Ebay sniping

[plumbeeper]

I've used www.bidnip.com for years and it never fails. Very cheap and you only get charged when you win, not when you bid. You can adjust when it will automatically bid for you from 1 second to 30 seconds before it ends.

Dave

[derailed]

Bada bing!

"The trick to winning is paying, and paying enough. It doesn't matter that you bid in the last 3 seconds if the other guy bid a higher limit 5 minutes before. "

If it's important to me, I make sure I have a high bid in, it's that simple.

I agree, thats pretty much the name of the game. Last month i got beat out by 3 seconds waiting until the end of the auction Just to find out the winning bidder was tied with my bid but he got his in first. It was a great deal on a brand new LS3 takeout from a local dealer.

[ChgrSteve67]

This is what I use and its free.

http://www.jbidwatcher.com/

I use this tool because I'm prone to forgetting to bid and I don't like bidding early and having people poke at my bids running the price up.

[jaak]

When bidding, I decide on what Im willing to pay, I have DSL so I wait until there are a few seconds left, if I win I win, if I don't I don't. I just like waiting until the last seconds, that way if I do become high bidder, I don't leave enough time for someone else to get there bid in. There isn't really as many 'deals' as there use to be on eBay, I mainly use the buy it now option on most repo parts.

Jason

[farmerjon]

What I hate is when someone lists a car or parts and then ends the auction early because they sold the car local.  Some ads state they might do this  others like the one we were watching to bid on (we like to bid late also) just ended  didn't use the buy it now just gone.  I emailed the guy and he said he sold it local.  Make up your mind  either post local and if it doesn't sell put it on ebay or just do e bay.

[Smokey Bear]

Oh, gee, you're right.  

Agreed. Now, could you have a chat with my wife?

If there is any aspect of a thing that I feel could be improved, I should certainly cease to use that system.  

I apologize if the strength of my logic caused you to interpret my statements as instructing you what to do  



eBay is pretty and easy to use, and lots of people go to it first because of that despite any other detractions it may have for them. Those detractions may include the fees, excessive shipping and handling costs, misrepresentation, fraud, or in as in the subject of this thread, bid sniping. What I'm saying is: There are other options. For the people who can't stomach the competitive environment of eBay, take a Pepto and try one of those options: The nationwide Craigslist search engine. It's always my first choice before eBay (for buying) and I have had very good results. I think others might appreciate it too once they give it a try. Here's the link:

http://www.craiglook.com/

It's not as pretty as eBay and you actually have to deal with human beings to close a deal (gasp!), but it can be well worth the effort. A lot of these sellers have other junk stashed away when you start communicating with them.

On eBay there are only two type of bidders: Savvy bidders, and those who are unsatisfied because they are not. That's the way it works, but eBay isnt the best or only game in town.  

[defiance]

Oh, I'm very happy with ebay, and use it all the time.  And I can play the system.  But that just doesn't blind me to its easily visible failings, one of which is ebay's refusal to plug the gap that allows sniping.

[b5blue]

I watch till late but not really snipe, early on I was "kinda snipe'n" and got stuck with a slow loading page.................and missed the whole thing! I just wait long enough to see if it's going too high for me to afford.

[Nacho-RT74]

I didn't know about sniping softwares existantce , and I'm agree with defiance on that: Ebay should get some firewall about those softwares, the deal has to be personally made ( as I do )

[chargergirl]

Nobody grumbles when they are the snipee...only the sniped...it's the name of the game and it sucks to get sniped...just like it rocks to be the winner! at the right price! NEVER get caught up in the hype!

[dkn1997]

Nobody grumbles when they are the snipee...only the sniped...it's the name of the game and it sucks to get sniped...just like it rocks to be the winner! at the right price! NEVER get caught up in the hype!

isn't it snipER?     

[Rolling_Thunder]

Screw people who snipe...        I have lost so much cool crap because of people like that....     but then again I have won a couple things lately on Egay that I shouldn't complain...      I'll post up pics soon and you guys will know what I'm talking about     

[elacruze]

Screw people who snipe...        I have lost so much cool crap because of people like that....     but then again I have won a couple things lately on Egay that I shouldn't complain...      I'll post up pics soon and you guys will know what I'm talking about     

You didn't lose anything, you never had it.

[b5blue]

Right, don't hate the player! I don't win often because I'm so CHEAP! 

[Cooter]

What's funny is A part is offered here for sale No takers....Soon as someone gets sniped out of it on Evil-bay, they bi*ch about getting sniped out of cool stuff....This is why I ALWAYS offer something to the members of a Club BEFORE it goes to EPay...You want it, quit bi)chin' and buy it straight up...No snipin', no BS, just a plain transaction...

[elacruze]

Right, don't hate the player! I don't win often because I'm so CHEAP! 

Got that right...I lost a 4 speed floor hump last night that way...half price, now I'll pay more to have the old one repaired or $150 for a AMD repop.
I get wishy-washy sometimes...

[b5blue]

Sounds like we think alike, By looking long and bidding low I manged to get some nice stuff very reasonable. New (not re-man.) 2 sp. wiper motor 32.00 shipped wiper and headlight switches new 35.00 each + 6.00 shipping and my correct 70 only racing mirror (painted type primed nicely and ready to go) was 32.00 delivered (I didn't know they were scarce) I'm not above contacting the seller with questions, or asking for a break on shipping also. None really "sniped" but many bid in the last hour just because I wait to see if they are getting out of my range. 

[defiance]

Those who defend sniping with the whole "bid what you'll pay!" argument are oversimplifying.  When was the last time you looked at a part and thought, "I'll be willing to pay $237.94 for that, but by god, $237.95 is just too much!"  There is a 'grey' area around a part price, where you know you'll pay $220, and you know you won't pay $250, but between there it's a judgement call that you might go back and forth on.  

Sniping destroys the opportunity for multiple bidders to really hash out who wants it more, it turns it into a game, then has no penalty for cheating by having machines play for you.

I snipe all the time.  As long as it remains the only reasonable way to work within the ebay system, I'll continue to do so.  But it needs to be stopped systematically.

Further, those who say you can't tell what someone's bid was, that's often completely untrue.  For example, ebay scales your bid options.  Most of the time you must bid $1 or $5 or something like that, and when the bid goes up, it goes up by that scaled amount until it hits your max bid.  ONLY when your max bid is a portion of that scale does it not up the bid by that maximum.

Therefore, when you bid $230 on an item and the winning bid is $230.05, you know - without any doubt whatsoever - that the sniper figured out your bid and max outbid it by $0.05.

[chargergirl]

Amen!

[Smokey Bear]

When was the last time you looked at a part and thought, "I'll be willing to pay $237.94 for that

I guess I'll never get the gist of this rationale from a buyers perspective. It's an AUCTION, not a sale. The whole purpose is to get the highest price for the seller buyer with incremental, competitive offers - not create an environment for negotiating with buyers.

I have much more interest in sniping as a seller than a buyer for the exact reasons you state - in that it might contribute to an environment that reduces the chance of an old fashioned, drawn out bidding war that brings the best price to the seller.

[defiance]

I'm 90% buyer, 10% seller.  But as a seller, of course I want the best price, but I don't think that's the point here.  As a buyer, if I want an item, I want the option to bid for it until someone goes beyond what I'm willing to pay or I win it - not someone beats me at some arbitrary stupid game (or I beat them) by using some P.O.S. software to bid at a specific time.
Again, this isn't sour grapes - I'm good at sniping.  It's simply recognition of a flaw in the system that, for the real benefit of buyers AND sellers, should be plugged.......

But I also recognize that a lot of buyers enjoy the game, so it is not likely to be fixed.  so I'm forced to continue to play or abandon the system.

[69charger440]

Look what I sniped!! Pretty killer deal!!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280451013723&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_500wt_1182