Always good to get some rational discussion.quote:In my experience AS has failed to bid on a couple of occasions for me.
I also agree, or DID agree, with region2. I have posts that recommend placing a proxy bid for “must-haves”. But I’m arguing that this thinking is dated. Back in the old days, the primary, or a close second, complaint on the forum was not-it-times. It’s been a fairly long time since the forum has seen that kind of a post. There was some server problems with AS, but I think that goes back 6 months or more. Ebay has improved; AS has improved; Internet has improved. Since the likelihood of a failed snipe “appears” to have reduce a great deal, and seeing that the likelihood of placing a proxy bid on a rare item will only result in a bidding war or nibbling, the potentially substantial savings of placing a snipe far outweigh the minor risk of the snipe not being placed.
Hypothetical: If the chances of a failed snipe are 1 out of 10,000, while the chance of a proxy bid being out bided or up bided are 1 out of 5, isn’t it rational to snipe? And, if the item is expensive, then one may end up paying substantially more for the item to avoid a very minor risk. If you have got unlimited funds, then expense is no issue. But in the world of most snipers, seeing that they are probably sniping to save money, the funds have a limit.
I’m not saying that there wasn’t a time that sniping was more risky, as some of the irate posters were quick to announce, but those days are gone and perhaps it’s time to rethink this.
You and I are in agreement.quote:The only other times I rate an item "must have" is if its genuinely rare. In that case I let AS bid