d... I want to be able to pose it properly, ie have the hands and fingers holding things, the head to tilt and the jaw to open. I also intend to (scruffily) partly clothe him. Does this point me to one or other of those above? Or does anyone know of something else worth a look?

All three offerings should meet your requirements. They have posable fingers, skulls, and jaws. DAZ's product, while more expensive, gives you the option of both male and female versions, and they're probably the most anatomically-accurate of the bunch. The textures are excellent. If you're shooting for photorealism, this is as good as it currently gets. odeathoflife's product (the BTD skeleton) will conform to the Poser 6 male figure, James (and can presumbably wear his clothing). As a bonus, you get the centaur skeleton. Andi3D's product ... well, it wasn't designed to match up with any existing figures, so I'm not sure how well it'd work with conforming clothes not designed specifically for it. You'd probably want to use P5/P6 dynamic clothes on all these skeletons, anyway, if only to make the fabric drape properly over the bones.

I have both the BTD and Andi3d skeletons. Both are very good. If you want to clothe the skeleton then you would want the BTD one. The Daz M3-V3 ones are the best of the bunch, but, as you've already pointed out, they're a bit pricey.

There's an upgrade version of the new DAZ skeletons, for people who own the previous DAZ skeleton (either one - the articulated spine or the non-articulated). With a PC discount, it's only $20. (And don't forget your monthly voucher!) Not bad for two such well-made figures. (If you're in the PC, you probably have the old skeleton. They gave it away as part of the PC bonus pack in the fall of 2003.)

If that's still too much, wait for a sale. You know DAZ will have a 50% off sale eventually. :-)

I would highly recommend the BTD skeleton. Works very well with James (who it was designed for) and unless you're actually trying for medically correct anatomy - has a better priceline to benefit payoff than the DAZ versions. Plus the little bonus figure is kinda neat :)

I saw the upgrade option at Daz but I did not join PC till the beginning of this year, and the skeleton was not in the bonus pack. I didn't really get into Poser properly until tail end of 2004. So, sounds like all those options would work, so I better think a little more before spending my cash. Many thanks...