I am telling you, you have to snipe the sniper. Bidding early just runs the price up. And of course the good thing with ebay is, that another one will be for sale tomorrow. Your time will come.
Pherdinand
the snow must go on
Yeah, this one had to be the bid-early-the-max strategy, since it ended at 2,30 in the night... There's no Contax on the Bay that keeps me awake till 2,30 - especially that i had an evaluation meeting today,with my bosses 
Pherdinand
the snow must go on
But the next sniper is DeaD
Honu-Hugger
Well-known
Pherdinand,
I thought that you were looking for a IIa? I wouldn't be too upset over this IIIa -- it was not that great of a deal. Here is a suggestion for you or any other member that may be interested:
Incorrectly Listed Contax II
Granted, this is a II and not a IIa and it is also not working. However, the value of the lens alone far exceeds its current auction price. However, keep in mind -- the snipers are waiting! And, I firmly believe that even a "working" camera from this era (even from the fifties) NEEDS the attention of someone like Henry Scherer. Here is an e-mail excerpt from Henry Scherer that I received just yesterday:
"Every now and then I empty my ultrasonic cleaner after using it to clean a batch of parts from a camera only to find a fairly large amount of very fine metal particles in the bottom. You just never know what's going on inside your old camera but you can know a camera that is over 60 years old has no lubrication left in it..."
So you buy this camera for a low price, send it to Henry and it comes back to you better than when it was originally produced, and with a thoroughly cleaned and collimated lens to boot. All for roughly the same or for less than you will spend for a "working" camera that really needs the attention of someone like Henry anyway.
Regardless of whether or not this II interests you I believe that you will more likely than not lose whatever you happen to find on eBay if you do not snipe. Like it or not, that is what you are up against on eBay. I have more than 1200 transactions on eBay and I lost probably my first three auctions before I realized what I needed to be done. Just yesterday I would have lost a rare (1 in 263) Alpa lens and an equally rare (1 in 648) Alpa camera if I had not sniped them -- and all I did was compete with the other snipers! Perhaps it is sad that eBay is this way, but that doesn't change it. Good luck with your quest for a Contax -- I'll keep a watch for you.
D2
I thought that you were looking for a IIa? I wouldn't be too upset over this IIIa -- it was not that great of a deal. Here is a suggestion for you or any other member that may be interested:
Incorrectly Listed Contax II
Granted, this is a II and not a IIa and it is also not working. However, the value of the lens alone far exceeds its current auction price. However, keep in mind -- the snipers are waiting! And, I firmly believe that even a "working" camera from this era (even from the fifties) NEEDS the attention of someone like Henry Scherer. Here is an e-mail excerpt from Henry Scherer that I received just yesterday:
"Every now and then I empty my ultrasonic cleaner after using it to clean a batch of parts from a camera only to find a fairly large amount of very fine metal particles in the bottom. You just never know what's going on inside your old camera but you can know a camera that is over 60 years old has no lubrication left in it..."
So you buy this camera for a low price, send it to Henry and it comes back to you better than when it was originally produced, and with a thoroughly cleaned and collimated lens to boot. All for roughly the same or for less than you will spend for a "working" camera that really needs the attention of someone like Henry anyway.
Regardless of whether or not this II interests you I believe that you will more likely than not lose whatever you happen to find on eBay if you do not snipe. Like it or not, that is what you are up against on eBay. I have more than 1200 transactions on eBay and I lost probably my first three auctions before I realized what I needed to be done. Just yesterday I would have lost a rare (1 in 263) Alpa lens and an equally rare (1 in 648) Alpa camera if I had not sniped them -- and all I did was compete with the other snipers! Perhaps it is sad that eBay is this way, but that doesn't change it. Good luck with your quest for a Contax -- I'll keep a watch for you.
D2
Honu-Hugger
Well-known
P. S. Contax II vs IIa (or any other RF)
P. S. Contax II vs IIa (or any other RF)
Contax II rangefinder base: 92mm!
Contax IIa rangefinder base: 75mm
New Zeiss-Ikon that is stirring so much excitement: 75mm rangefinder base ("Back to the Future"?)
D2
P. S. Contax II vs IIa (or any other RF)
Contax II rangefinder base: 92mm!
Contax IIa rangefinder base: 75mm
New Zeiss-Ikon that is stirring so much excitement: 75mm rangefinder base ("Back to the Future"?)
D2
Pherdinand
the snow must go on
thanks, Doug Well, i'm "looking for a IIa" indeed but i'm not too picky. Especially if it's cheap/good stuff. This also ends in the night so it will necessitate some effort from me to "snipe it"...maybe i'll try.
Wish me luck
Well, i'm "looking for a IIa" indeed but i'm not too picky. Especially if it's cheap/good stuff. This also ends in the night so it will necessitate some effort from me to "snipe it"...maybe i'll try.Wish me luck
taffer
void
Pherdi I know this will be shaking the bird even a bit more, but consider as well getting a just serviced early 50's Kiev II from Oleg with a nice J-8 or Helios-103 lens.
You can have one for less than $100, any clean example of these lenses would be a good performer (the Helios is a 1.8). You'll be getting more Contax than Kiev.
However, I admit having a real Contax II serviced by Henry and with a real Sonnar may be the ultimate Contax lover experience.
Good luck !
You can have one for less than $100, any clean example of these lenses would be a good performer (the Helios is a 1.8). You'll be getting more Contax than Kiev.
However, I admit having a real Contax II serviced by Henry and with a real Sonnar may be the ultimate Contax lover experience.
Good luck !
Pherdinand
the snow must go on
yeah, i considered the Kiev solution. I'm just trying my luck first with the contaxes. I'm not that seriously addicted or anything. (Oh yes you are! And you just bought a second GSN coz it was so damn cheap! You freak!)
R
rick oleson
Guest
the only way to win at eBay is through patience: know what you're willing to pay, and be willing to let everything go that climbs too high and wait for the right deal to come along. There are other Contaxes out there, and eBay is a great place to find them... just keep your head about you
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S
StuartR
Guest
A couple things: patience as rick says is very important. Also, try to make sure you can be around when the auction ends. This will allow you to react if something happens in the last minutes. My general protocol is to watch an auction, and be ready to bid your full bid in the last 5 minutes or so. This usually prevents the price from being run up too much, and many bidders are the incremental bidders, so they will keep trying to bid another five or ten dollars, but you will have your higher max bid that they keep bidding under. You usually win. Sniping of course is one (annoying) way, but bidding late is probably nearly as useful, and with a bit better etiquitte.
Also, sometimes you can find good deals out of buy it now auctions that are ending.
I saw a DS M3 in mint condition with a fancy serial number (ended in 500, the last camera of a given production run), recently CLA'd by Sherry Krauter. It had 20 minutes left with a buy it now of 999 dollars and a starting price of 649. I bid 675 and one it for 649. Sometimes those buy it now ones have reserves just under the buy it now price, and sometimes they don't. If they don't, sometimes you can get a really good deal bidding on the minimum bid.
Also, sometimes you can find good deals out of buy it now auctions that are ending.
I saw a DS M3 in mint condition with a fancy serial number (ended in 500, the last camera of a given production run), recently CLA'd by Sherry Krauter. It had 20 minutes left with a buy it now of 999 dollars and a starting price of 649. I bid 675 and one it for 649. Sometimes those buy it now ones have reserves just under the buy it now price, and sometimes they don't. If they don't, sometimes you can get a really good deal bidding on the minimum bid.
back alley
IMAGES
i got sniped the other day, for a canon hood, in the last 4 seconds!
how'd he do that?
i was very unhappy.
however i just got a better deal on another canon hood, like new, where i was the only bidder...4 bucks!
now that makes me happy!
joe
how'd he do that?
i was very unhappy.
however i just got a better deal on another canon hood, like new, where i was the only bidder...4 bucks!
now that makes me happy!
joe