CAN SOMEBODY PLEASE EXPLAIN/EBAY F**K

Ok, so I'm watching a mtb wheelset all week long on egay and I'm getting really pumped up for a great deal on a pricey set of wheels (Mavic Crossmax SX). I upped my max a couple times during the week. So Its down to the last 30 min and I'm basically planted in front of my computer like a dumbass (I know right...duh...TWer) and I'm the high bidder $50 below my max when the clock ticks down to 1 sec. and 0 and I'm even hitting refresh to make sure. Bingo when the auction ends they sold for $5 over my max. If I'd had a dog close by.......I'm afraid I would have kicked it (jk). So pissed. Two days later, so pissed. Can anyone please explain WTF just Fing happened. If bids woulda been coming in I would have upped another $100 for insurance even. I know the autobid thing and all, but damn.

 

I think it might be called "a sniper". Its when someone just watches the bid without bidding. They wait until the last seconds to make a bid higher than anyone else. They usually bid so closely to the end that others cannot up their bids.

I could be wrong though.

 

That is a bummer man, your right how did someone get $5 over you when within seconds it was $50 under. I saw one time or other this program that bids for you, and it claimed it could bid 5 times a second. Looks like that could be true.

 

Yeah the sniper issue sucks. I bid on photography equipment all the time and after YEARS of getting my ass handed to me I purchased a program called "Auction Sentry". I have yet to lose an auction since then, so yes I have become that a$$hole but its the only way I can play the ebay game unless you use buy it now...

Good luck

 

There are websites which link to Ebay, and you can pick your bid price and how many seconds before the auction ends to bid, anywhere all the way down to 1 second before the auction ends.

Happens all the time, screws buyers and sellers.

 

Best thing to do is put highest amount you are willing to pay and forget about it. What ever item is worth to you. You win some you lose some.

 

yeah, good advice all. thanks. I just wish ebay could police well enough to keep things straight up and honest so you knew where you stood. next time I guess if I really want/need something at least I'll try to put actual max I'm willing to pay. UGH

 

I dont know this, just my gut feeling on it. But I have always thought that the seller has other accounts or an associate to bid to raise yours to get you to pay what they are wanting. Like I said I have no reason to believe this, just my own instinct. Just due to the fact that no matter what the item is that someone ALWAYS raises my bid right before it ends. Especially when it is only a high enough bid to push me to my max. Off course most stuff on there has gone to buy it now anyway, kinda defeats the purpose of the "auction".

 

I have used ebay both regular bidding and at the last minute never using a sniping program ever. There are reasons why I do this.

If there is something I really want and am going to be around for the auction end time.
I put the item on my watch list & figure out what is my MAX price to pay including shipping.
On the last day of the sale, I get a reminder from ebay about my watch list.
I check the price of the item to make sure it's still in my price range of good dea.
If it is, I wait as long as I can usually for the last 20 sec put my MAX price in.
I may or may not win and will only pay whatever the increment bid value is over the price at the time of my bid.

If I know I am not going to be around at auction end time then I put in my max bid and hope for the best but using both know:
People will chip away at your bid on most wanted things...ie. ipod, laptops, cameras, parts etc.
There are kids, bored adults or friends of the sellers (even though its illegal) driving prices up.
I have done ok this way knowing I put my best price in (my max). If it sells for more, I wouldn't want it anyway.
Also this prevents me from getting emotionally involved in winning spending over my MAX if I sit there and watch it getting mad.

This is pretty much the way it is, not saying it is right or wrong, it just is. Ebay doesn't care & the sellers just want to sell their stuff. I try to set myself up to win if its something I really want I find a good deal Buy it NOW or shop on Amazon or Craiglist.
I hardly ever sell anything there anymore due to listing fees & the changes made in the feedback policies.

 

Personally, I don't bid at all until the last few seconds, other than a really low bid at the start to keep it on my radar. I watch to see how high an item is going and then if the price looks right with a minute or so to go, I get my highest price I will pay ready and hit the submit button with only seconds left. Some I win, some I lose.

 

All good advice here. If you put in a bid anytime before the last few seconds, all you are doing is fueling a bidding war and driving the price up. Sucks, but it's true. Wait til the end, then put in your best price. You'll never win them all anyway, so why drive up the price by bidding way early?

 

This is why there is an entire culture of folks out there who absolutely refuse to buy on b-tray. I myself just go there to see what something is selling for.

 

Ebay Sniper

Auction Sniper

EZ Sniper

there's a whole list of them

don't feel bad, i've been out bidded with less before.

 

If I really want something, that's the way I bid. Why let anyone know I am interested?

It sounds like that is what happened. That's just part of the game on EBay.

I always put in my absolute max as a contingency bid just in case someone tries to swoop in.

Sometimes things happen for a reason. Maybe there will be a better deal for you down the road

 

I snipe all the time. It's how you ebay. Sorry dude, don't try to buy shit on Ebay if you don't know how to win.

 

<--- bid sniper. If you are bidding any other way you are wrong.