Surprising as it may sound, but I'm currently watching the outcome of my first eBay auction. 

Up until now I have been content with 'buy it now' items, But this item was too good to pass up.

WOW.! With the last few seconds to go my heart was racing like it would burst.!!!

But I have won the action, and paid just under half of what I was willing to go to. 

I remember when 'auction' was just how eBay was.
And yep, that last few seconds...

I've been out bid literally at the last second and lost items I was positive I'd won !  GRRR!

Congratulations on your first auction win !!!!

The last 20 seconds or so definitely get the adrenaline flowing !

I've been out bid literally at the last second and lost items I was positive I'd won !  GRRR!

Congratulations on your first auction win !!!!

The last 20 seconds or so definitely get the adrenaline flowing !

Probably someone using sniping software. I do tend to use it myself, as a lot of auctions tend to end at inconvenient times, so it's easier to let the system get on with it.

A lot of people think sniping is wrong, but there is nothing unethical about it. It's no different to sitting there manually and trying to get in at the last second, which a lot of people do. It saves you time and effort and means you don't get caught up in a bidding war. As long as you enter the highest amount you are prepared to pay for the item, then you won't lose out either way. If you win the item, you may well have paid a lot less than you would otherwise have had to, if you don't win it then whoever did has paid more than you were prepared to.

Same here, years ago I was bidding on a Powerlite mini gumball on eBay and the bidding went by quite a bit during the last 20 seconds of the auction. I ended up not getting the gumball from that eBay auction but I came across another one a couple of years later at a antique store and that's how I ended up getting the one in my collection.

I did use sniping software, but I would have been prepared to hover over the 'bid now' button with my maximum bid if that hadn't been available to me.

The item I wanted to get was a German made surveyor's tape measure as my father was a surveyor. From what I can tell by looking at the photos is that because it says made in Germany it must be of pre-war vintage, so I think it's about 70 years old at the very least, especially as it's only marked in feet and inches.  

The Hermes courier has just brought the tape measure. It's a lot smaller than the one I remember my father using, but it's a lovely little thing.

Photos will be going up in the off topic section.  

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