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Posted

Just lost another ebay auction to a sniper during the last few seconds of an auction. I know there are different opinions on sniping but for me it just takes all the fun out of ebay. Just so f*^%&(*g sneaky. It just sucks.

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Posted
Just lost another ebay auction to a sniper during the last few seconds of an auction. I know there are different opinions on sniping but for me it just takes all the fun out of ebay. Just so f*^%&(*g sneaky. It just sucks.

Norm, don't know your feelings on ebay bidding. However, if and when I bid on something on the bay, I bid as much as I think it's worth to me. Then if someone outbids me I feel they paid too much for the part. So.......if they want to pay more than something is worth to me, have at it. It's their money, not mine. To me, nothing is worth me paying more than what I think it's worth. If it goes over that price, I'll just keep looking, don't need it bad enough to over pay for it, regardless of what it is.

So, when I get outbid I sit back and laugh and say to myself. "That fool paid too much." Of course he's probably feeding his ego a little and saying to his self. "I beat the guy out of that part with my fat wallet and my great ability to snipe at the last minute." So.......let them outbid you. At the end of the day, their wallet is thinner than your's. Your's is still fat because you didn't waste it by paying too much for a part or other item on the bay.:cool::D

Posted

I'm a sniper..(I get sniped also) I think it is ridiculus to see a bidding contest early in the game...only person making out is the seller...odds are he is not paying income tax so he needs little profit in my book..I place my max money on a snipe and let the bid run...and if I lose, oh well..as Norm said the next guy paid too much.(but dang it he has the part..lol) ..I like going to live auctions and see the p'ing contests..lord-a-mercy the attitude of, I'll be danged if the other guy is going to get this is pretty costly...you need one of these to compete in that game.....

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Posted

I am with you Tim, I help my EX sell things on Ebay. I am mainly the shipping dept. I also will find things. I only use snipe bids. If I don't get it well, I didn't get it. We split all of the profits down the middle. I declare all of the profits. I guess if I itemized gas money, portion of the house I use etc. I could probably write off most but I like to sleep at night. :) Eric

Posted

Tim,

Nothing wrong with sniping if that's the way you want to bid. However, if something is listed on ebay incorrectly and you spot it. The auction still has several days to go, so you wait so you can snipe it at the last minute. 48 hours before the auction is over the seller gets a note that informs him he has it listed wrong. So........he then changes his title to be correct, and at the same time increases the parts price because he now knows what it is. By bidding early, the seller can't change the title or the price once that first bid is placed. So.....in a case like this it can hurt the sniper.

Plus, I look at this way. It really doesn't matter if I bid early or not. That sniper is go to not outbid me or outbid me in the end anyway. This way I don't have to keep going back to check on it. Just bid on it and forget it until the auction is over. It does help though that I really don't need anything for my coupe. Whatever I buy is just for extras anyway.

Posted

Thanks Norm, good advice and well put. Sniping ain't gonna go away, that's for sure. Hey, just because I have a computer doesn't mean I have both feet firmly planted in this millenium just yet.:D

I usually end up waiting and getting a better deal later so I shouldn't gripe. Philisophically, sniping is just something that humans do to other humans...well, because we can. Don't make it right though.

And truly, not said to offend anyone here, to each their own. Now I'll go lick my wounds on the missed auction.:(

So, when I get outbid I sit back and laugh and say to myself. "That fool paid too much." Of course he's probably feeding his ego a little and saying to his self. "I beat the guy out of that part with my fat wallet and my great ability to snipe at the last minute." So.......let them outbid you. At the end of the day, their wallet is thinner than your's. Your's is still fat because you didn't waste it by paying too much for a part or other item on the bay.:cool::D

Posted
You will also notice the trend of higher asking prices for the next item when listed by the so called bidding wars..some of this stuff is just getting ridiculus.

Thats true Tim. But.........just because the other sellers (or same one) raises his price on the next one, doesn't mean I have to waste time or money bidding/buying it at a higher price. So.......like I said before, it all falls back on the buyers. If no one bids on the overpriced item, the seller will soon come back to earth on the price, or become the proud owner of it for life. Either way, it doesn't empty the buyers wallet by paying too much. Then the sellers wallet is thinner because he now gets to keep the overpriced item he doesn't want or need.:D That is exactly one reason I don't do much buying on ebay anymore. Remember it takes at least two people to have a war. If you only bid your price and stop, there is no war.

There is an old saying (I like most of them, and live by them) and the other Norm pointed out one in so many words. "Good things come to those who wait.":D

Posted

At an auction, I want a DEAL. Otherwise I'm not buying. That's the fun of an auction to me is to see how much of a steal I can get.

I'll happily let someone else have it. I don't have a Duesenberg, I have a Chrysler and there really is no shortage of parts.

The steals are out there, you just have to be patient.

Rather than snipe, I look for mis titled or wrongly listed stuff and be the ONLY bidder!!!

That's why these guys who email corrections to sellers pi$$ me right off!! :) :)

Posted

I agree Pat..have had the "so called expert in his field" tip the guy to what he had and have them pull the ad...hey..if he don't know..its not my business or in my benefit to tell them....someone is looking for a deal..if not me ..then the next guy. I think it boils down to some people's ego will not let something slide if they can look like a WIZARD

Posted

Normally I won't tell a seller what he has either if I see something listed wrong, for reasons mentioned. However, I will do it sometimes. For example if a seller post what they say is a P15 clock and it isn't. Then I might tell the seller it isn't the P15 clock. I do that not to help the seller, but to keep some newbie from buying it thinking it's going to fit his car. Most of the time when I do that, I simply say it's not what he says it is, but not sure what it fits. Still does not help the seller determine what he has, but keeps the newbie from wasting money.

Posted

I used to occasionally write to correct a seller.....but don't do that much anymore. Sometimes I will tell them it's important to know if that Plymouth brake light bezel being sold is for a coupe or sedan....and that it is stamped on the back side of the item. Or.....are those hubcaps 9 or 10 inch diameter, as that also makes a difference. The mis-listed or mis-spelled items can sometimes produce a bargain. Someone here just recently bought some "fender shirts".

Posted

That was me. I've gotten quite a few deals looking for stuff like that. And actually that one I didn't notice it was spelt wrong until the listing was over and I'd already one.

Posted

Honestly they ended up on a shelf. I've been working on other projects and neglecting the poor 51. I haven't laid a finger on the 51 since I put it away last fall.

Posted

This has been one of the longest standing issues on the forum, E-bay. I used to bid close to the end of the auction from day one but learned sniping was the way to go because I lost too many items to it. There's also an old saying " if you cant beat them, join them." Then came up the subjects of sniping, shilling, greed, helping or not, bidding against each other, posting live auctions, dealers hiking cost and posting after statements made here for an item, asking what parts were or worth only to turn around and sell on ebay on a regular basis and on and on.

There has been good and bad results from these discussions but it boils down to this, every man for himself. Especially now that the forum has grown so large and viewed by more than those who participate here.

If I know a certain persons bidding I usually wont touch it depending on how badly I need it or quickly. But rest assured if I want it bad enough I will bid on it. Others here have bid against me in the past so I finally said to myself "no more rules" when it comes to auction items. No more "how to bid" help because thats just one more person I'll have to bid against along with the fact let them learn as I had to when it comes to Ebay. Best defense in bidding on Ebay or where ever, is to not tell the world how I work with ebay auctions.

If someone is looking for an item and you've seen it on ebay then PM the person and let them know about it but dont splatter it all over the screen because it then becomes open to whomever decides to bid on it.

All this could change if anyone who uses the forum would post their ebay auction name in their profile but thats never going to happen so it breaks down to "it's hard but it's fair" once all the smoke has cleared.

I havent bid nor sold anything on ebay in awhile. One main reason is because some here are eager to post a parts resource so there is no need. Those who like to keep resources to themselves and only share through email or a PM are those I have little respect for. Want something to really gripe about then there's a good subject for ya! You want to talk about being sneaky and how it sucks, talk about that subject. FYI, this is not directed towards you Normspeed but the general public that reads this. Ed

Posted

I agree. I've had people ask me my search terms for ebay. I won't tell them. I find lots of deals with my searches. I do email things to others I think might want them if I don't. Reg has outbid me and I didn't really care. I've also sent him many auctions and spent his money for him! Plus we've sold each other stuff through the forum. Just gotta let stuff go! Besides I've finally found another one of the thing Reg beat me to. So its really all good now :)

Posted

All good points and well taken. As for sniping, call me old fashioned. It's sneaky. It sucks. Like many things, it's something we humans do to other humans, because we can. Not a good facet of human nature, sorry.

Myself, I refuse to join the sniping crowd. Used to do it, don't any more. Might be legal, that doesn't mean it's right. Sometimes I'll be watching an item I'd like to buy, but if I see another bidder has placed a bid, I just say, let's let this guy get himself a deal, I won't spoil his day. I feel better about myself that way.

Posted

Norm I've also never sniped. Sometimes I do bid last minute but if I do its me in person on my PC bidding.

Posted

Same here, particularly if there are no bids and the auction is ending.

Norm I've also never sniped. Sometimes I do bid last minute but if I do its me in person on my PC bidding.
Posted

Have any of you ever wondered where are all these P15 Plymouths (and others) that people must be working on??

The parts (at least some of them) seem to get quite a few bids and go kind of high. But you don't see that many old Plyms at car shows and events.

Posted

Bob,

All those mystery bidders are like some of the greedy ebay sellers. I've actually had to send notices to a few sellers and have them remove an auction. At least 3 or 4 times I've found exact copies of the Fulton Sunvisor pages I posted on my website, for sale on ebay. Recently I got an email from someone telling me that they were for sale on ebay. Sent that seller the same notice and he/she also pulled the auction immediately after receiving the notice.

At least one or two did come back and say they did it as a service. Told them to do the people a real service and give them the link to get the instructions "Free" like they are supposed to be. After all, anyone who can bid on something on ebay can also get the instructions off my site for free. For the record, I don't care who prints them off as long as they don't profit from it.

Bottom line, you really have to watch some of these sellers. For any potential seller reading this, that page is copy written and I do check the Fulton visor sales from time to time. (Evidently someone is helping me too.) I will take the necessary action if I see those pages being sold!

Posted

Ed, Norm.., sorry to break it to you but just because your not using software to bid at the end doesnt mean your not sniping. Thats how it began and then the software was available. So your still sniping if your bidding at the very end.

Yes it does suck and I wish it were more like a live auction but it's not. That being the fact then you use whatever means available to win. I see nothing sneaky about it when your hand has been forced to use the methods provided if thats the only way your going to get anything at all. These days with ebay you will end up with nothing without using some kind of leverage. Now that ebay has changed the rules, made it impossible to view certain helpful procedures along with making it available the use of not being able to view previous non-sales or feedback by the sellers, your pretty well on your own. As for any moral issue on bidding with or without sniping software, sniping in general, I dont see one. Either you win or lose, thats it.

If your a premadonna who has to win all the time and have deep pockets then you probably will but then you can talk about moral issues.

If your like me and my pockets are not deep, then you use whats available to win but if you dont, you get over it and keep looking. Personally I dont like bandwagons, clicks, fairhaired boys because there are too many sharp blades waiting to stab you in the back. That doesnt mean I wont fight fire with fire if thats all thats left to accomplish my goal but this is where your moral standards kick in and you should be discreet on how far you will go. Thats why I have no problems sleeping. Ed

Posted

Well, when it comes down to last minute physical bidders or those who use snipe software, neither bothers me. Like I said, I just bid whatever I'm willing to pay for an item. The last minute bidder or sniper programs still have to outbid that amount. If they do outbid that amount, I didn't want the item for that price anyway. If they don't outbid me and only cause the price to go up, that's ok too, because evidently I was willing to pay that price or more anyway. That's why I see no point in snipping or bidding at the last minute. The only time I'll bid on something at the last minute, is if I just ran across it at that time.

Posted
As for sniping, call me old fashioned. It's sneaky. It sucks. Like many things, it's something we humans do to other humans, because we can. Not a good facet of human nature, sorry.

Norn;

I use snipe ware for anything I bid on. It is good to know how you feel about me. Nuff said:mad:

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