On Tue, 01 Dec 1998 20:52:11 -0500, "Perry Bain" <BainP@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
jammed all night, and by sunrise was overheard remarking:
> I have bought a few items on eBay, and I will have to agree with the others
> here that this is standard procedure. I started out like you, expecting
> that everyone would bid well in advance of the closing time. I quickly
> learned that if I bid my maximum several days before the end of the
> auction, it usually resulted in either: a) My bid would be bettered at the
> last second (and it is irksome to be outbid by $0.50!) or b) Someone would
> come along at the last minute and push my bid all the way to the max, then
> leave me to buy it (also aggravating). So now I don't bid until the last 5
> minutes or so.
E-Bay is actually set up to encourage this, a practice the old-timers (
not I, but some friend of mine) call sniping.
For those who are sniping, the idea is that you want to get you bid in
at the very last minute (I got one in once that tied for the closing
time of the auction to the second, but that's not something you'd
recommend), rather than E-Bay's stated recommendation of "bid early, bid
often". The idea, of course, is to keep the bid from growing too high,
and also to give those bidding against you no chance to counterbid.
Which itself is a bit silly, since, with the stated maximum in your bid,
there's always a way to be outbid, in effect, retroactively.
> I have almost given up on trying to find a deal there, but occasionally one
> slips through. It takes patience and persistence, though.
Yes it does, and it's like any other risk you take -- if you know what
you're doing and aren't afraid to let one get away, you can get some
good deals. On the other hand, I have seen folks get all kinds of crazy,
bidding way more for Olympus stuff (about the only thing I look for
there) than you would pay at the typical used gear shop.
> 1) Always e-mail the seller for specifics on condition (ask about
> diaphragms, foam rot, etc.). usually the descriptions are vague, and a few
> specific questions can save a lot of hassle.
Yup. While most of the folks are honest, I don't think too many get
carried away. You will get better information by email.
> 3) Don't get too excited about "your" new bit of gear before the auction is
> finished. Try to stay emotionally detached for your own mental health.
In a very real sense, it's a form of gambling, both on your win (or not),
and the gear you'll receive. If you want to win at blackjack, you play
by the numbers, you don't get carried away, or let a worry about maybe
losing one hand make you do something stupid. Same basic rules apply
here (well, not "stick on 16" or "never split 10-10", but you know what
I mean).
> 4) If it's being sold by Pittburgh Camera Exchange, don't even bother to
> bid.
I made that mistake once. Just once. And while I didn't get junk, I paid
a bit too much (fortunately on a pretty cheap item anyway). Those guys
set their reserve at basically what they could sell if for in their
store (or web site, or wherever they sell things). It's a win-win for
them -- if bids surpass the reserve, they get a better price, if not,
they don't have to sell what they'll eventually sell anyway.
I have found the best deals are when regular folks are selling equipment
they haven't used much. I got an excellent deal on an OM-G body this way
; a bit under what you'd pay in a used camera shop for the body,
basically EX condition, but I got a Vivitar zoom and flash in the deal
as well, and yet another camera bag (the kids have that one now).
A few other tips. Assume someone's going to be around to snipe any
auction. Between the 3 hour east to west time difference, folks with
access at work, and hacker types at home, it's probably covered. On the
other hand, the hour of closing has some bearing on how many folks are
going to be around. Look for the Nth in a series of the same basic
things if you're not shopping for the occasional oner. And always keep a
few used-shop Web pages handy to keep prespective on the whole game.
Most shops will give you at least a few days money-back, they have a
little more to lose, in reputation and repeat business, than most of the
folks selling used stuff, and they actually know (good dealers, anyway)
the difference between LN, EX, VG, PoC, etc.
--
Dave Haynie | V.P. Technology, Met@box Infonet, AG | http://www.metabox.de
Be Dev #2024 | NB851 Powered! | Amiga 2000, 3000, 4000, PIOS One
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