Things that make you wanna puke

ouch.
DONT click on the bid history if you have a weak stomach.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2074305642
AAARRGGHH!!!
I wonder if this item really broke or the seller got one of those "stop the auction for fat cash" emails....

one of the ones on my check list...DAM! someone offered them money no dought! I hate it when I miss out on something like that.

"UglyIndianFaceMugDesignBySteveCraneAssociates"

How the heck did you guys find this thing? nder a "Steve Crane" general search I am presuming? C'est La Vie! I have had this happen to me so many times, lost track of how many.

Funny, no on ever offers me a whole bunch of dollars to end one of my auctions. Then again, I would not be selling this "headhunter" mug on ebay.

Barnacles!
midnite :drink:

I am confused - as a seller, if someone offered me 100 bucks to stop the auction, I would then know that they were willing to pay at least 100 bucks, which means others would pay possibly more - so why on earth would I stop the auction?

I don't understand the logic. Am I missing something? (AGAIN?) Can someone please explaing what possible benefit they would get to end the auction early?

tikifish wrote: they were willing to pay at least 100 bucks, which means others would pay possibly more -

"possibly"

It takes two to get that bid up to $100, though. Just a few days ago a "Sufferin B" went for $288, without that second place bidder the mug goes for around $150. Sure, one peson was willing to pay $288+, but only if someone else is there to bump it up. So you take your chances, $100 now...or maybe another bidder with eqaully big pockets come a callin'.

I make those decisons all the time when I sell mugs outside of Ebay..."hmm, could I get "$$$" more for this on Ebay?"

I recall a college student selling the three Crane mugs on Ebay, she found them at a local thrift shop. She ended the auction for this particular mug (headhunter) when someone offered her $200+.

Who knows, maybe the mug here was really dropped. Heck, I'd pay $10 for the pieces. The I'd rebuild him, I have the money, I have the technology!

Six Million Dollar Tiki Mug

I always suspect foul play.
Possibly as a result of watching too much scooby doo as a kid.
I have heard from more than a few people that they get stuff all the time by making offers like that.
I dont know if a "fat cash" offer is always involved, but in this case the guy didnt know anything about that mug, much less that it was 'tiki' or even desirable.
If you sent him an email with some lame sob story, like your friend used to have one, you it broke & you really want to replace it or your uncle was steve crane & it's a family thing, or something like that.
Fast cash, coupled with the fact that you wouldnt need to pay the final auction fee, might be enough motivation for some sellers to end the auction early.

[ Edited by: bigbadtikidaddy on 2002-11-26 13:45 ]

I E-mailed the seller and told him what he had. I said "they go for hundreds". I bet he relists.
Mahalo,
Al

I always suspect foul play. Possibly as a result of watching too much scooby doo as a kid. I have heard from more than a few people that they get stuff all the time by making offers like that.

Those darn kids!

I dare say it is getting hard to find things on the cheap, especially on Ebay. The competition heats up for the better items. I could always try and find some bargains around The City here...yeah, San Francsico and low-priced. Hand in hand!

Until further evidence is recoverd, this case shall be considered "accidental mug death". But, I have my suspicions.

Round up the usual suspects!
midnite

It might be true. I have seen things that had a reserve or say $50, and I wanted to pay that much. But the bid starts at $5 and I bid $100 and now the bid is $5. How do you get it up to the reserve? And once there is a bid, you can't put a reserve on it.

But then, I don't understand a reserve. Why not start the auction at your resrve price? Unless you have no real interest in selling and are just feeling out Ebay for a value?

On 2002-11-26 14:36, Swanky wrote:
But then, I don't understand a reserve. Why not start the auction at your resrve price?

I have found that by setting a reserve and starting the bidding at say 99 cents...it starts the ball rolling.

To me, it seems that a higher starting price will scare off some people.

[How do you get it up to the reserve? And once there is a bid, you can't put a reserve on it.

If one places a bid of say $100 on an item with a $50 reserve and opening bid of $5, the Ebay system will "mark up" your bid to reach the reserve. If one bid only $40, then the system will make your current bid just at the opening, namely $5.

Reserves are guarantees the item will get a certain price or not sell, but so will an opening bid of the same level. Why have a $100 reserve and an opening less than that? Simple psychology of auctions...get people bidding, some fever among the bidders.

Start the bidding too high, many bidders will pass your item right by. It's a fine line between getting the action rolling and risking a real low selling price. Then agan, that's the basic premise of most auctions...maybe you can get a deal!

I have been raising the opening bids on my better mugs, and doing away with reserves almost entirely. The Ebay price structure for insertion fee makes $9.99 popular, but sometimes that amount is too low for a sale. Plus, my really rare items are sold outside of Ebay.

midnite

It might have happened again last night on these Steve Crane mugs!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=743353556

Bummer, huh...

Looks like it happened again:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=29460&item=743353556&rd=1

Oh well, seems the common practice these days. This one barely lasted 10 hours.

midnite

its back-
they probably just wanted to extend it or something

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=744121322

[ Edited by: fatuhiva on 2002-12-04 01:59 ]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=744598917

Here's another mysterious early ending. I feel like emailing the seller - hey, guess how much you woulda made if you left it ON?

This time I'm gonna lose my friggin lunch for sure!!!
I wasnt sharing with this one with the class until after the auction, but fair is fair, the auction ended early AGAIN!!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=14286&item=743637136&rd=1

I know I wasnt the only one watching this auction, but what the hell is going on?

I as shown this auction by a fellow TC'er. I was not going to "advertise" it as well, but was torn about bidding on it myself. Of course, I would have no chance of winning it.

Well, it wasn't me that got it. Not only does no on ever opffer me big $$$ to end my auctions, I have tried to get stuff as a bidder that way. I am usually told "No, thanks!"

I wonder what it is worth amongst Tiki collectors? ....my meager bid would have topped out way below going rate I suppose.

midnite

[ Edited by: midnite_tiki on 2002-12-06 16:53 ]

Ok. After reading all these posts about auctions ending early- here's how I see it...
If you want an item that much, you should probably put in a minimum bid of some kind on it when you first find it and not wait to only snipe at the end....especially if there are no bids at all on the item (I would still snipe at the end also) :)
If I was a seller who didn't know what my item was worth and there are no bids and then someone emails me a good offer, I'm gonna seriously consider ending the auction early and taking the offer. By putting in a minimum bid you are letting the seller know that at least one buyer is interested.
So by not putting in a bid earlier, you are taking a risk of not getting a chance at the item at all.....just my opinion- please, no stones :)

mahalo and 135 to you all!
Mike
http://www.tradervic.com
http://www.tikiroom.net

[ Edited by: TikiHula on 2002-12-06 17:10 ]

No "buy nows" and I don't have a whole lotta mugs in my collection. One of my most expensive buys was my Steve Crane warrior mug, for $65, a buy now. That is huge money for a mug IMHO. I knew that if I didn't snag it with "buy now" I wasn't going to best the usual Ebay suspects.

On people ending auctions early, I don't like it when it happens on things I want, yet normally I'd of had bupkiss chance actually winning the item. Now, what I'd like is someone saying to me, "Hey, on that Aloha Showroom mug...or the South Seas, etc... how 'bout $XXX to end it now?"

Midnite's Festivus Tiki Extravaganza

midnite

I think it is just plain sleazy to get your stuff that way.
Whatever happened to the days that you just sweated a bit & waited an auction out to the bitter end?
Now I'm wondering if I should have ever brought this subject up at all. This is happening so often that it makes me wonder if maybe we're not giving people ideas.
The weasly little scrub who got that mug may be one of us.

BBTD, I get the same feeling myself. The more we talk about it, the more it happens. I still cant figure out why the sellers do it though.

C'est la vie!

Jane

Um, yeah... Long time reader, first time poster.
I hear ya' it is very odd how so many auctions just... end.
But TikiHula does have a point that if ya' see a piece, it probably is a good idea to but a bid on it. Although, the seller can still come up with an excuse like, "My niece was playing with it and it broke..." if the price is right.

Ok, this is getting a bit ridiculous!

Midnite is Pissed at This!

I suppose the next one to go early:

Bird of Paradise

Stupid sellers...I am telling them what I would have bid.
midnite

edit: I am still REALLY pissed!

:x :evil: :x I need a :drink: !

[ Edited by: midnite_tiki on 2002-12-07 11:40 ]

So someone who wants that Bird of Paradise bowl better put a bid or two in on it fast!!

And I looked at the Ebay rules and there seems to be no reason why a seller can not end an auction early at any time- even if there are current bids on the item- all the bids will be canceled and void!! I don't think it was always this way, but that's their policy now...

I did my due diligence and bid on the hypno-chicken. Don't expect to win it, but hey, I'm just doing my part to keep Ebay fair!

Oh great, just swell!

Now I start a focockta bidding war on someone else's auction. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, my stuff sits there, the ugly red-headed stepchild of Tiki auctions.

No auctions ending early here!

The kicker, no bids on my Kahiki shakers, yet another set is bid to $27! Oh, those Kahiki shakers are "groovy"...now I understand. What I tell, what I tell ya...I get NO respect.

This keeps up, I am climbing a clocktower.

midnite

OK- Cap'n- there's your bid. I was gonna anyway!

-martin

it seems someone is out there going crazy with this annoying way of "winning" an item- I too was planning on bidding on the severed head. In fact, I emailed the seller and told them i most likely would have outbid whatever they sold it for and they should relist it- they have no obligation to that buyer as far as ebay is concerned.

I have an idea who it is, but i'm not naming names.

putting in bids early won't help you at all- they can just cancel them. the only thing you can do is email them and tell them not to close it early before someone else gets them to do it..

Awright, enough...I CAN'T take it anymore! It was ME, I did it, me me me....me. I had to. I was forced, you, they, them...ALL made me do it.

Years of scorn, ridicule and abuse. Never being picked for dodgeball, the inumerable wedgies (many atomic)...it all got to me. Then it only got worse with my entry into Tiki collecting.

So many flaunting their superior collections...the triple-digit mugs, the highbrow deep-pocket bids. Me, ME!...with a few old Hamburglar glasses and a sock puppet I called my "Lil' Sufferin' Bastard". I got the severed head mug...it's mine, all mine.

Bwa Ha HA HAAAAA!!! :lol:

I feel better now. Either confessing my crimes against "Tiki Spirit"...or the Ritalin is kicking in now. Who nows? Don't much care...I must go drink my grape Kool-Aid out of Ren Clark severd head Tiki mug. Yummy!

midnite

ps. Ok, it wasn't me...but THAT guy over there is awful suspicious. It's him, or the dude from Tucson...maybe Col Mustard. Never much trusted that cracker.

I finally got a reply from the seller regarding the headhunter mug that ended "mysteriously" early.
Here ya go:
"JON,
SORRY. I WAS SELLING THIS FOR SOMEONE ELSE AND HE GOT AN INDEPENDENT OFFER AND ASKED ME TO CLOSE THE AUCTION EARLY.
SORRY ABOUT THAT.
DENISE"
(Sorry about the caps, I just did a cut-n-paste.)
anyhow, suspicions confirmed.
hell, at least she was honest.

yeah i got same reply-

i told her that the guy should have left it alone, as it would have exploded. If you reply the same, i bet we see that thing up there again, as she will change her mind- let's outmanipulate the backroom bidder..

Don't bother...the money's already been sent...

Zorro pulls off his mask... :)

Re: "Zorro pulls off his mask... "

Who was that masked man?

You mean it wasn't me that got the Ren Clark mug? Then why did I send those folks $20, or was that the Hare Krishna people, there was one? Where are my meds? Crap...now I gotta go find my sock puppet, put it back on the mantle...right where the severed head was going.

Man this blows...it was gonna be my Festivus gift to myself. Did someone say Festivus? Yes, it was you idiot, you said Festivus. Me? Oh...thanks!, sometimes the voices in my head are so helpful.

Airing the Grievance:

People who snag neat crap that I was eventually going to be outbid on anyway !

midnite

Festivus Tiki

So TikiHula, how much money was sent...?

[ Edited by: TikiManiac on 2002-12-09 16:01 ]

Midnite: "People who snag neat crap that I was eventually going to be outbid on anyway!"
Same goes for you and your Islander Vicious Virgin mug :)

Tikimaniac: After I get the mug I'll tell you how much I paid...

sounds like a scrub maneuver in my book

dude, you should've kept your mask on as far as I'm concerned.
By revealing yourself is that supposed to make it ok?
I still say that was a totally ass maneuver.
I cant be the only who thinks so.
You are participating in an ugly trend that aces out honest people who play fair.
Enjoy your totally hollow victory.

Bad Mana!

[ Edited by: tikigreg on 2002-12-12 15:16 ]

Hey, just because you say that what I did wasn't fair doesn't mean I see it that way. I, like many other people, see nothing wrong with emailing offers to sellers...to me there's no difference between that and a 'buy it now' option. You're entitled to your opinion- but so am I.

I've been searching for this mug for a long time and am very happy to finally have it in my collection. I'll enjoy it every day for the rest of my life.....no guilty feelings here.

The differance is, Ebay does not allow it. (It is called Solicitation of an Offsite Sale), You can get temporary suspension, or indefinite suspension for just asking a seller to end the auction early. So one day you just might come across a seller who reports you. Or you might piss of the wrong bidder from TC and have them report you to ebay.
So maybe you don't want to post anymore about the items you won under the table. Just trying to be helpful !!!!!

Good point- I didn't realize that. Thanks for the info.

No problem at all. Ebay gets pissy when they lose there fee $$$.

Apparently there is alot you dont realize.

first cybersquatting, then busting my nuts and now this. You rule! One minute you're brimming with "tiki spirit" about how TC is all one big happy family, the next you're undermining your peers to get something you want before anyone else has a fair chance- the mug suits you, being such a cutthroat.

here's hoping the tiki mana busts that thing in the mail!

Oooo-eeeee! I can feel the love in here tonight...
The way I see it, not that it really matters, is that everyone on e-bay is taking a chance, buyers and sellers alike. If someone wants to end their auction early then they are risking losing potentially big $ from the fat cats. If someone wants to take a chance and try to make an offer early and make the scoop... so be it. I'm not saying it's right or wrong, I just don't think it's that big a deal. Of course I can say that because like midnight tiki, no one ever asks me to end my auctions early for a big payoff...:tiki:

I'd like to know exactly how you phrase your emails to the seller asking them to end early. If you say 'I'll give you 50 bucks for that thing now, or you can take your chances with the auction' I suppose that all's fair in love and war. I don't like it, but then again, I'm a sensitive gal who likes to play fair.

But If you say 'I'll give you 10 bucks to end it now cause I need it in time for my granny's birthday party at the old folks home oh how it wouold bring a tear to her eye even though it is just a worthless old mug' then you will surely burn in the flames of Pele!!!

Well this has become rather farcical. In that vein:

Tiki Mug Ultimate Challenge

TWO MEN ENTER....ONE MUG LEAVES

BE THERE! SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY...One night only! At the Cow Palace, doors open at 6 p.m. A wild assortment of rabid Tiki collectors come from all corners of the globe for the biggest prize in all Tikidom! It's the Ren Clark Severed Head Mug free-for-all fight to the death! Absolutely no holds barred, biting encouraged, bitch-slapping and insult spewing expected. A giant duel to the finish...culminating with the last two combatants taking it to the limit...in the notorious Tiki Dome!

Two men enter...one mug leaves.

SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY...Open up the gates of hell and shake hands with the devil! Be THERE!

Celebrity guest referee Rodney King will officiate. Special appearances by Danny Bonaduce, Liza Minelli, and Menudo featuring Ricky Martin!

"Can we...can we just....just, get along?"

The buyer wrote me back from the emails I sent to him about the bad, bad man selling on ebay. And I quote "Thanks!!! This guy is a piece of shit!!!!" end quote! Precise, poetic, and to the point. Has he responed back to any of the emails you guys have sent?