12345

I don't get it, Chuck? What's to hate? So there are silly people out there....

Now, if you'd got all caught up in the bidding, and paid more than something was worth... ;)

This looks like 'no harm, no foul' to me... ;)

Thanks,

Bill
 
another veiw ,,we know that the ones with attitude are hard to teach so if you go get a new set you can teach them yur way and they will fit right in amognst the rest of your stash:D
 
I use eBay and Craigslist because I've never seen a flea market in this area (and I've lived here 34 years). Lots of garage sales, which my wife haunts, so I depend on her to give me a call if anything looks promising.

I do have a few pet peeves about eBay though. I won't bid on anything with fuzzy pictures. I also avoid tools where the seller has gotten cute with the pictures and you can't get a good look at the the cutting edge, or those features that confirm the vintage claimed. Cheesy hype like WOW!!!! or L@@K is a real turnoff. I'm not an expert on anything, but I'm a born skeptic. So far I haven't been ripped off.
 
Hi Chuck,

Yeah, I used to feel the same way until I started selling on eBay... ;) :rofl:

Seriously though, it does annoy me as a buyer seeing people bid items into oblivion, paying double or triple what you'd paid in the store, or even on other eBay auctions. Especially when I want that item badly. :eek: One trick I use is to look for items that are miscategorized or with their names misspelled, because the majority of people will miss them in searches, so I can pick them up for less.

As a seller, I love it when the bidding takes off, of course. :)

--MJ
 
Not much different than a car lot where someone comes in to buy a used can and just "HAS TO HAVE IT" because of "XYZ" :dunno:

Sometimes people get caught up in the bidding frenzy, sometimes there are other reasons that you are not seeing.

For example, if you live in Timbuktu and there is no "Woodcraft" around and the shipping for those new tools is high from the store, because they don't want to ship to Timbuktu and charge a surcharge, then going over what them city folks can get the tools for new is not a totally bad idea, as used, they might still be cheaper to the guy in Timbuktu than buying new, with the shipping and store bought shipping surcharge.

I sell clamps on Yahoo auction here (no E-bay in Japan) and I love it, now I sell at a "Buy Now" price that I think is fair, and I eat the sales commission to yahoo, and the buyer pays the actual shipping, still, it is a good side business for me, pays a good part of my turning addition :D

But the fact remains, there are stupid people out there, I know, I've been one on occasion :doh: well not with the bidding thing, but other things :rolleyes: :D :wave:
 
I think it has nothing to do with ebay, but with the buyers. Someone might be looking for a tool to use it and to get it cheaper than new, while some other might be looking for same tool because it is the last one he needs to fill a gap in his collection.
That second one will pay even thrice as much as the first one would do because he wants that item badly, if on top of that he gets caught in the bidding excitement/competition things can get out of control.

I've bought several tools and items at ebay and I must say that I was only deceived by a chinese seller ( that got the oportune claim) The item that I got was similar to the one depicted but THE ONE that was depicted.

Since then I do not bid in any chinese seller auction no matter what feedback he has.
 
I am going to give you guys some advice. I don't buy much on EBay any more. Otherwise I wouldn't share this. ;)

This doesn't solve Chucks gripe. But it will keep you out of bidding wars and gives you a good chance at winning.

Sign up for a bidding program like E-Snipe. They are dirt cheap and their computer will place your bid on an item in the last few seconds of the auction. This accomplishes two things. One, it forces you to decide what the most is your willing to pay (also keeps you from over paying). Second, you don't have to watch the auction and you don't forget about it.

Now if someone is willing to pay more and puts in an auto bid they will get it. But if you put in your absolute MAX BID to start with, then it just sold for more than you were willing to pay.

I lost several items on EBay before I learned how to play the game. Now I can say that unless it just goes higher than I am willing to pay, I rarely don't buy the item I am bidding on. However, like Chucks turning tools, there is a lot of items just go for more than I am willing to pay.
 
The fault isn't eBay. The problem comes with folks who are more interested in "winning" than buying at a decent price. Normally, I'll bid once or twice then just put in my max and let the auto bid take over. Never have I bid on anything that would change my life if I didn't buy it. The camper trailer we just bought was an eBay purchase. Definitely a big ticket item. I used the 'buy it now' option but phoned and e-mailed the seller before committing to the purchase. The deal went very well. Seller is very honest and a nice person. I was very stressed over this but it worked out swimmingly. eBay is a service, the screw-ups are some of the people who use it.
 
eBay is a service, the screw-ups are some of the people who use it.
Agreed. I've been buying and selling on eBay for over 8 years and only once, in hundreds of transactions, have I even come close to being burned - and that was a minor issue. Now that they have stopped sellers from retaliating against dissatisfied buyers by not allowing them to post bad feedback I think things will get even better.

The one bad feedback I ever had was from a seller that ignored my requests for information and took over a week to ship my purchase. I complained about the lack of response and he, in turn blasted me for being a lousy buyer! This practice scared buyers into never complaining about a purchase. Hopefully this will change now.:thumb:

I, like Frank, simply put in my max bid and let it ride. I know how much I'm willing to pay and that's it. I've done some sniping, but rarely engage in it any more. Too much chance of getting "caught up" in the excitement and over bidding. DAMHIKT:doh:
 
I rarely enter in an actual 'bidding' item on Ebay.

On a few rare occasions, where it was something I really needed (Generally parts to fix my old 1946 chevy) I have used a sniping service to help me out.

What i do take advantage of frequently are the 'buy it now' types of things. I make sure to check the prices on the internet, and if it's a good deal, I'll buy it.

Otherwise I have to agree, people get worked up and just 'have to have it' and will bump the price to way over retail....
 
I've been told that folks in places outside the U.S. often bid above what a new item costs here and it is still cheaper for them than buying something imported through a retailer where they are. Import duties and such can really put a crimp on prices. The Barnes and Noble here carries at least one woodworking mag from Great Brittain. I've looked through it on several occassions and the ads for machines available here have prices that match what we pay except that the prices are in Pounds Sterling. I.E. a Dewalt chop saw that we would pay $300 for is priced at around 300 Pounds Sterling. Shipping through the USPS from here to there seems to also be significantly less than the shipping coming back the other way.

But sometimes it is just folks getting carried away with winning the auction. I've bought quite a lot of vintage woodworking tools via ebay. The basic stuff like bench planes and handsaws and the like. Once I got beyond those and started looking at less plentiful stuff, I find it better to go through a dealer whom I trust and pay a few bucks more than to chance that greater amount of money with someone I don't know. I will run a category search occassionally and look for interesting stuff ending in a couple hours or so that hasn't been bid on. That;s mostly off-the-wall stuff like unusual auger bits and such.
 
I think it has nothing to do with ebay, but with the buyers. Someone might be looking for a tool to use it and to get it cheaper than new, while some other might be looking for same tool because it is the last one he needs to fill a gap in his collection.
That second one will pay even thrice as much as the first one would do because he wants that item badly, if on top of that he gets caught in the bidding excitement/competition things can get out of control.

This was exactly my experience at farm and antique auctions when I lived in PA -- we had people who really wanted something and didn't care how much it cost, then those who were totally caught up in the bidding frenzy. A little less fun to watch on eBay (lacking in the visual entertainment :D) but the same principles at work.

--MJ
 
Top