Parts suppliers

[Bret B]

I've been doing some more researching of who to buy parts from. Looking thru some of the old posts and doing a search gives a fair amount of information. What I think I'm really looking to find out about is, are all these suppliers like LMC, Brothers, Chevy Duty, and others, just reselling the same parts, or are they actually getting different vendors to make parts for them? What is the quality from these vendors? Outsourcing is huge, and I see Brothers touting the "Made in USA" on some of their products. Not the same advertising from others.

Example: I found a post from mid 2013, about the windshield seal, I believe the original poster had bought the seal from one of the companies above and was having a difficult time installing, quality of product so to speak. The replies enlightened me to Steele Rubber Products, who I didn't even know existed. If the fit, finish, and quality is going to be that much better, then i really don't see a down side to paying a bit more for the product. No one spoke ill of another company, but there weren't any other other companies recommended to buy from either.

Only thing I've bought aftermarket for my little truck is body patch panels from Top Banana. They seemed to have competitive pricing, and had some great reviews on here. Following the advice of others, it worked out.

Thanks in advance for suggestions and recommendations.