I actually called up Dave and inquired about this as something did not seem right. Here was his reply to me:


"ECS doesn't dictate the cost of shipping in the US or outside of the country. We charge just enough to cover our costs of sending an item to the customer. We have used standard shipping to Canada but have no way of tracking or insuring the contents. On multiple occasions our Canadian customers have claimed that they did not receive their shipments. Since we cannot track or insure "standard" shipped items to Canada, we have no way to tell if the customers shipments arrived safety or at all. At that point, we have no choice but to resend the items using a carrier like Fed Ex in order to guarantee the delivery. We no longer take any chances sending merchandise that cannot be tracked or confirmed. Unless it's in the Continental US, we always use a specialized delivery service that provide guaranteed and insured delivery."


I have to admit, I do the same thing whenever I sell something. I'd want to have a tracking number in order to know where it goes or what might have happened to it. Unfortunately, shipping companies like UPS or even the US Postal Service does not take pride in how they do their job. I've seen it too many times on the news (especially around Christmas time) where the driver tosses the box across the front lawn onto the stairs or tosses it over the fence which leads to things getting broken, lost, etc. How many times can one person eat the cost of a product that gets "lost, damaged, whatever" before you start doing the logical thing. So, yes, while it might cost "stupid money" (as you put it) the extra money involved goes for insurance and tracking which is piece of mind that you will get the item that you paid for. If the part didn't arrive because you opted for the $1.20 envelope postage, I'd bet that you'd be screaming that you want a replacement shipped out right away at the manufacturers cost. Sometimes you gotta pay a little more in order to get things in life.