Hi All,
I'm not usually one for griping online, however, I'll make an exception in this case!
Here is the story: I had been kicking around the idea of adding modern/gas charged lift gate supports to my vehicle this summer given the increased use the tailgate gets.
After doing a bit of research, I purchased the "67-72 SUBURBAN LIFT GATE ACTUATOR KIT" sold by Brothers Trucks. While a bit pricey, at $130 ($99 parts, $21.50 shipping, $8.50 tax), I thought the better functionality/reliability was worth the splurge.
Had the fit and function of the new supports been perfect, that would probably would have been the end of the story, however, the "extended length" of the supports was a fair bit shorter than the OEM supports, so I did a little more research.
What I found is that the EXACT product I was shipped from Brothers is available on Rock Auto for $30 ($19 parts, $8 shipping, $3 tax). Link to parts page here >
https://www.rockauto.com/en/parts/ul...t+support,1404
I'm all for paying a little "marketing markup", but $100 markup is extreme in my book. Sadly, while I would return the supports to Brothers and just re-buy them from Rock Auto, but I'd have at least $50 in the deal between shipping both ways and Brothers' 20% restocking fee.
This falls in the "fool me once" category for me. I hope others can learn from this and save themselves some hard earned $.