Auction strategies?

Ken Knecht wrote:
Zdenek Jizba wrote in
news:COXuf.20858$z45.6592@trnddc02:


Ken Knecht wrote:

I collect the world to 1990.

Since I have so very many holes in my collection I get auction lots
with lots of stamps. If I choose the right year range there are
generally a fair number of cheap stamps I don't have. I have no
expectation of completing my collection. My enjoyment comes from
sorting stamps, checking stamp identifications, and filling a few
blanks in my collection. I enjoy the time spent, not buying a few
stamps for the same amount and putting in my album in a few minutes.

"S.Waever" wrote in
:



I too collect the world usually up to around 1990, but it
depends on the country. The best auction house was the
Bournemouth Stamp Auction in England. Unfortunately it
became quite expensive and eventually went out of business.
My strategy in bidding is the following:
1. I mark all lots that interest me and set the price
I would be willing to pay (usually 20% below estimate)
2. About a week before the auction, I get a list of current
bids on the lots that I selected. I scratch all those
where the bids are higher than those on my list.
3. On the remaining lots I select a subset such that even
if I get all, my expenses will not exceed my budget.
4. I submit my bids on those lots, but bid only one tick
higher that the current bids.


The problem is that with the lots I usually bid on - stamps in cartons,
on album pages, etc. - I really have no idea what they are worth to me
because I'm not sure what's there. Sometimes I am rudely surprised,
sometimes happily. Your 20% below minimum estimated sounds like a good
rule of thumb. I'll try it on a few lots I marked in a recent auction
catalog. I've never tried getting current high bids on lots I am
interested in. Do you do that email?



I have looked occasionally at the high bids on lots
that I wanted. The bids are rather frequently VERY high.
As to what you get, it is a gamble. With large lots there
is a chance that you might find high catalog value
stamps. As was pointed out I also like the process of
identifying stamps, which takes a lot of enjoyable time.
If some of the stamps fit into my collection, that is just
a bonus. Many common stamps will go into my "calendar"
collection (date cancels), some into the "postmark"
collection, and there are always some perfins and pre-cancels
to sort out.

what I have found though is that in every case someone has parused the
large lot and the is just a hinge stain where the real higher dollar
items were. On ebay they always state they haven't searched but I
have yet to buy a lot that wasn't missing some
I have looked occasionally at the high bids on lots
that I wanted. The bids are rather frequently VERY high.
As to what you get, it is a gamble. With large lots there
is a chance that you might find high catalog value
stamps. As was pointed out I also like the process of
identifying stamps, which takes a lot of enjoyable time.
If some of the stamps fit into my collection, that is just
a bonus. Many common stamps will go into my "calendar"
collection (date cancels), some into the "postmark"
collection, and there are always some perfins and pre-cancels
to sort out.