Ebay silly bidding

funandtrains · Post by **funandtrains** » Mon Feb 24, 2014 7:29 pm

Anything with SM32 and Roundhouse in the title seems to draw in the fools begging to be parted from their money no matter how grotty it looks. I've bid on many but only won one Roundhouse and that was a real bargain being a little used Minnie with full cab and all the extras for just under £300 but that 45mm gauge! I also got an unfired Mortimer for £450 but bought a real dog of a kit built Regner 0-6-0 for £750 so win some loose some. I can see why someone might want to pay a lot for a loco that is quite rare but one still in production makes no sense at all when you can buy one new with a warrantee.

laalratty · Post by **laalratty** » Mon Feb 24, 2014 8:44 pm

Ebay is a strange place at the best of times. The only time I've used my account has been to buy a 5 inch gauge Ride on Railways Trojan for £610 buy it now, and to this day I don't understand how it hadn't been snapped up by someone else before me. The loco was in full working order, came with batteries (not included for new ones) and yet listed for about half the price of a new one......

vjoneslong5040 · Post by **vjoneslong5040** » Tue Feb 25, 2014 7:48 am

I haven't won anything on ebay for ages. When I first started I managed to pick up alot of rolling stock ready to run for about the same as the price of the kits, which was enough to get me going. Lately I've been outbid every time I have bidded for carriages and wagons, with the price usually tripling in the last 20 seconds or so. I still get some of my components off there, but if you want to find anything you have to really look obscure and then your very lucky. Horses for courses I guess...

Speaking of engines my last one was a Caradoc from P'boro. £465,

At first I couldn't get it to inject gas or light, but having cleaned out the burner I found it had a full gas tank. £465 for a engine and free gas, bargin! She ran as sweet as a sewing machine as well.

andymctractor · Post by **andymctractor** » Tue Feb 25, 2014 6:19 pm

I won't bore you all with why I don't buy much from e-bay anymore. When i did buy a bit was when I was an 009 modeller and needed n gauge loco chassis. I used to put silly low bids on lots of locos and while I rarely 'won' one, those that I did win were mostly very good deals.
Can't do that with 16mm as what is for sale is either, not what I would buy anyway or is already bid higher than I would be willing to pay. I think that some bidders of 16mm/ft stuff don't take into account some of the very scary postage rates, after all, if you can't collect then this is part of the price.

pauly · Post by **pauly** » Tue Feb 25, 2014 7:37 pm

Something else I think should be taken into consideration is how many more of the more elder e members of this hobby have gained regular access to the Internet and have become generally more Internet savvy, evened just 5 years ago I spoke to plenty of elderly and even merely middle aged gents in this hobby who just didnt use the utilise the Internet for the hobby at all.

cncmodeller · Post by **cncmodeller** » Tue Feb 25, 2014 8:05 pm

Still well behind on the Internet front compared to other hobbies i.e model kits, even the small manufacturers all use websites with paypal online ordering etc.

Big Jim · Post by **Big Jim** » Sat Mar 01, 2014 10:17 pm

I have a small ebay shop. I mainly sell as new OO gauge locos plus the occasional oddball. In the past I sold used Jaguar spares.
I really do not like using ebay but it does have its uses. I can sell stuff from the comfort of my armchair and don't have to pedal my wares around swapmeets.
I find ebay expensive and getting more and more loaded in the buyers favour.
There are some very, very dodgy traders out there and also some incredibly unscrupulous buyers.
I try and list all my stuff fairly and well priced as possible and as far as I am concerned once an item is sold, it is sold what ever price the auction has reached.
Most of my stuff is sold on a buy it now basis, I can set what I consider is a fair price and if some one wants it they can buy it or make a sensible offer.
Some auctions go completely mental. I have seen second hand items go for more than the cost new.
I have very little protection if a customer says that an item has not arrived (even if a signature has been given on delivery) and I have had stuff returned to me as broken when it was not the item I sent out.
Basically you pays yer money etc.
If you have a problem with a seller then ebays customer services are very helpful as a seller you don't have to have many complaints before you are struck off.

vjoneslong5040 · Post by **vjoneslong5040** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:43 am

Well now I have seen everything. A non working, Roundhouse Pooter, for £1,470. How much for a working one then?

ace · Post by **ace** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 12:47 pm

vjoneslong5040:97301 wrote:Well now I have seen everything. A non working, Roundhouse Pooter, for £1,470. How much for a working one then?

Tell me about it, my jaw dropped when it went over £1k!

vjoneslong5040 · Post by **vjoneslong5040** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 2:08 pm

ace:97303 wrote:
vjoneslong5040:97301 wrote:Well now I have seen everything. A non working, Roundhouse Pooter, for £1,470. How much for a working one then?
Tell me about it, my jaw dropped when it went over £1k!

I've just looked it up. That sold for £395 on the Station Road Steam website in March 2012. Thats just insane!

pauly · Post by **pauly** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 2:20 pm

vjoneslong5040:97301 wrote:Well now I have seen everything. A non working, Roundhouse Pooter, for £1,470. How much for a working one then?

that worn out Pooter?!

Bloody hell, pure insanity that is!

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 6:29 pm

You could probably have one made for that much. WITH a whistle.

bazzer42 · Post by **bazzer42** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 6:51 pm

It was a heritage model presumably, not that I would know one if it bit me. I assume the next highest bidder was only a tenner behind so it had value to more than one individual.

Big Jim · Post by **Big Jim** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 6:54 pm

Well they do say a fool and his money are soon parted, I wonder if post will appear on this site soon saying
"I am new to Garden Railways and I have just bought a loco in need of a little work............"

Insanity, but that is how auctions can be sometimes. If there are a few people out there with a Pooter shaped hole in their lives then good luck to the seller.

However the cynical side of me thinks when somthing goes bonkers on ebay "Shill bidding?"

Apologies to anyone reading this who may have sold the aformentioned Pooter completly legit and above board and now can't belive his luck as he laughs his way to the bank.

funandtrains · Post by **funandtrains** » Wed Mar 05, 2014 1:01 pm

The insanity continues as an old Lady Anne just sold for £1070. Although well kept there looked like it had been run a lot so my the time it was serviced it would cost as much or more than a new one with better cylinders!

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Wed Mar 05, 2014 2:47 pm

Well with used things in general, thanks to collectors and the internet, there aren't as many good deals to be had anymore anyway. I remember last year I was visiting the United States and as my father and I were driving through a small town I spotted a music store, exactly the kind of place you'd expect to find all kinds of interesting used instruments. It was the kind of town you don't see much in Canada, with old houses and probably the same families living on the same streets for hundreds of years. Just the sort of place you'd want to poke your head into an antique shop or a used musical instrument shop. Anyway there were lots of interesting old instruments, but they were priced very high and I have no doubt they were selling well at that price too, because of course now that everybody has the internet, everybody is perfectly aware of the maximum price they can get for their used goods. There are no more good deals to be had.

I guess if you factor in the fact that Roundhouse engines are quite simple and durable, and the fact that older ones are beginning to acquire a bit of a "collectors" appeal (unfortunately) AND the fact that you can get one more or less instantly if you win it on Ebay, rather than waiting for Roundhouse to build it, you can imagine someone being willing to pay almost the price of a new one. Especially if you're the kind of guy who likes to say things like "erm, yes, that is an original "Pooter", don't you know, quite rare indeed and in my opinion the older ones run better than the new rubbish, especially if you look after them the way I have done..."

lukejpetch · Post by **lukejpetch** » Mon Mar 17, 2014 7:20 pm

I was interested to see the two Cackler on there in the last few months go for over double what I paid for mine, unbelievable what people are willing to pay... I guess it's smashing for the seller! :-)

cncmodeller · Post by **cncmodeller** » Tue Mar 18, 2014 9:10 am

What makes me laugh is how the bidding in the early stages is so high with about 6 days to go, I can't wrap my brain around this! Is it because they can't keep an eye on it and can't bid later? The ones that are determined to win it are just pushing up the final figure for themselves.

bazzer42 · Post by **bazzer42** » Tue Mar 18, 2014 12:02 pm

funandtrains:97357 wrote:The insanity continues as an old Lady Anne just sold for £1070. Although well kept there looked like it had been run a lot so my the time it was serviced it would cost as much or more than a new one with better cylinders!

I have to agree on the madness, I've recently won a beautiful r/c Lady Anne for £700 with chuffer, safety valve cover and additional valve gear (plus bucket, driver and two spare receivers)! Each to their own.

funandtrains · Post by **funandtrains** » Tue Mar 18, 2014 1:42 pm

cncmodeller:97937 wrote:What makes me laugh is how the bidding in the early stages is so high with about 6 days to go, I can't wrap my brain around this! Is it because they can't keep an eye on it and can't bid later? The ones that are determined to win it are just pushing up the final figure for themselves.

I'm not sure I agree with you, sometimes an early high bid can scare away last minutes bidders or stop the seller from selling it off ebay before the end of auction which seems to happen a lot with 16mm locos.
If someone is willing to pay over the odds they will no matter what.

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