Ebay Lesson Learned: Maximum Price

[jrmhng]

Hi All,

This is just a rant about my recent Ebay experience. I cannot believe my rubbish luck!

I was bidding for an Edwin Jagger Chatsworth. RRP for a new razor is 55 euros which is approx $65USD.

I wasnt going to be at a computer for when the auction was supposed to end so I decided to set my max price at $60 without really thinking.

Some guy used the 1 click bid thing to push it up to $59.

FFS, I paid close to full price for a second hand razor....

 

[Falstaff]

They are referred to in the auction business as shills. Truth be told it may have been the seller with a different account or one of his buddies. Ebay ruined the internet, IMHO.

 

[jrmhng]

Is there any way to prove this? Do sellers know the max price you have set?

I had a look at the bidder and their bidding history. Doesnt really look like it was any deliberate manipulation.

Is it bad etiquette to post a screenship up for a second opinion? Everything is anonymous.

 

[Groat]

Is there any way to prove this? Do sellers know the max price you have set?

I had a look at the bidder and their bidding history. Doesnt really look like it was any deliberate manipulation.

Is it bad etiquette to post a screenship up for a second opinion? Everything is anonymous.

Shill bidding, if done by a lazy seller, is pretty obvious. Usually the shill account puts in several bids in small increments. The shill account generally (though not always) has pretty low feedback. The shill account also usually has a VERY high percentage of bids on the seller's items (sometimes even 100%.) The forum rules permit posting of closed auctions, so if you'd like an opinion you can post it up.

 

[Feraud]

I know I am stating the obvious but maximum bidding prices should be the most you are willing to pay for an item! Don't forget to factor in shipping.
It can be frustrating when we see something we really want to purchase and hope to not lose over a buck or two.
Overbidding can be as frustrating as underbidding.

 

[maxman]

Shills are out there, but I often use the 1 click bid because I know what my limit is, but really I do have an upper upper limit.
I have what i'd like to pay and what i'm willing to pay.
so in the last few minutes, I might be sitting at the computer pushing the bids up 1 click at a time.
The maximum price as a "set it and forget it" type has burned me in the past.
I've won auctions saying to myself "oh don't worry, bidding won't go this high" just to turn around and pay my maximum.
*sigh* such is life on ebay.

 

[SUNA]

I once paid over $80 for a Fatboy. I didn't think it would get that high...but like the rest of the people I wasn't around to watch the bidding and this seller didn't allow Auction Sniper.

 

[Gruder]

I've taken to bid sniping for this very reason, among others.

 

[Blaser0217]

I once paid over $80 for a Fatboy. I didn't think it would get that high...but like the rest of the people I wasn't around to watch the bidding and this seller didn't allow Auction Sniper.

I'm about ready to start bidding on some razors on E-bay for the first time. Never bought anything on Ebay before and don't want to get hosed if I can avoid it. Can somebody break down like you're talking to a two year old what it is you guys are talking about/how it bit you in the tucus? I appreciate it.

 

[Go West Young Man]

If you bid $60 for a razor you only wanted to pay $40 for, then you can't really blame anyone but yourself.

 

[BlackBard]

Having never bought anything on ebay, I probably should not comment, but here goes anyway.

It seems to me that if you set a maximum price you are willing to pay and you win the item, then that should settle it. If you are not willing to pay that price, what are you doing setting up that maximum price?

 

[taffy]

I am often amazed at this with the selling of guitars, some folks will pay more for a second hand fender, and i am not talking about a vintage model here, but a 1 year old mexican strat, for more on e bay than it sells from a fender dealer, with a gaurantee, as has been said, false bidding, also on the same point, the number of razors that sell, but get relisted the next day, stay away from those

 

[Feraud]

I'm about ready to start bidding on some razors on E-bay for the first time. Never bought anything on Ebay before and don't want to get hosed if I can avoid it. Can somebody break down like you're talking to a two year old what it is you guys are talking about/how it bit you in the tucus? I appreciate it.

Simply put - know the total amount you are willing to pay for something. That is as high as you bid.
If you want to pay 15 bucks for a razor you bid that. If the cost goes to 15.55 in the last five minutes don't get auction fever and feel you have to have it. The next thing you know you've paid 35 bucks for a razor you wanted for 15 and will not get a good re-sale price for. That is getting bit in the rear.
There is always another auction.

I've purchased more than one vintage fedora and you would be shocked at the amount some guys pay for an auction that says "Whippet" or "Open Road". We are talking "crack smoking" bidding. This is great for a seller but not for a buyer. You will never get that money back when you eventually pass the item along.

 

[proxymoron]

I'm about ready to start bidding on some razors on E-bay for the first time. Never bought anything on Ebay before and don't want to get hosed if I can avoid it. Can somebody break down like you're talking to a two year old what it is you guys are talking about/how it bit you in the tucus? I appreciate it.

(1) Know what your item is worth to you.
(2) Where it says "Your max bid," don't put more than (1). Ebay will incrementally bid to that limit.
(3) Bid as close as you can to the end of the auction to avoid shills and bidding wars.
(4) For a competitive edge, consider using 'sniping' services, which automate (3) with better speed and timing than you likely possess.
(5) Always check the vendor ratings and never forget that you're spending real money for real objects depicted by crappy digital photos.

 

[Carlo A]

I'm about ready to start bidding on some razors on E-bay for the first time. Never bought anything on Ebay before and don't want to get hosed if I can avoid it. Can somebody break down like you're talking to a two year old what it is you guys are talking about/how it bit you in the tucus? I appreciate it.

Hi blaser,

Here's the thing. When I asked the same questions, the guys at B&B told me two things:

1- more than 90% of the str8 rzrs sold on Ebay are not shave ready.

2- the str8 rzr i bought on Ebay was actually in the list of "do not buy"
since it wasn't a pro "real" blade.

In terms of DE rzrs, I dunno, but some gents have purchased DE's on Ebay, and they were satisfied.

My advice is to deal with Ebay sellers that have 100% feedback and over 300 transactions.

Good luck.

PM me if you need more assistance.

cheers

 

[Ignatius]

I've seen worse. Some poor soul paid an obscene amount for a used Merkur HD on ebay a few months ago. Over the actual retail price. I can only assume people get caught up in the moment and temporarily lose their minds. Ebay is like that, its a sellers market. Better luck next time.

 

[Go West Young Man]

I'm about ready to start bidding on some razors on E-bay for the first time. Never bought anything on Ebay before and don't want to get hosed if I can avoid it. Can somebody break down like you're talking to a two year old what it is you guys are talking about/how it bit you in the tucus? I appreciate it.

eBay works like your basic everyday auction -the auctioneer asks "How much am I offered for this unique tan tip superspeed razor?" and people start shouting out numbers. At the end of a given time, the highest number wins.

The one problem is that you usually need to be at your computer placing bids as the auction comes to a close to have a chance at winning it. OK if it ends at 4pm on Friday in your time zone, not so good if that falls in the middle of the night for you. Putting in a high bid early drives the price to your ceiling unnecessarily.

There are 2 ways around this. First, eBay automatically allows you to put in your ceiling price and it will bid incrementally up for you. Every time your bid gets beat, eBay automatically rebids 50 cents higher for you until either someone bids higher than your ceiling or you win the auction.

There are also automated systems that wait until only 3 or 4 seconds are left in the auction and make what's called a "snipe" bid, hoping to get it in so close to the closing time that automatic rebids and other snipe programs don't have a chance to react and submit a higher bid.

Regardless of whatever system you use, the main danger is Auction Fever - getting caught up in the action and overpaying for an item because you got excited and lost perspective on the value of the item. Snipes and automatic rebids help head this off by taking the actual bidding out of your hands, but you still have to have the discipline to set a ceiling price and stick with.

 

[Catalin]

Yeah, I got burned a couple of times by what I think was shilling. I ended up overpaying because I was too eager to get the item. I quickly learned not to increase my maximum bid beyond what I thought the item was actually worth. A lot of the popular brands of str8 razors on ebay go for insanely inflated prices...

 

[Ignatius]

I'm about ready to start bidding on some razors on E-bay for the first time. Never bought anything on Ebay before and don't want to get hosed if I can avoid it. Can somebody break down like you're talking to a two year old what it is you guys are talking about/how it bit you in the tucus? I appreciate it.

Avoid fleabay, its a sellers market. Haunt the b/s/t forums of the main shaving forums and be patient.

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

Max bid is what you are willing to pay.

Obviously you thought it was worth at least $60.

Enjoy your new razor.



I use incremental bids all the time to test somebody's max bid---I still have my max price I'll pay----if they keep outbidding me then they were willing to pay more than I was----thats how it works. And no---I didn't bid on your razor.