Shipping was $36??? Why?
International rates... Which I think is a load of bull going to Canada, but it is what it is...
As far as finding a topper you like BEFORE getting a ProVari... I have to respectfully disagree with this theory... I honestly don't have one topper that performs on a Vamo / Lavatube / ZMax the same as it does on a ProVari... And that's been a fairly large variety of toppers...
As for why you should get a ProVari... IMO it's one of the toughest, most consistent mods out there. Rock solid performance, heavy duty construction, top quality materials, USA made, industry leading customer service and warranty support...
And with all of that, they hold their value very well...
Say, just for giggles, you buy one and decide that you just don't like it... You can turn around and sell it on the classies here on ECF... It will be sold within 24 hours (likely much quicker than that) and you only have to shed maybe 10% off retail... So you can sell it all day long any day of the week and maybe lose $20... So even if it's just an experiment, I would say it's worth the $20 "rental fee" even if you only keep it for a week...