Sniping on eBay...There must be tricks I don't know.

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I don't mind losing the game, but is the game rigged?

Several times in the last few days I've been outbid on razors I really wanted.

Each time I had the high bid as the clock counted down + I had a secret maximum bid already entered into the eBay system.

I'm talking the very last second showed on the eBay countdown clock and I was the highest bidder.

In each case someone got in a bid exactly one dollar over the highest bid I'd entered within the final second.

I'm not saying here that my maximum bid was the bid showing up on the eBay highest bid listing. In each case I had an entered bid which was higher than what eBay displayed as the highest bid (experienced eBay bidders know what I mean here).

It's almost like the snipers have had secret inside information as to my secret maximum bid.

I'll just assume I didn't really need those razors and better ones are coming along and at a lower price, but it really seems weird to me.

This happen to anybody else?

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[kcb5150]

Idk, just bid what you can stomach paying and if someone bids more, it is what it is... A new razor will always turn up..

 

[shaveSymptomatic]

Try gixen.com

 

[InkStainedWretch]

What you've described is exactly how eBay is supposed to operate. Let's suppose you've submitted a bid of $30 a second before an auction ends, and you already have a bid in for $20 (and it shows as the highest bid). Now I come along and place a bid of $100, also as time runs out. The eBay bidding algorithm pushep up the price until my bid wins by $1.

I think that if I submitted a bid of $30.50 right at the end of the auction, I'd win by 50¢.

The other thing is that the may be several bidders who come in within seconds of the end of the auction, and it may take the eBay algorithm a few seconds to determine the winner. Nothing nefarious going on.

You can check what I've said by clicking on the bid history on an auction that ended. You'll probably see that most are win by exactly $1.

 

[SliceOfLife]

Like he explained. That is how eBays proxy bidding system works. If you were the second highest bidder, than regardless what the highest bidders actual bid is he pays only your bid plus the minimum bid increment. $1 until over $100.

Also most bidders use a website which enters their true bid in the final seconds of the auction, to prevent people from gradually increasing their bids and driving the price up.

 

[Dryphter]

Idk, just bid what you can stomach paying and if someone bids more, it is what it is... A new razor will always turn up..

This. I bid the amount I am ok paying and if the auction goes over that then so be it. So if the razor is one you really really want, bid as high as you feel is right and let it ride.

 

[RumpleBearskin]

Idk, just bid what you can stomach paying and if someone bids more, it is what it is... A new razor will always turn up..

This philosophy works for accepting the results, but as others have said, many bidders use a third party site to submit that maximum bid in the last seconds. That way someone you outbid doesn't come back, see they are now losing, and up their maximum.

 

[kcb5150]

Sometimes for a seller it is a blessing. Guys have a habit of putting "can't miss" snipes on things and when 2 or 3 guys get the same idea you have something closing for a massive sum.

 

[kcb5150]

Besides shill bidding is a far bigger problem on ebay than snipe bidding

 

[MilkCrate]

I just bid what I’m comfortable with. If I win, I win.

 

[Dalejr]

Happens to me all the time. Other people have had deeper pockets & was more than I could justify paying in most cases. There was one super rare razor in NOS/Mint condition that came up a few weeks ago that I was not going to lose so I put in an insanely high snipe bid and sure enough I won. Wish it didn't cost me an arm and a leg but oh well. It basically boils down to: " how bad do you really want it".

 

[KW Driver]

I've used a sniping site to keep bids from running up prior to the last minute or so. won that way too. lost more because others had higher max bids.

it's also an easy way to stay honest on my max. set it and forget it. if I get a winning email, I won.

 

[Doc226]

End results, highest bid wins. The snipe bidding is great, you set it and forget it. If you win, you win if not there will be others.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Good points, gentlemen.

I'm going to continue to believe someone has Secret Inside Information about my bids (and yours).

Try gixen.com

I've looked into these before. Might be worth using.

I just bid what I’m comfortable with. If I win, I win.

That's pretty much what I do, too.

Getting emotionally involved in "winning" an auction of this sort makes little sense to me. I've almost never seen a razor on eBay which is available only once. It's not like any razors I'm going to be considering are truly rare.

Just today I read on the forum about a razor which was said to be super rare, practically unobtanium. Sort of made me laugh because there were two of them being sold at auction at the time I read the post. One has now been sold, but the other is still available. I'm sure there are several razors at any moment which could fit into this category - someone thinks they're super rare, practically unobtanium - but they're not, at least not all the time.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

End results, highest bid wins. The snipe bidding is great, you set it and forget it. If you win, you win if not there will be others.

The highest bid does not necessarily win. Let's say you enter a secret maximum bid of $101. The winning bid might be $100. The rules might state that the minimum bidding increments are $1.50. So, had your maximum bid been $101.51 you would have won, but your bid of $101 doesn't count as a bid and doesn't win.

The eBay proxy bidding system is a system I usually like.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[SliceOfLife]

Nope... even if your max bid isn't a legitimate bid over their max bid... if it is a legitimate bid over the CURRENT bid and beats their max bid (by even a penny), you win.


For example. There's a razor I want. Opening bid is $0.99. I come and bid $10. It sits there until the last second at (1 bid) $0.99 (with my hidden $10 proxy bid in place). If you throw $10.01 at it in the last second, you win for $10.01.

Now if you bid $10, my $10 bid will win. But say you bid $10 with a minute left? You'll see that my max is only $10, not $10.50... and you know that a $10.50 bid will beat me... you can throw a $10.50 bid at it and win... but you CAN'T bid $10.01 now, because the POSTED bid is $10, and you must bid a legal increment over the POSTED bid for it to count.

 

[HazMat Shaver]

Im with Doc and KW Driver. I use sniping as bid and forget. If I get an email saying I won. Then I won.

 

[Toothpick]

At one point I had bought about 40 razors off ebay with the same tactic. I would search by “Ending Soonest”. Then find the razors I wanted and make a bid for what I thought was a fair price. Then just wait. Got a lot that way. If I won woo! If I lost, oh well.

Another tactic I would find razors I wanted regardless of ending date and bid no more than $20, and walk away. Some razors I bid 10, or 14, or 18. Just whatever I thought was fair. But no more than $20. I’d do this with several at a time. I’d usually win at least 1 or 2. IMO there are not many vintage razors worth mor than 20 bucks.

 

[Dick peck]

I've loved and I've lost with ebay. It is very fortunate that I have lost so many. It's already out of control. Best deal is when there is not a clear description. Like a mk31 that was listed as vintage with no other description. Scored for 20 bucks.

 

[Polarbeard]

It's a conspiracy, so please stop bidding on razors at eBay. As a proof you'll soon see that all the good ones, given that no-one bids, end up with the same buyer a guy called Polarbeard.