[Leica] Ebay

["David W. Almy" <dalmy@mindspring.com>]

All,

This Ebay bashing, which puzzles me, has caused me to chime in.

I've bought several items on Ebay. Never have I paid more than I wanted
to; I've always paid less. That bidders wait to the last minute could
somehow be characterized as a "scam" is nuts. 

Ebay is really very simple. An item is offered. How much are you willing
to pay for it? If someone is willing to pay more than you are, than you
most likely will not get it. Where's the scam? Whether shill bidders
"bid up" an item, or dealers are lurking, or whatever, is irrelevant. 

Last year I bought 120 rolls of Royal Gold 400 (135-24) for $182.50 for
happy snaps. The bidding had been dominated by one guy all week, who had
countered all other bids, bringing the bids up to $140, where it sat for
the last 48 hours prior to closing. The bidder thought he had it won.
The seller made two mistakes. First, the word "film" did not appear in
the title, so anyone looking for "film" would not see it. The second was
that he should have broken up the lot; few people want 120 rolls of
film. Consequently, with 40 seconds left in the auction, I bid $225,
which instantly trumped his (unseen) high bid of $180, without giving
him time to reconsider and up his bid. This was not a scam on my part,
just wily bidding. The film, which is almost gone, has been great. I
paid about $1.50 a roll for film which is available from New York for
$5+ a roll.

In most cases with Leica equipment on Ebay, it sells for about 90% of
market price, or doesn't sell. If it doesn't sell, you can contact the
seller off-line and sometimes strike a deal, as I have done. Either way,
you get a bargain. 

David W. Almy
Annapolis