# E-bay observations



## Mitica100 (Mar 7, 2005)

For you all collectors:

I have started a DB (data base) of all the higher end collectibles and Leicas (including lenses and accessories) since about three weeks ago. 

I have observed an interesting trend, the best prices (buying wise) are happening every Sunday between 12:00pm and 8:00pm.  That is, the items without reserve, of course...  

Happy buying...


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## aggiezach (Mar 7, 2005)

Definitely good information to have! Thanks yo!

Zach


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## terri (Mar 7, 2005)

That_ is _ an interesting tidbit.   Any speculation on why that is?   Slow day?   :thumbup:   

Thanks for the info, Mitica!


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## Meysha (Mar 7, 2005)

What time would that be as GMT? 
My American geography is complete rubbish so I've got no idea where any of you are! sorry.


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## Mitica100 (Mar 7, 2005)

Meysha said:
			
		

> What time would that be as GMT?
> My American geography is complete rubbish so I've got no idea where any of you are! sorry.


 
Sorry Meysha, I should have thought of this before I posted... :blushing: 

That was the time for Arizona, which make the GMT about eight hours ahead of us. Sooo... If 12:00pm is in AZ then it's 8:00pm in France.


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## Mitica100 (Mar 7, 2005)

terri said:
			
		

> That_ is _an interesting tidbit. Any speculation on why that is? Slow day? :thumbup:
> 
> Thanks for the info, Mitica!


 
You're welcome... 

I guess everyone's watching some sporting event or some other TV event. I don't really know.


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## ksmattfish (Mar 8, 2005)

I've always wondered about this (when are folks on or not on Ebay).  Like on a holiday; are the people too busy to be cruising Ebay, or do they even have more time to look?

Somedays you can snatch up a deal at half the price it normally goes for.  Does this mean I was the only person looking at it, or was there something that scared the other potential bidders away?  

Some of the best deals I've gotten is when an item was posted in the wrong category.  Another trick I use (when I have the time) is to search for misspellings.  For instance this is the proper way to spell Rolleiflex, but it gets spelled Rollieflex a lot.  A Roll*ei*flex that people can find goes for $300+.  A Roll*ie*flex that no one else finds goes for cheap!  :evil:


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## terri (Mar 8, 2005)

> Some of the best deals I've gotten is when an item was posted in the wrong category. Another trick I use (when I have the time) is to search for misspellings. For instance this is the proper way to spell Rolleiflex, but it gets spelled Rollieflex a lot. A Rolleiflex that people can find goes for $300+. A Rollieflex that no one else finds goes for cheap!


That is an interesting thought.   That RollEI   that my hubby says he 'stole' off ebay was in pristine condition "as advertised"....but it had a _Planar _ lens, not a Tessar as advertised.   Still amazing that the seller just didn't look, or know enough to look.   But Brad swears he's seen Planar-lens Rolleis go for over $600 on ebay, with bodies not in near pristine condition.  Folks will pay for that lens.   Just a fluke.   Usually when an item is misrepresented you expect it to go the other way.   

btw, that particular auction ended on a Sunday, too, during the times Mitica said are slow.


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## Mitica100 (Mar 9, 2005)

Adding to ksmattfish's comments:

The mis-spelling of Leica:  Lieca, Lecia, Leika
Same for Hasselblad: Hassleblad, Haselblad

And so on...

Also, if I want to find out more about a particular camera I search in all categories, including Antiques. Most likely people that are not familiar with cameras are told their older cameras are worth some money, hence they post them in Antiques to make more money.

Another thought, if you like to stay up late, as in 2am or 3am, there are deals to be had at that time for half the price of the same ones found during the day.


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## danalec99 (Mar 10, 2005)

Great tips!! :thumbup:  Thanks guys!


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## oriecat (Mar 13, 2005)

Yep, I've had a couple great deals from misspellings and miscategorization.  When I bought my enlarger, it was severely miscategorized (I don't recall where, I don't think it was even in Photo stuff) and got it for $50 opening bid.  When I just got my Widelux, also for opening bid, it was listed in the heading as a WideFlux.   (The descriptions were right though.  It really pays to search descriptions and titles.)


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## panocho (Mar 17, 2005)

I had also noticed that thing about the sundays!! No idea what could be the reason, but seems to be true.
As for the late hours -didn't know about that. I'll take a look!   
I normally have some patience and browse the whole section (f. ex., 35mm film cameras), and also noticed that misspellings make prices lower, but not always though.
This last months I've been quite a lot at ebay; got a lot of great deals, but still couldn't say what's the rule. Very often items perfectly listed and with no issues go for ridiculous prices...
Well, now I know where are all you gonna be next sunday  :mrgreen:


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## ferny (Mar 20, 2005)

Maybe it's different over here but I've always found the cheapest stuff ends in the middle of a weekday. I've put that down to lots of people being at work and not having access to eBay.


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