Princess Auto is basically container-loads of cheap Chinese stuff dumped into a retail environment, with a smattering of other stuff mixed in. Some of it is junk, a lot of it is serviceable if not great, and there are a few gems mixed in here and there. A lot of it will be the same junk sold for three times the price at Cambodian Tire (marked up 5x, but permanently "40% off!", of course).
Weird tool you'll need once or twice? It's a good place to get it. Inexpensive hydraulic stuff, or a cheap small engine, or blasting beads, or brake cleaner? Sure. Hand tools you'll use all the time? Buy very carefully, and probably from their "ProPoint" "premium" line, not the regular "PowerFist" [1] stuff.
[1] Honest, this is their house brand, I swear.
#PrincessAuto #PowerFist #ProPoint #Chinesium #cheap #YumCha
Btw, princess auto (the Markham one, at least) has very basic but not terrible soprano ukuleles for $35.
They're Hola ones that sell on Amazon for $50+. These have Amazon ASIN numbers on the box, so they're probably overstock/returns
A Tale of Two Shitties... [1]
I've always done my own seasonal tire changes on my vehicle and my partner's as well. When I first started many years ago, I bought a cheapie 2-ton trolley #jack from Princess Auto - USAnians can substitute "Harbor Freight" and the story will be essentially the same.
But I replaced my vehicle a year and a half ago. The new one rides a little higher off the ground, and has the massive #wheels and #tires that have become the de facto standard, and my old jack didn't lift high enough to change the wheels on the new vehicle. Being the better part of 20 years newer, the new vehicle is also a lot heavier.
So I bought a larger 3-ton trolley jack, with a higher lift height. It's even a real name brand, #Torin. [2]
So anyways... I went to take the snow tires off on the weekend, and the new jack had #leaked, and won't lift properly. So it's sprung an o-ring or other #seal, after only using it 3 times (I think). The 20-year-old Princess Auto special is still fine. They sit next to each other in the garage, so it's not storage conditions.
Winner: Princess Auto.
Then, while changing tires, one lug #nut was #seized. Got out a decent sized breaker bar, and a 1/2" to 3/8" socket drive adapter from Princess Auto - their "pro" "Pro Point" line, yet - put my back into it, and #sheared the damn adapter off.
[1] Couldn't resist, sorry. [3]
[2] I didn't say it was a great name brand.
[3] Not sorry.
No, Harbor Freight is the USA's version of Princess Auto, which has been around since 1933. Harbor freight wasn't founded for another forty-odd years, in 1977. 😜
C.
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