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So as not to rat-hole a thread elsewhere -
I mentioned buying a piece of cookware at a good price on e-bay.
"" I decided to play the e-bay 'wait, bid low, lose a few and get lucky' game""
I read and hear a lot of negative comments about e-bay but I've learned a few things about it.
First, it's an auction and it's easy to get 'auction fever', where you bid more and more than you wanted to. I suspect it's psychological, a need to 'win'. "That s-o-b ain't getting my knife!"
Now, there are times when a unique item comes up, like a rare bow. If you really want it, it's something you've been looking for a long time, then go for it. Bid what it takes to win.
BUT, if you look at e-bay another way, it's just bargain shopping for good stuff cheap.
I wanted a -good- paring knife. Wusthof or Henckels, German steel. The forged models with the heavy tang. I did -not- want to pay $40 + for one. So I did a search for them on e-bay. Then sorted the results by price, lowest first. A lot of items start at very low prices, like $.99
I bid 5 bucks on several, and lost every time. I bid ten bucks on several more, lost all those.
So what? They come up all the time. The key to bargain hunting is the same as stand hunting for deer - patience. I bid 15 bucks on a few more. Finally won one. About $19 to my door for a $45 knife. Paid about the same for a chef's knife, too ;-)
I've bought used clothes the same way. $12 for a $35 pair of work pants. $30 for a $90 Pendleton wool shirt. The key is to remember that if you lose one, another is coming along.
So, last week, after losing several auctions, I won a great bargain on a top-shelf item. About half price, saved over $100.
E-bay is great if you have the patience to learn the game and play it.
I mentioned buying a piece of cookware at a good price on e-bay.
"" I decided to play the e-bay 'wait, bid low, lose a few and get lucky' game""
I read and hear a lot of negative comments about e-bay but I've learned a few things about it.
First, it's an auction and it's easy to get 'auction fever', where you bid more and more than you wanted to. I suspect it's psychological, a need to 'win'. "That s-o-b ain't getting my knife!"
Now, there are times when a unique item comes up, like a rare bow. If you really want it, it's something you've been looking for a long time, then go for it. Bid what it takes to win.
BUT, if you look at e-bay another way, it's just bargain shopping for good stuff cheap.
I wanted a -good- paring knife. Wusthof or Henckels, German steel. The forged models with the heavy tang. I did -not- want to pay $40 + for one. So I did a search for them on e-bay. Then sorted the results by price, lowest first. A lot of items start at very low prices, like $.99
I bid 5 bucks on several, and lost every time. I bid ten bucks on several more, lost all those.
So what? They come up all the time. The key to bargain hunting is the same as stand hunting for deer - patience. I bid 15 bucks on a few more. Finally won one. About $19 to my door for a $45 knife. Paid about the same for a chef's knife, too ;-)
I've bought used clothes the same way. $12 for a $35 pair of work pants. $30 for a $90 Pendleton wool shirt. The key is to remember that if you lose one, another is coming along.
So, last week, after losing several auctions, I won a great bargain on a top-shelf item. About half price, saved over $100.
E-bay is great if you have the patience to learn the game and play it.