Ebay Bitching! Need to vent? Vent away!

I'm proud to say I've only won auctions by just throwing WAY too much danm money at it. That beats a snipe all the time. It wouldn't be any fun if I let a program do it for me. I know once in a while I've had to watch an auction for the last few minutes and continually hit the refresh button until the bitter end!

On 2005-01-27 16:38, Chub wrote:
...rub it in, but all of you had a chance to bid on that Mauna Loa drum mug. ... Totally fair and legit.

Yeah?
I saw an auction that had 4 days & 20+ hours remaining. I also saw that there was NO buy-it-now option. What did this tell me? that I had time to talk it over with the wife (who owns 1/2 my wallet) before making a bid... or so I thought. I knew this mug would be a high priced auction so I knew I had to get the Mrs. involved or I'd be sleeping on the couch for a week.

It seems to me that you get alot of crap from people if you retract a bid; why should changing the rules of an auction 1/2 way thru be any different???

just curious

-Z

On 2005-01-27 13:25, ErichTroudt wrote:
If I'm not mistaken, a "Buy it now" can only be added to an auction if there are no bids and it has more than 12 hours left before closing. Many people here are quoted as saying "wait till the last minute to bid", yet don't like it if the buyer adds a "buy it now" during the auction. Can't have it both ways.

Someone closing an auction early because they are contacted by a buyer to sell it privately is wrong. Its wrong that the seller does it, it wrong the the buyer does it. Once again, people here complain, but I'd be willing to bet over half the people on this board have done it, either as a seller or buyer.

People complain about Ebay in general, yet they seem to forget that most of us would never even have an opportunity to see some of these mugs no less have an opportunity to buy them without ebay.

Most of us have learned something from ebay. We learned the names of mugs, seen rare pieces, and discovered things that we didn't know existed. We learned the market value of our collection.

People complaining about others spending $100+ on mugs needs to stop. These people have the money and the desire to fill their collection. I can't hate them for that. I'm sure they work hard for their money, have goals, and desires just like the rest of us. Complaining about them is jealously. Sometimes I've noticed when a mug sells for crazy money, a few more show up directly after. People that figure, "hey, I like that mug, but I'll take 200+ for it". In other words, sometimes high priced mugs cause a few more to be available.

Ebay has some problems, and people will always do underhanded things in any business. All you can do is bid hope you get it, and treat others as you would like to be treated.

Amen brother, amen.

Couple things:

1. Why is that damned Hawaiian Room mug so rare? I picked mine up about 8 years ago (along with another Hawaiian Room mug) for under $10 all the way out here in Fullerton, CA.

2. Here's my ebay policy - Bid the amount you can afford and walk away. If you don't win the auction, tough tittie. There will be another one up for bid eventually.

I remember the days when you could get (what we all now know to be) rare mugs on ebay for a few bucks. Those days are long gone. So we have to deal with it. I personally think it's great that these mugs are going for so much. Now I not only get great satisfaction from displaying, rearanging and gazing at my collection, I also know that I could retire if I ever decided to sell them off - which I don't think I'd ever do. There's my 2 cents...

Tiki Mugs, Vintage, Tiki Bars, Carved Tiki Poles, Apparel and more!
Everything Tiki at: http://www.bartiki.com

[ Edited by: Tiki Matt on 2005-01-27 21:09 ]

On 2005-01-27 21:06, Tiki Matt wrote:
I also know that I could retire if I ever decided to sell them off - which I don't think I'd ever do. There's my 2 cents...

Right now believing you'll be able to retire by selling tiki mugs is wishful thinking... sure tiki items are hot right now but as a solid investment they have yet to prove their true value...wait 10 years from now and aside from the fact that they'll be 50-60 years old, will their significance or desirability by antique buyers as a whole warrant the prices people are paying for them now? Something to think about...now let's trade something for that f-in' Hawaiian Room mug!! :wink:

JohnTiki

Aloha from the enchanted Pi Yi Grotto in exotic Bel Air Maryland!

[ Edited by: Johntiki on 2005-01-27 22:48 ]

Ten years ago I was a fanatic collector of old Navajo silver and turquoise jewelry. I could always find beautiful inexpensive items at flea markets and e-bay.

Then everything changed. Prices exploded. People got greedy. Reproductions flooded the market. It stopped being fun, so eventually I stopped collecting. I still enjoy the stuff I already have, but I don't feel compelled to get more of it.

[ Edited by: ookoo lady on 2005-01-28 08:53 ]

*tough tittie *

Coincidentally, my Mom wrestled professionally under that very name in the late 1950's. She toured the country and was big in the Rust Belt, met my Dad at caged match in Pittsburgh. Mom's dream was for me to follow in her footsteps. Alas, it was not to be... I have small lady feet, but a big heart... like a ham.

Re: Mayer and Seagal on eBay? Seagal actually uses his name as a part of his alias, I kid you not. He buys a myriad of items (no, no acting lessons that I know of). Mayer's big in vintage guitar effects and amps. That is how I came to know of them both. Mayer sells some stuff, as does Seagal. Johnny Ramone,(no experience with him/never knew his alias), he collected baseball stuff if I recall correctly.

Re: Big Tiki spenders. The stuff on eBay is just the tip o' the iceberg. The large transactions are done privately. Or so I am told as I have no personal knowledge or financial dealings in said matters. Nor have I received any compensation, financial or in kind, for any alleged transactions.

I heard that kohalacharms is actually several people. A small cartel of well-heeled collectors, a syndicate if you will, attempting to corner the market in high-end Tiki memorabilia. Conversely, I read a rumor that he is simply a patsy, a front for a Saudi Prince. Then again, I was also told he is one man, a techie (software, games and such) and very elusive. Partly a recluse, he is hardly ever seen outside his compound. No one actually deals with him personally, always through several minions he keeps on payroll. Keeps several Congressman in his back pocket and had a guy in the Bahamas killed just for leaning on his Aston Martin. No wait, I think that's Hanford?

Danlovestikis? No way, Jose. Not spilling them beans. I love my kneecaps, they're too important, especially with my little lady feet.

On 2005-01-27 22:16, johntiki wrote:

On 2005-01-27 21:06, Tiki Matt wrote:
I also know that I could retire if I ever decided to sell them off - which I don't think I'd ever do. There's my 2 cents...

Right now believing you'll be able to retire by selling tiki mugs is wishful thinking... sure tiki items are hot right now but as a solid investment they have yet to prove their true value...wait 10 years from now and aside from the fact that they'll be 50-60 years old, will their significance or desirability by antique buyers as a whole warrant the prices people are paying for them now? Something to think about...now let's trade something for that f-in' Hawaiian Room mug!! :wink:

---

---

JohnTiki

Aloha from the enchanted Pi Yi Grotto in exotic Bel Air Maryland!

[ Edited by: Johntiki on 2005-01-27 22:48 ]

The retirement statement was more tongue in cheek. You know John, from our corresponse in the past, that there aint no way in hell I'm trading that sucker! But I will make it a priority to find you one! If I do find one, I'll probably let it go for $160 ;-]

I just bought 4 Aloha Hut mugs for $2.50. I love Ebay. Adrian!!!you owe me 60 cents!!!!
Mahalo,
Al

al~ great score! it still happens from time to time. so does this mean your gunna be trading?

On 2005-01-26 17:40, Tangaroa wrote:

easy - go to their user information by clicking on their ebay handle & look under items currently bidding on..... obviously this only works if they don't snipe....

Oddly enough, this feature doesn't seem to exist in eBay.co.uk.
Is it a fairly recent development in eBay.com?

Trader Woody

I knew this mug would be a high priced auction so I knew I had to get the Mrs. involved or I'd be sleeping on the couch for a week.

Feelin' Zombified, wouldn't this be a small price to pay for the mug you REALLY want

[ Edited by: cheekytiki on 2005-01-28 01:36 ]

John, I'm sorry you didn't get your coveted mug and hope one comes your way soon.

I once bought a Nightmare Before Christmas pewter pendant of Zero the ghost dog on eBay from someone who turned out to be one of the animators of the movie. I just happened to have read an article about the film or would have never recognized the name. It was a weird coincidence at the time. So you just never know who you're buying from or selling to...

On 2005-01-28 01:35, cheekytiki wrote:

I knew this mug would be a high priced auction so I knew I had to get the Mrs. involved or I'd be sleeping on the couch for a week.

Feelin' Zombified, wouldn't this be a small price to pay for the mug you REALLY want

---

You've never met my wife---> :evil:

-Z

[ Edited by: Feelin' Zombified on 2005-01-28 06:59 ]

On 2005-01-27 23:05, Tiki Matt wrote:

If I do find one, I'll probably let it go for $160 ;-]

That's the kind of love I'm talking about - only $160? :wink:

On 2005-01-28 08:26, johntiki wrote:

On 2005-01-27 23:05, Tiki Matt wrote:

If I do find one, I'll probably let it go for $160 ;-]

That's the kind of love I'm talking about - only $160? :wink:

I'm here for ya man.

As an Ebay novice, just making my first bid now, what is Ensnipe, etc. and how are they better than Ebay's internal automatic bidding system?

Mahalo.

(PS - after reading all this I have doubled my automatic bid - just in case.)

On 2005-01-28 19:45, christiki295 wrote:
As an Ebay novice, just making my first bid now, what is Ensnipe, etc. and how are they better than Ebay's internal automatic bidding system?

Mahalo.

(PS - after reading all this I have doubled my automatic bid - just in case.)

The best way to bid on an auction is to bid the maximum amount you are willing to pay for the item (consider shipping costs) and bid that amount as late as possible. You can do this manually or you can use a sniping service. With the sniping service, a third party automated system will enter your bid with just seconds to go before the auction ends. That way you can go to bed or go out drinking etc.

Why is it important to bid your max amount? Well, you want to win right? You'd feel silly if you thought an item was worth $60 and you only bid $40 and lost.

Why is it important to wait until the last moment? 1) other bidder (we'll call him Kono) perhaps did not bid his max amount. By bidding early you have let him know he is losing and he has time to raise his bid. 2) Perhaps Kono did bid his max amount but by you outbidding him he gets emotional and in the heat of the moment bids beyond his comfort level in order to "win" (this happens all the time). You lose, he wins but might have buyer's remorse and the perceived market value of the item is likely now elevated. 3) by outbidding Kono you have given him the curiousity to do some more research on this item since it may be worth more than he originally guessed. He may do a search of completed ebay auctions on this item and rationally decide to raise his max amount. 4) By bidding at the last moment you prevent yourself from going #2 and getting emotional and bidding beyond your comfort level for the item. I've fallen prey to the latter scenario myself, especially if you are being beat by someone that beats you often (like Woody with Sooprised). You start feeling like "I'm gonna beat that #$&! no matter what it takes!" and then you spend more than you should have.

I've never used a sniping service, I do it manually, but I probably should. Doing it manually keeps you tied to the computer.

Sniping services work in conjunction with ebay's automated bidding. Once the sniping service enters your bid then ebay's bidding system kicks in, though with very little time left for it to work.

Another way to help prevent sellers from ending auctions early - without tipping your hand that you're interested in it to other bidders - is to "watch" the item. Recently (within the last few months) eBay has added a feature for sellers that keeps count of the number of potential bidders "watching" an item. Sellers know that no matter how long the auction runs, there's a good chance there will be a flurry of bids within the last few minutes/seconds. A seller is less likely to end an auction early if he sees that there are a number of "watchers" - folks who may be waiting to bid at the end. No one sees this info but the seller, so you're not giving away anything to other bidders, and if you enter your snipe bid early, you don't have to keep returning to view the item over and over - something that does tip off your hand to other bidders because it increases the visible counter total!

Just a couple of tips from the Good Doctor, an eBay buyer & seller since 1999... :wink:

I wish Ebay would do like a real auction and keep the bidding going until it stops.
On Yahoo! Auctions a last second bid adds 5 minutes to the auctions end time. It does not end until it goes 5 minutes with out a bid.

The higher things sell for the more money Ebay makes. I am surprised they have not added this feature.

Signed up for, and used, esnipe today. I love it! Takes away all the worry. You put your bid in and just walk away and go do something better than checking the computer every so often.

I almost feel like this is a more fair way to ebay. No one can stalk your bids, jack your amount up out of spite or as a shill, and you don't get all worked up about the auction. I'm sold. Why the hell did I wait so long? They have a two week free trial period. Trader Woody, you've got to try the esnipe.

JohnTiki

Aloha from the enchanted Pi Yi Grotto in exotic Bel Air Maryland!

[ Edited by: johntiki on 2005-02-21 05:24 ]

[ Edited by: johntiki on 2005-02-21 19:20 ]

[ Edited by: Mai Tai on 2005-02-22 20:57 ]

Hmmm...I don't know why but maxifac AKA fuggedaboutit has changed his or her name yet again. Be on the lookout for "tikirecon."

http://contact.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ReturnUserIdHistory&requested=tikirecon

Why all the skullduggery?

[ Edited by: filslash 2008-09-13 12:04 ]

Hey John,

I'm sure you are already probably aware, but there is another one of those mugs on ebay right now. Current bid is $47 with two days left.

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2001&item=3959525026&rd=1

Damnit to hell - lost another Hawaiian Room mug to another Ebay "highroller"! Oh well...life goes on. Now I am convinced that I will find one of these locally for $2.00 at a yard sale or junk store - I really wanted this mug but at the end of the auction I found myself breathing a sigh of relief that I didn't win. With my luck I'd plop down close to $200 for this mug and find one in the wild the next day. Sure it might take me a couple years but if it's meant to be it'll happen one day.

Hey John, Sorry you didn't get that one either. A buddy of mine and I were out hitting a ton of antique malls today. I bought a couple of cheap mugs but no hawaiian room mugs. If I would have found one it would have been in the mail for you. Those ebay prices are unreal. The only other cool thing I found was a real cool copper colored center door know with the cool star patterned backing plate. New in the box. Always loved the look of a center mounted knob on the front door. I will keep my eye out for you. We are real close so there is a good chance that there is one around here. Later, Scott

Well I too have had my hinny spanked by kohalacharms. I was bidding on this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7303860006&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT

kohalacharms Mar-03-05 18:44:52 PST
dr_tongues_toys Mar-03-05 18:44:28 PST
tikinomad Mar-03-05 18:43:02 PST
tikinomad Mar-03-05 18:42:33 PST
unkle_john Mar-01-05 14:07:39 PST

I thought it was too easy a prize. I wonder if he used a snipe or happen to be watching.
Maybe I should get it as well.

I'm not terrribly mad, just upset. Though I don't find it honorable to accept defeat in this game, I do find it amusing that I may have cracked the enigma of bidding on mis-labeled items. Kohalacharms, if you only lurk these boards, please leave the next shrunken head mug for me.

Hey johntiki, are you still looking for this mug? I've got one for you if you want it. I need your address so I can send it to you.

Ookoo Lady

[ Edited by: ookoo lady on 2005-03-09 21:25 ]

If John doesn'twant it...Unga will.

Unkle John....it looks like two others outbid you before Koalacharms did...your just adding to the hate here...

I just bought that same exact mug (but I think mine is nicer. :wink: ) for like 12 bucks on eBay...just keep digging and you will find one!

Have faith man! and hate on me for finding it for less than your maximum bid. :wink:

Ookoolady - I am speechless.......

I e-mailed & PMed you!

Classy move

Yeah, now that is true Aloha Spirit! Long Live Tiki Central! Bring the Love back. :)

I'm actually sitting here on the verge of tears... I'm still speechless......

Cool Manchu,
I'm not spreading hate, just pointing out that KC got it and not me. He and I are cool in my book.

Sorry for any false acusations...:)

That's ok, you're cool in my book too. Heck everyone is. We are all collectors here, no matter how much we are willing to pay for our habit.

I think alnshely said it best---Classy move ookoo lady!
Glad you got your mug johntiki. I know it mean so much to you!

ookoo lady is what TC is all about :drink: :drink: :drink:

I feel like the Fairy Godmother of Tiki right now! All you have to do is tell me what you want, and if you are worthy, I will grant your wish!

(This offer void where prohibited)

Ookoo you are not only the fairy godmother of tiki you are obviously one, if not the nicest person I've ever met! This whole experience has renewed my faith in the goodness of man and the kindness of others...I'm being completely serious. I know we all say that Tiki Central is like family but this just proved to me what a real family we do in fact have! I'm a changed man, ala Ebenezer Scrooge on Christmas morning, and I will do my best to "pay back" this warm-hearted gesture of giving...

Lots of love,

JohnTiki

Aloha from the enchanted Pi Yi Grotto in exotic Bel Air Maryland!

[ Edited by: johntiki on 2005-03-10 08:07 ]

I'm here to testify, I benefited similarly from another kindly TC member some time ago. Without getting into details, it was just really great to experience that kind of thoughtfulness from someone I didn't know beforehand. Here on TC, where a stranger is a friend!

Isn't it nice that a "venting" thread would change course in this way?

-Randy

After receiving this wonderful gift I contemplated sending Kohalacharms and Edgeoftexas thank you notes for beating me on those auctions...:) Now my mug collection seems complete...anything else will just be icing on the cake!

this is in reply to the mad ebayer that lost his mug,i am not sure which mug you are looking for but i found one sitting on a shelf in a barn that i will be listing on ebay,it is a small mug looks like a face with earrings,and says hawaiian room emerson hotel nest to the handle on the bottom,if this happens to be the mug you are looking for i would rather see you have it than some knucklehead like you said,my ebay name is cheap_items4u go check it out

Ookoo Lady gets my vote for nicest TC person.

Umeone of the kahiki family lost a bid to the "maxi bear" It was a lamp made by her mother. I told her to e-mail The bear, beg for mercy. The anwser was no. The Grinch lives. I have been told by people who have met the bear that he is a nice guy. TIKI PIGS SUCK!