At 10:35 AM 12/30/2003 -0700, Gordon Ross wrote:
[snip]
>I am quizzical, my ebay tag is wildcalgary, I put a bid in on an OM 4T there
>is one day left in a seven day listing and I sit all alone, I don't get it
>after bidding on quite a few (I try not to be the overpayer type.) I know
>that the sniping comes at the end and am prepared for that but is there
>something I don't know here?
Well, I can only respond by trying to sum up why I might (or might not) bid on
such an item.
First, the seller is punching an enormous number of items through eB*y -- 466
as of this A.M. This tells me that, regardless of his/her
protestations/assurances to the contrary, he/she hasn't got much of a clue as
to the true state of the camera. When you're processing hundreds of items for
sale at once, each item is only going to get the most cursory of inspections,
if that. I've a neighbour who lives across the street who sells on eB*y
regularly, and he has trouble keeping up with a couple of dozen items at a
time. (No, he doesn't sell any cameras.)
Second, the actual paucity of the description confirms the lack of intimate
first-hand knowledge (to me, anyways -- others may disagree. I'm merely
opining here...). I like a seller who seems to have a clue about what's
important to buyers.
Third, the accompanying photo (technically a part of the description, but I'll
consider it separately) is simply too small, too fuzzy and too poorly-exposed
to get a good idea of the physical shape of the camera. This, along with point
two above, makes me believe that the seller is trying to divert attention away
from the camera's possible flaws.
Fourth, for a camera with these many unknowns, the starting bid seems high.
Mind you, you could end up with a superb example of a -4T for not much outlay
(it's certainly happened before, much to my chagrin -- I was never the winner
of any of those auctions!). Here's crossing my fingers for you in hopes of a
great deal (or if it's a potentially bad one, here's hoping that someone else
bids enough to keep you out of the auction...).
Good luck. Don't let my analysis worry you or bum you out unduly -- I'm
naturally cautious. You could win big!
Garth
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