skyhawk174 Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 So I was doing a quote at work today and we have to buy some parts from a US supplier. Holy crap I could believe it when I went to check the exchange rate to Canadian dollars since our quote has to be in Canadian funds. At the moment it is 1.4277 to the US dollar. For my bid it does not matter so much since the customer understands and he wants the stuff. Not my fault that the US/CDN is stupid right now. So it got me thinking that with most of my purchases I will really have to look at the exchange rate even more than before. Add to that the shipping and it really looks like I cannot buy much at all from US model outfits. Even ebay will be check location and exchange before buying. I have a list of decals I would like to get and now it seems that may have to wait until the rate is better. Of course I take the risk of the sheets going out of print. Hmm, I may have to think about taking a second job to support this silly hobby of mine :). This economy (I am in oil and gas in Alberta) is killing my purchasing. But now that I think about it, maybe I should use this opportunity to try and make a dent in my stash. It is not as if I REALLY need that decal since I have so many NOT being used. It is always the shiny new thing that gets me though. Oh well rant over. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
wdw Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Our Cdn $ is indeed severely down in terms of the US $, but not so much other world currencies. Check out the mail order companies elsewhere in the world (Hannants, for example) and you may well find savings. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
martin_sam_2000 Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Yep. I have basically stopped buying things from people in the US right now. It is just not worth it. Sean Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Me too. If its not in Canada I don't bother. I would like to blame Trudeau but its OPEC. Only good thing is we had a little left over in the gas budget this week. Guess I will have to just build the stash instead of increasing it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bikerider Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 I priced something from Hannants (Revell Tornado GR.4) and even there it was extreme pricing with the exchange. I stopped bothering with e-bay months ago for the same reasons as you guys have said. But like you guys, it's not like I'm short of kits to build. And life keeps taking time away from that anyways these days. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 (edited) Sadly, all the consumables I use for my business, paper, ink, washes, etc..., all come from the states, so this is becoming quite the challenge. Edited January 12, 2016 by RiderFan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
martin_sam_2000 Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Guess I will have to just build the stash instead of increasing it. This is most likely the only benefit I see with the high exchange rate. I am building more kits than I am adding to the stash!!! Sean Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chuck540z3 Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 (edited) I'm heading to Maui on Saturday. Good thing my condo has a kitchen and the Maui Costco has fantastic prices! As another sign of how bad the Calgary economy is, I bought my airfare about 10 months ago with a direct flight on a Seat Sale with Westjet for $725 Cdn, which is historically a really good price. A few months later in the summer when the plane was starting to fill up, the price jumped up to about $1,200 Cdn, which is typical. 1 week ago I checked again and the price was $420 Cdn!!- so I got a refund on the difference due to a Price Protection Guarantee of the airline (which they have since canceled on Jan 5th). Why? The plane is half empty now and they are trying to fill the seats. A lot of people are no doubt canceling trips to the US due to the exchange and the fear of the economy. Calgary is not a happy place right now and I feel very sorry for the younger crowd who are losing their jobs. Edited January 12, 2016 by chuck540z3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
fulcrum1 Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 So what y'all trying to say is now is the time to visit and vacation Canada? :) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RiderFan Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 So what y'all trying to say is now is the time to visit and vacation Canada? :)/> if you like snow. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
11bee Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 So what y'all trying to say is now is the time to visit and vacation Canada? :)/> If you win power ball, this might be the time to buy Canada! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SBARC Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 If you win power ball, this might be the time to buy Canada! It is a great time for Americans to visit Canada. I'm a bit puzzled why the price of gasoline is so high in Canada considering the price for a barrel of oil is so low. 2 things to remember.... When the Canadian dollar is worth US$1.10 buy $100,000 in US currency and wait....you will make a profit. If you live in Alberta......it is a boom and bust economy....I've seen this all too often. In time Alberta will be booming again. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
11bee Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 :rofl:/> It is a great time for Americans to visit Canada. I'm a bit puzzled why the price of gasoline is so high in Canada considering the price for a barrel of oil is so low. 2 things to remember.... When the Canadian dollar is worth US$1.10 buy $100,000 in US currency and wait....you will make a profit. If you live in Alberta......it is a boom and bust economy....I've seen this all too often. In time Alberta will be booming again. My company (here in the US) is heavily invested in the Canadian energy sector. Not a good time lately... On the plus side, I would think that there must be some hobby bargains to be had north of the border. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SBARC Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 On the plus side, I would think that there must be some hobby bargains to be had north of the border. This would be true with retailers. I guess in a way the whole darn country is on sale...40% off if you're using US$'s. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
skyhawk174 Posted January 13, 2016 Author Share Posted January 13, 2016 I had a real chuckle today when one of the girls in the office said "It is really strange times we live in when the price of a case of beer is more than a barrel of oil" :) :) So true. Does not apply to the US I would think where the beer is much cheaper. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jennings Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 While I'm not engaging in schadenfreude, it's interesting to see the shoe on the other foot. When I was a kid, we couldn't buy *anything* in Canada (we lived in Detroit) because the exchange rate was so far the other way. And even in the 1990s, I remember spending time working in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and seeing hordes of Canadians come across the bridge to shop for bargains. And yes, you have OPEC to thank for most of it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bikerider Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 :rofl:/> It is a great time for Americans to visit Canada. I'm a bit puzzled why the price of gasoline is so high in Canada considering the price for a barrel of oil is so low. Last night in the Nation's Capital gas was $0.779 per litre. Which works out to roughly $2.96 a gallon in $CDN for our Southern friends, or $2.08US per gallon. I can't remember the last time I saw gas that cheap. But this morning the price was back $0.869. Smart me though I chose this time to go to Florida for my winter vacation. At least there won't be snow on the ground and the temperature will be higher than the -12deg C this morning was. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jennings Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 I paid US $1.609/US gallon for 87 octane on Saturday. Lowest price I can recall for well over a decade. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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