comicnoir Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 (edited) This whole eBay bidding thing makes me wonder what some people are thinking. Why would anyone start bidding up an item on the first day of the auction. Wouldn't it be better to wait until the last hour? Why draw attention to a book by bidding immediately? It's obvious that none of the bidders put in a high secret bid on the first day, so what's the point? Are they shills? or just Stoopid? If we had some guts among us, we'd just shine on any auction that takes off like a rocket the first day. Let the shills buy the book...teach the lawless and greedy sellers a lesson. This is my pet peeve. No 7 day auction should even start until the last hour. Sometimes sniping works against an auction. I know sellers who pulled their auction the day before because of no or low bids. They didn't want to risk giving it away. Then someone messages them that they were going to bid heavy at the last moment.. That's the risk of waiting to the end. Edited July 8, 2014 by comicnoir Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqeggs Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 This whole eBay bidding thing makes me wonder what some people are thinking. Why would anyone start bidding up an item on the first day of the auction. Wouldn't it be better to wait until the last hour? Why draw attention to a book by bidding immediately? It's obvious that none of the bidders put in a high secret bid on the first day, so what's the point? Are they shills? or just Stoopid? If we had some guts among us, we'd just shine on any auction that takes off like a rocket the first day. Let the shills buy the book...teach the lawless and greedy sellers a lesson. This is my pet peeve. No 7 day auction should even start until the last hour. I often throw in an early bid when I see an auction just so it shows up in my MyeBay list and so I receive an e-mail reminder when the auction is closing. I also get a "Got away" e-mail so I can easily see what the book sold for (you don't get those if you are just watching). It is odd, though, how many people don't bother to snipe. Some of it is shilling, but some of it is people treating it like a live auction. Only raising their bid after someone else has topped them. Maybe they even (mistakenly) see this way of bidding as protection against shilling. "If I never bid more than one increment above the next highest bidder, I won't pay more than the minimum I have to." Not realizing that the other bidder may be a shill or that the true competition in the auction may be sniped in at the last moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flex Mentallo Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I think that's 29dukedog's alias... Busted! Oddly enough, on eBay I go by 29dukedog. Same name I use here. It's just easier to remember, on account of I'm a-stoopid. I knew you on Ebay first. Meerkats R Us Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damonwad Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 This whole eBay bidding thing makes me wonder what some people are thinking. Why would anyone start bidding up an item on the first day of the auction. Wouldn't it be better to wait until the last hour? Why draw attention to a book by bidding immediately? It's obvious that none of the bidders put in a high secret bid on the first day, so what's the point? Are they shills? or just Stoopid? If we had some guts among us, we'd just shine on any auction that takes off like a rocket the first day. Let the shills buy the book...teach the lawless and greedy sellers a lesson. Oh yeah, I have been informed by one of our Boardies that sometimes this is a tactic to scare off most of the bidders early in the game. OK, I guess some people don't care how much they spend as long as they get the book... This is my pet peeve. No 7 day auction should even start until the last hour. Update: CL 25 is now at $487.87 with 5 days to go...it should be an interesting ride. Lest we forget, here's MY copy (Brag, Brag) Not as nice as Dukedog's copy, but it works... I haven't decided if I'm bidding on this yet, but if I do, my max bid will be put in Wednesday night or Thursday morning. I'll be on vacation and won't know if I won it until a week after it ends. Nice copy of your own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrevvy Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Shameless plug...but very nice reproduction of stories and art...thanks for sharing. It was. Sorry. Thanks for the comments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damonwad Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I want to order one of the Baker Canteen Kate reprint books. Any recommendations on what one is better between the Canton Street Press version or the one from Picture This Press (Lost Art...)? They both came out within 2 months of each other. Just a quick plug for our book at Canton Street Press. Our Canteen Kate book is nomiated for an Eisner this year (fingers crossed). I posted some pics of our book in the thread below and compared the two volumes. The Lost Art book is well done and each has its advantages. You can't go wrong with either book in my opinion. Of course, I'd prefer you bought ours If you buy it from our website (www.CantonStreetPress.com) you get your choice of a free print. No Baker, unfortunately, but some cool GA covers. http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=323515&Number=7264701#Post7264701 Your book looks good but the first recommendation I got was for the other one, so that's the way I went. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29dukedog Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I think that's 29dukedog's alias... Busted! Oddly enough, on eBay I go by 29dukedog. Same name I use here. It's just easier to remember, on account of I'm a-stoopid. I knew you on Ebay first. Meerkats R Us From way back in the good old days, when people were allowed to know each other on eBay. K***9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flex Mentallo Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I think that's 29dukedog's alias... Busted! Oddly enough, on eBay I go by 29dukedog. Same name I use here. It's just easier to remember, on account of I'm a-stoopid. I knew you on Ebay first. Meerkats R Us From way back in the good old days, when people were allowed to know each other on eBay. K***9 Simples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tri-Color Brian Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 (edited) Thanks. Ya know sumthin'? When you are looking at this thread and keep updating the page, it doesn't move you to the next page...I kept editing my post because I thought nobody was responding... I figured I'd killed the thread with my rants... I do understand all those bidding reasonings...really I do, I just hate seeing it happen so soon. Edited July 8, 2014 by tricolorbrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doohickamabob Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 This whole eBay bidding thing makes me wonder what some people are thinking. Why would anyone start bidding up an item on the first day of the auction. Wouldn't it be better to wait until the last hour? Different bidding strokes for different bidder folks. Some people want to put in their highest bid early so they don't have to wait around to find out if they'll get the item. Some people snipe, some don't have the time or patience or aren't willing to use a sniping service. Some like the fun of bidding and jockeying for high bid position. Who knows what each bidder is thinking? Who knows what eeeeeeevil lurks in the hearts of comic fanboy child-men (a descriptor that includes myself)? As long as they're not shills or future non-paying bidders (NPB's), or up to other sorts of shenanigans, I don't personally care. One very practical reason to put some solid bids on a book early is to make sure the seller doesn't get an "outside of eBay offer" and cancel the auction, or just cancel out of fear of a pathetically low hammer price. This doesn't seem to happen as much as it used to, but I can recall several instances where I was watching an item I wanted, the item sat at a low price, and then a few days into the auction the seller shut down the auction. I emailed the seller to say, "What happened? I wanted to bid on that!" and the seller replied, "I don't see you in the bidder's list. If you wanted to bid, you should have bid." This sort of thing happened more often before people became aware of sniping practices, etc., but putting in some decent bids does seem to prevent auctions from being shut down. If an item has no bids at all, at least one bid will make the seller know there's interest in the item. I think it also makes it harder for the seller to cancel. An item that sits un-bid can be canceled by the seller with no consequences from eBay. Oh yeah, I have been informed by one of our Boardies that sometimes this is a tactic to scare off most of the bidders early in the game. OK, I guess some people don't care how much they spend as long as they get the book... Yes, that is another reason people drive up bids early -- to make it look like a fish swarm and scare away other bidders. Definitely. And that does work some of the time. It can probably backfire too, depending on the psychology of whoever's watching. But if a $700 item is already up to $500+ early, a lot of the people who might have bid in the $700 range might assume that they don't have a chance and forget to stick around for the end of the auction, or blow off setting an automatic snipe. Occasionally when I see a desirable book that I can't really afford to go after, I'll go ahead and place a bid in the range of what I estimate to be its 1/2-value or 2/3-value, just because I know if I actually won the book at that price, it would be a score. I rarely win such auctions that way, but it's fun to be involved in the early bidding, and then you get an email notification after the auction ends that tells you what the comic sold for, instead of having to look it up in your Watchlist (this is especially helpful if your Watchlist tends to get filled, as mine does). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29dukedog Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 This whole eBay bidding thing makes me wonder what some people are thinking. Why would anyone start bidding up an item on the first day of the auction. Wouldn't it be better to wait until the last hour? Different bidding strokes for different bidder folks. Some people want to put in their highest bid early so they don't have to wait around to find out if they'll get the item. Some people snipe, some don't have the time or patience or aren't willing to use a sniping service. Some like the fun of bidding and jockeying for high bid position. Who knows what each bidder is thinking? Who knows what eeeeeeevil lurks in the hearts of comic fanboy child-men (a descriptor that includes myself)? As long as they're not shills or future non-paying bidders (NPB's), or up to other sorts of shenanigans, I don't personally care. One very practical reason to put some solid bids on a book early is to make sure the seller doesn't get an "outside of eBay offer" and cancel the auction, or just cancel out of fear of a pathetically low hammer price. This doesn't seem to happen as much as it used to, but I can recall several instances where I was watching an item I wanted, the item sat at a low price, and then a few days into the auction the seller shut down the auction. I emailed the seller to say, "What happened? I wanted to bid on that!" and the seller replied, "I don't see you in the bidder's list. If you wanted to bid, you should have bid." This sort of thing happened more often before people became aware of sniping practices, etc., but putting in some decent bids does seem to prevent auctions from being shut down. If an item has no bids at all, at least one bid will make the seller know there's interest in the item. I think it also makes it harder for the seller to cancel. An item that sits un-bid can be canceled by the seller with no consequences from eBay. Oh yeah, I have been informed by one of our Boardies that sometimes this is a tactic to scare off most of the bidders early in the game. OK, I guess some people don't care how much they spend as long as they get the book... Yes, that is another reason people drive up bids early -- to make it look like a fish swarm and scare away other bidders. Definitely. And that does work some of the time. It can probably backfire too, depending on the psychology of whoever's watching. But if a $700 item is already up to $500+ early, a lot of the people who might have bid in the $700 range might assume that they don't have a chance and forget to stick around for the end of the auction, or blow off setting an automatic snipe. Occasionally when I see a desirable book that I can't really afford to go after, I'll go ahead and place a bid in the range of what I estimate to be its 1/2-value or 2/3-value, just because I know if I actually won the book at that price, it would be a score. I rarely win such auctions that way, but it's fun to be involved in the early bidding, and then you get an email notification after the auction ends that tells you what the comic sold for, instead of having to look it up in your Watchlist (this is especially helpful if your Watchlist tends to get filled, as mine does). Good answer(s). (thumbs u Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBFan Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Even though I've been collecting comics for 50 years, I just recently joined this forum. I've now gone back and worked my way through the Baker Romance thread from the very beginning. It's apparent from past discussions that prices for Baker books have been up way high in the past, only to settle down again. Now we're seeing some, but not all, raise in apparent value. In addition to shill bidding, it's possible that some who own a copy of the same book might bid early and drive up prices, in hopes of justifying a high price for their own book. They may not be serious at all about buying the book at auction, but by jumping in and helping drive up the price, they can say, "Hey, look at my copy of that same book. It's worth the crazy money I want for it!" Establishing true worth and rarity for the St. John books is impossible. Since few issues have a high enough OS guide value to make them worth slabbing, the CGC census doesn't really tell us much. It's safe to say that many people who own these books haven't submitted them and are not part of the organized fandom that meets here. I've seen forum discussion (probably in the "rarest romance" thread) indicating that True Love Pictorial #9 is almost never seen for sale...but there have been at least 3 copies on eBay during the past couple of months alone. One is sitting bidderless right now. Many St. John Baker books have been closing on eBay with no bidders at all. Someone's been trying to sell Teen-Age Romances #40, Wartime Romances #10, Authentic Police Cases #19 & #23, Diary Secrets #16 and Pictorial Romances #10 for $200 each...but the books have been sitting there for days. If they'd put the books on a true auction, they'd be lucky to get $100 a piece for them. Once a couple of deep-pocket Baker collectors fill the holes in their collections, prices for certain books might settle down to a reasonable level. At least that's the hope of some of us without deep pockets. Meanwhile, dealers are hoping the anomaly becomes the norm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tri-Color Brian Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 (edited) The TLP #9 is sitting because it is a ratty copy that the person offering it wants too much money for. No other reason. Nobody wants a copy that looks like that...IMO The other books I already commented on...evidently they are over-priced for the condition too. I know I wouldn't pay that much for any of them. Welcome to the forum. Edited July 9, 2014 by tricolorbrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBFan Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 I agree. My collection is missing all the books I mentioned, but I refuse to pay that high a price for such low condition. Other such low-grade high-priced books have sold recently, though, so sellers are encouraged to continue to gouge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comicnoir Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 The TLP #9 is a book that I have waited to show up for years, then 3 show up almost immediately, although never in fine or better. That's because the first went for so much. The truly rare book is one that gets a big price and no others show up after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqeggs Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Hard to know what will happen with Baker prices over the long run. (Of course, it's hard to know what will happen with the prices of any collectible over the long run.) Here are few things that I think may matter. Of course, I could be wrong about any of these. Contradictions welcome! 1. Romance collectors are still a small minority or GA collectors who are a small minority of comic collectors. So, there ain't that many of us. 2. No new romance books have been published in, what, 35 years? So people collecting back issues of current books/characters/artists isn't a factor with these books. 3. The original buyers of these books were predominately teenage girls, who, by and large, weren't collectors then and seem unlikely to be motivated now to collect the books of their youth. 4. There are probably some -- but not many -- high-grade Bakers still lurking out there ungraded. For most books, there are probably a fair number of mid-grade and below books around or that will come to market in response to the higher prices that have been realized lately. 5. Only a few books -- notably GCE 12 -- have much attraction to non-romance collectors. Put it all together and I would draw the following conclusions: 1. With relatively low demand and increasing supply, the chance that prices will increase much from here seems low. 2. The prices of some books that appeared to be scarce in any condition (TLP 9, for example) but where multiple copies are now available in mid-grade and below are likely to fall. I think we have already seen some of this lately. 3. Even the prices of genuinely scarce books may decline as the relatively few people willing to pay high prices for Baker books fill out their collections. I think we may already have seen this as well. 4. It's possible that if an extensive collection of >9.0 books were brought to market by HA, CC, or CL it could spark interest among non-romance collectors and possibly command premium prices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tri-Color Brian Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 I agree with everything you just said, but want to add: 1) Many collectors only want certain covers (like me) and will ignore even rare issues that do not meet the criteria. Having said that, I think almost anyone will pick up any Baker romance book if it is priced fairly and in decent condition (myself included). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comicnoir Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Baker romance collectors and romance collectors can be a different breed. I collect Baker art. He did romance and did some of his best work in romance, therefore I collect. There is GGA spillover into this genre that may not affect other romance titles, unless the women look really hot. There are other variables. I never made a conscious decision to get all Baker romance, but for whatever reason, here I am. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29dukedog Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Finally... Not the best copy, but still an upgrade over my first copy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tri-Color Brian Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 Well...Congrats! It's a tough book, and if I'd known that I never would have sold my copy a long time ago... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
