And they want me to shop locally....

garyhaupt wrote:
I have need of an older style A/C cover. On-line I find new at $130.00 from Amazon and used for $40 thru an E Bay seller. Here at home..I am just off the phone to the local RV dealer/robber...$240.00 for new.
Gary Haupt

As a fellow Canadian, I fully understand. We are fortunate to live minutes from the border. We buy anything we can online and get it shipped to a US mailbox just across the border. Stuff in the US can be as much as 1/2 of what we have to pay for the same thing in Canada. We have only been pulled aside once to pay taxes and duty and that was for a single $500 item. For more expensive things, we try to time the pickup for when we go camping in the US so we can get the increased exemption amount. We have Nexus cards and can normally get back and forth across the border quickly.

Before DW or I decide to buy something online, we take as much time as needed to find the best price (item cost + shipping). Amazon is often overpriced. Same with ebay. For RV stuff, we typically buy from one of the 8 or so popular online vendors like PPLmotorhomes, Tweetys, MakariosRV, etc. Dealers are usually waay overpriced. Worst case I ran into locally was a water filter housing I wanted - $20 at a plumbing wholesaler and one dealer had the same thing on the shelf for $200!!!

Never, ever get anything shipped to Canada if you can avoid it, and especially with a courier. Couriers (UPS and the rest of them) charge fees, more fees, fees on top of fees and then a surcharge to boot adding 30-50% to the item cost. If you must, get it mailed as long as you are willing to wait the extra time it takes.

Shop locally - why? Life is a game of survival and you have to look after yourself. Not my fault the government is driving costs up from taxes, duties and tarrifs and whatever else.