Thread: Do collectors of non-shaving items snipe?

Well, I'm sure the do, but does anyone collect anything other than shaving related items and notice regular and active sniping?

I ask because through the past six months or so, I've started selling off pieces of my small vinyl album collection. I've sold probably 50 albums on Ebay. It interests and even amuses me that I have not seen a snipe yet. The highest bid 2-3 days prior ends up being the final bid even when 10 people are watching a particular album.

Chris L

Yes they absolutely do. My uncle is an avid antique watch collector and it is a war on eBay for the good pieces.

Absolutely! Pocket knives, tobacco pipes........ you name it. If I ain't sniping I ain't bidding. I don't use a program either. I like the pure adrenaline rush.

aye i used to snipe Magic: The Gathering cards when i was a young'un

I've never bid on something without it being a snipe bid. I joined eBay during college, when I had my T3 internet connection. That was before everyone had broadband access. Very few people could wait till the last second to bid. My roommate would look over my shoulder and watch me win auctions. Afterwards, we'd give each other high-fives like we were at a college game. I have a cable modem now and I'll snipe on a $0.99 soap.

Thank God for a VERY high speed connection. I agree with JimmyH-AD, it truly is a rush. Refresh,Refresh...no wait...wait-not yet-hit bid...OUTBID AGAIN....

I used to buy NOS Vacuum Tubes for Guitar amps. Same story.

Originally Posted by Lt.Arclight

Thank God for a VERY high speed connection. I agree with JimmyH-AD, it truly is a rush. Refresh,Refresh...no wait...wait-not yet-hit bid...OUTBID AGAIN....

That is another plus in sniping. More often then not I get outbid and I have no time to put in a higher bid. So I save money instead of buying more stuff that I need like I need another hole in my head.

Locked and loaded!!!!! I don't bid on anything, period....
It actually gives me a fair shot at getting what I want off e-bay since all I have is dial up, and as Jimmy said, I set it and walk away.....

Can you folks who are sniping explain the logic to me? I just won a bid for a razor on ebay against a guy who bid six times in a minute and a half, starting 8 minutes before the close. Each time he raised his bid by a couple of dollars, but never got as high as the bid I had put in a few hours earlier. I don't get it -- if he was willing to go that high, why not just put in one bid? It seems to me he either doesn't understand eBay's Dutch auction system (you don't have to pay as much as you bid, only a little more than the next highest bidder), or he was deliberately trying to jack up the price on me without having to buy it himself.

I guess I can understand waiting until near the end to bid so as not to attract attention to a good find, but this kind of sniping is beyond me. What's your reasoning for waiting until the last minute?

Originally Posted by BurnBeGone

Can you folks who are sniping explain the logic to me? I just won a bid for a razor on ebay against a guy who bid six times in a minute and a half, starting 8 minutes before the close. Each time he raised his bid by a couple of dollars, but never got as high as the bid I had put in a few hours earlier. I don't get it -- if he was willing to go that high, why not just put in one bid? It seems to me he either doesn't understand eBay's Dutch auction system (you don't have to pay as much as you bid, only a little more than the next highest bidder), or he was deliberately trying to jack up the price on me without having to buy it himself.

I guess I can understand waiting until near the end to bid so as not to attract attention to a good find, but this kind of sniping is beyond me. What's your reasoning for waiting until the last minute?

It's just a speculation about his reasoning, but that could be the equivalent of an impulse buy. They may have stumbled on the auction and want to win it but are not sure how much they want it. So they try few times and realize they've bid more than what they were willing to pay. Conversely if you had used a snipe you'd have probably paid less. That bidder would've been winning it with his first bid but then not have the time to react on your snipe. Not sniping, you just give more time to others to outbid you. Of course if your snipe doesn't go through (a glitch for example, or you're not fast enough) you lose for waiting too long.