Favourite things at Active Surplus Electronics

very good for finding extremely random objects to suit your needs. ie. I need something round to use as a handle for this bag I'm making... voila - a metal circle, I dunno what it's used for but whatever.

Dave says, "it's got stuff that would have been useful two weeks ago." Things like iPod cables, graduated cylinders, plexi-glass, bread boards, tweezers, marbles, stop watches, toilet plungers, batteries, ropes, speaker phones...the list is exhaustive

I've only been in once, and I didn't buy anything, but it's one of my favourite places in the city? Why, you ask? Because of the guy out front who chants "active surplus, you never know what you'll find" over and over and over, day in and day out. Except the one time I walked by with my cousin and his new amp from Steve's, at which point he briefly altered his script to exclaim "HEY! TUBE AMP! NICE!"

I don' think i have ever bought anything there but I love to look at all the cool stuff!

The guy shouting at you outside in an iron maiden Tshirt isn't nuts, he's just really enthusiastic about this place with due cause. Great for any DIY project, even if you're not a pro, they can usually help you along with the basics.

everything's cheap, still new and if you can think of it, it's there.

it has the parts you would get ripped off buying just about anywhere else. Has shelves of adaptors and materials for electronics hobbiests and mad scientists. It's now up on the 2nd floor so you have to look harder to find it.