#1: I don't know who is out bidding me on eBay but I'm pretty sure it is someone on this forum and I want you to knock it off. Thanks in advance. #2: Is there anyone on Heritage Auctions who isn't using her dad's credit card? #3: Here is an example of an eBay item that I no longer read because I don't deserve to have a coin of this caliber in my collection. The only thing missing from this description is the word 'Rare', which I've seen several times on 1922 Peace Dollars. (I don't know what PQ is, at this point I assume it is shorthand for a Latin phrase meaning "Handled by God".) #4: This is what the final 10 seconds of an eBay auction feels like to me:
I can help with #1: just bid on items that I sell and then I won’t be able to outbid you! In all seriousness though, you must be bidding on popular items that have a lot of activity, the market prices are higher than you thought, some auctions have people that are willing to win just to win, or some shill bidding is taking place. In my opinion it is a combination of all of those.
Have you ever just wanted to bid "one billion dollars" on something worth $10 just to shut everyone else down?
Also for Heritage, per their terms, the House is allowed to bid on items. This could be to buy for their own inventory or to bump certain items up to an invisible reserve. In general, I haven’t been winning too many auctions either, but that is in part due to not finding the right coins that I would be willing to bid up. Keep searching and bidding and you’ll eventually get back on the winning side!
The thought has crossed my mind, but I would be scared that some other person will bid 999 million at the same time. And I don’t know how I would gather enough to ever pay that off...
I'm not in a bad place right now. I'm just trying to get together 20-30 Peace Dollars so I have examples from which I can learn some of the basics of grading. Most of these are on the very low end with my most expensive one being a 1926-S (MS63) at Heritage (1/3 of the cost was fees to Heritage). I don't need to spend a great deal of money to learn how to grade these things. I've two ~$40.00 examples and all others have been $30.00 or less. I've found if you shop around a bit you can find really reasonable local coin dealers and some really decent people on eBay.
eBay never really leaves me happy: 1: If I lose the bid I feel ripped off - because I let a true treasure escape. 2: If I win the bid I feel ripped off - because I must have overpaid. I don't feel good about a purchase unless the dealer has to raise money to keep the lights on by selling internal organs. A dealer with one kidney, that's the guy who is going to give you a good deal.
I have had that feeling too, especially on items that don’t come up for sale too often. However, for items with a larger sales history, one can be more confident in their bidding. Throw out the outliers (way too high and way too low) and take an average. If you are near that average and the coin looks at least average for the grade, you are doing ok. Also, occasionally try to sell your items (pick the ones that you are willing to let go). If you can at least come close to your initial price (I.e. not take a 25-50% hit), then the prices you are paying are likely fine.
I'm so glad the internet allows us to confront each other beyond arm's reach . . . For just once, I hope it's my daughter you're talking about. Actually, I think you mean "Unique" instead of "Rare" So tell us then . . . which one are you? I think the emphasis is on the wrong word . . . it should be "Handled, by God".
it's called supply and demand. someone else's demand was greater than yours. sometimes you just have to pay more for a coin on Ebay. you are better off buying at a coin show.
I thought bidding on your own items (Heritage) is considered conflict of interest and shill bids the price higher, since they are getting the commission. That doesn't sound very ethical.
I used to buy on Heritage at least once a month maybe 2-3 coins total a month. Haven't won a bid in ages there though. I really do feel their high buyer's premium is going to cost them business moving forward either from losing buyers like myself or from consignors going elsewhere. Far and away my favorite place to buy now is Great Collections. The 7.5-10% fee difference makes a world of a difference and they have way more variety of the type of coins I'm after anyways. Actually sent my first batch of coins in for them to sell, 11 total of some duplicates I have. Hoping for a good selling experience as well. As for ebay, you should only be bidding with 10 seconds left. There's zero reason to bid before that. Put in your max at the 10 second mark and if you win great, if not then on to the next one.
+1 It's called sniping, and the only way to bid on eBay (or GC for that matter), never show your your hand earlier.. PQ stands for "Premium Quality" by the way, (whatever that is worth). I admire your quest to learn grading with Peace Dollars, it's how I learned and a very tough series for many to grade due to the various strike qualities of these big silver dollars by the different mints over the years. One of my favorite series. I would stick to certified coins from the big three TPG's (even they get it wrong sometimes), they will be easier to move later on as you learn and upgrade. Most of the raw coins on eBay "found in Grandma's drawer" are doctored in one way or another, you really have to be careful and know what you're looking at. Practising coin photography is also a priceless education in this online coin world, both buying and selling.. Ron
Unless somethings changed it’s in the terms everyone agrees too that they reserve the right to do so. It’s never been a secret they reserve that right Small consignors yes, but the big ones they mainly deal with negotiate parts of the fee away anyway. For them it actually gives them more leeway for the consignore to feel they’re getting a better deal getting more above the hammer.
I guess anyone who knows at least a little about bidding on coins knows that the best thing to do is to use a Sniper, set up your top bid then watch what happens. I have to chuckle a little about @Gregg 's example of the Peace Dollar. I have several '22-Ds, all of them at least as nice as that one, and the last two of mine won using my sniper for < $20 each... one even included shipping. My point is that most shill bidding that might be going on is eliminated because there's no point in turning away potential bidders who think twice about an item with a bid already approaching his imagined high. Existing bids call attention to an item that might be overlooked, otherwise, and that will also lessen your own chances of getting something at a bargain price. I always go first to the <Newly Listed> format for the coin I might be looking for. Then I eliminate the <Buy It Now> items and start there. Any coins that have been up for more than 24 hours but have not received a bid are either overpriced for a starting bid or not meet standards for condition. Selecting the best few for my watch list is next, then I go to the <Buy It Now> items and eliminate those above the price I'm willing to pay. I win about 25% of the auctions I bid on, and that tells me that there are others who operate in a similar fashion. Sometimes I get surprised when my sniper tells me that the existing bid was already higher than my snipe. I remember an instance where I set the snipe at $150 on a nice 1872 IHC that sold for more than $400. I don't always get them right.
My current bid with 5 days left. BTW, Heritage charges $7.95 for shipping on top of the $19.00 service fee. Apparently it costs 2X the amount to ship something from Texas that it does from everywhere else in the United States.
Well, not a billion, but in my vinyl record collecting days I often bid outlandishly on really rare ones, knowing that the sanest high bidders were often timid enough. Coin collectors are a different breed, though, and might have oddball proxies well beyond the normal range.
