Thread: Whats a fair price for a W&B...........

Jim R's point is well taken, and it's the classic economics viewpoint. It's also a little bit wrong. The problem is that prices on eBay are not driven by hundreds or even thousands of independent bidders looking to make rational choices and make money for themselves, like classical market conditions. Instead, I would guess that prices on eBay are being driven by fewer than 100 guys who all read the same websites and are influenced by each other's bidding -- in other words, typical "herd" or "stampede" pricing. When a razor starts to become popular or prices for that razor start to rise noticeably, everyone of the people bidding on eBay rushes in and starts bidding on that razor. Then everyone rushes off to buy the next thing. In other words, eBay may represent what people are willing to pay AT THIS MINUTE, but that doesn't really represent anything close to fair market value.

I agree that it's stampede pricing in a lot of cases, but that is still a shift in the demand curve... People talk about razors, and among consumers of razors the demand curve shifts to the right.

Then again maybe it is just paying attention

Antique, "Wade & Butcher" Sheffield straight razorw/box - eBay (item 390164552848 end time Mar-05-10 07:10:36 PST)

$33.55 a nice restorability razor and no it wasn't me... I wasn't paying freaking attention either


And the opposite hahaha

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

The title probably threw off peoples searches(like mine)

Antique, "Wade & Butcher" Sheffield straight razorw/box

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Then again maybe it is just paying attention

Antique, "Wade & Butcher" Sheffield straight razorw/box - eBay (item 390164552848 end time Mar-05-10 07:10:36 PST)

$33.55 a nice restorability razor and no it wasn't me... I wasn't paying freaking attention either


And the opposite hahaha

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260561650524&ssPageNam e=STRK:MEWAX:IT

You've got to keep your eyes peeled. A bit over a year ago I got the barber's use for $80.00 and followed that with lucking into a 'Buy It Now" on a Celebrated barber's use for $15.00 from an old fellow in Wyoming. The less expensive one was the better of the two condition wise but both are fine razors. The Joseph Rodgers 9/8 was a buy it now for $50.00 and the seller turned out to be local and we met at a Dunkin Donuts so I didn't even have to pay shipping. Some days it beez like that.

Dang Jimmy! That Rodgers is fatter than my ex-wife.
Great find! Bonus when you get donuts and coffee along with it.

Originally Posted by JeffE

Jim R's point is well taken, and it's the classic economics viewpoint. It's also a little bit wrong. The problem is that prices on eBay are not driven by hundreds or even thousands of independent bidders looking to make rational choices and make money for themselves, like classical market conditions. Instead, I would guess that prices on eBay are being driven by fewer than 100 guys who all read the same websites and are influenced by each other's bidding -- in other words, typical "herd" or "stampede" pricing. When a razor starts to become popular or prices for that razor start to rise noticeably, everyone of the people bidding on eBay rushes in and starts bidding on that razor. Then everyone rushes off to buy the next thing. In other words, eBay may represent what people are willing to pay AT THIS MINUTE, but that doesn't really represent anything close to fair market value.

Can you explain to me, then, what WOULD constitute fair market value for straight razors? Because there is, in fact, no larger market for straight razors. There are always more razors on concentrated Ebay than any other single source, including SRP. If you want to take into account the price of ALL razors, everywhere, then you also have to take into account the cost of access, etc.

"Fair price" means what a buyer is willing to pay and a seller is willing to accept at the time of sale...unless you want to define it as "what I want to pay right now". In which case, sure, they're not going for a fair price--until you get the money/desire to get one.

Originally Posted by HNSB

Dang Jimmy! That Rodgers is fatter than my ex-wife.

Thanks for the good laugh!