Did I get shilled? Weird bid activity?
I understand what shill bids are. I didn't always understand how you guys figured things out so I did some digging after I was out bid then it was immediately retracted. It looks like bidder only bids with this seller. And doesn't ever win? They max bid $490 which I guess is "nuclear" then backed off. I ended up winning after my bid was driven up.
Does the info in pics seem suspicious?
I had contacted the seller with a question. When I got his response today I bid again. No one had bid against me but I doubled up in case I missed the auction end. Minutes after I doubled up I was up bid then over bid. It was retracted and they never tried again. 
Comments
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Sure sounds fishy.
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Yeah that sure does look like a second account or friend inflating a bid on you.... Not sure what the recourse will be if eBay can prove it but fishy for sure!!!!
Successful trades.... MichaelDixon,
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After looking at bid times it's maybe possible bidder meant to bid $49 after $43 didn't work. They Still would have seen my max bid after $490 was entered. And they went $4.69 under my high bid ultimately.
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use this website for all ebay bidding
www.gixen.com
no need to "show anyone your hand"
Big Fan of: HOF Post War RC, Graded RCs
WTB: PSA 1 - PSA 3 Centered, High Eye Appeal 1950's Mantle2 -
We recently had an auction where several bidders were putting in high bids, then immediately retracting them.
Seemed like they were feeling out the resistance point on the item. It was not shilling on our part and we sent them messages through eBay telling them that they would be banned from bidding if they had any further bids followed by retractions.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." -- Aristotle
For a large selection of U.S. Coins & Currency, visit The Reeded Edge's online webstore at the link below.
The Reeded Edge2 -
I haven't bought from eBay in forever so I'm not up to speed on the bidding policies BUT that scenario looks funky to me.
"If I say something in the woods and my wife isn't there to hear it.....am I still wrong?"
My Washington Quarter Registry set...in progress1 -
Looks ok. Seems that he intended to bid $49 and put in $490.
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@Coinstartled said:
Looks ok. Seems that he intended to bid $49 and put in $490.That certainly seems likely too.
"If I say something in the woods and my wife isn't there to hear it.....am I still wrong?"
My Washington Quarter Registry set...in progress0 -
@ThoseBackPages said:
use this website for all ebay biddingwww.gixen.com
no need to "show anyone your hand"
Is this site any good?
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Here is another site to do ebay analysis: http://www.watchcount.com/
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@Coinstartled said:
Looks ok. Seems that he intended to bid $49 and put in $490.Doesn't look OK to me. It might have been an accidental high bid, but it looks like he put in a very high bid to see what the OP's high bid was. And the fact that this was done with very little time left in the auction makes it look even more suspicious.
Best defense against this is to put in a small "marking" bid in when you see the lot, then put in your final bid with 15 seconds or less left in the auction. A few seconds left in the auction doesn't allow enough time for someone to enter a super-high bid followed by the bid retraction. And if the super-high bid is done before your true high bid, your true high bid won't show.
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100% shilled. Look at the time stamps on the bids.
14:15 $43
14:20 $490
14:21 retraction of $490
14:22 $65http://stores.ebay.ca/Mattscoin - Canadian coins, World Coins, Silver, Gold, Coin lots, Modern Mint Products & Collections5 -
You got shilled. Look at the times he bid. When he put $490 in, he knew your max bid was $66 which is why he retracted and then put $65 in. I would contact the seller and tell them you're not comfortable with the auction and will not pay and plan on contacting ebay about it.
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@AmazonX said:
@ThoseBackPages said:
use this website for all ebay biddingwww.gixen.com
no need to "show anyone your hand"
Is this site any good?
absolutely. it's WELL worth the $6 a year (there is a free version as well). Ive been a "paying member" for at least 3 years and using it longer then that
Big Fan of: HOF Post War RC, Graded RCs
WTB: PSA 1 - PSA 3 Centered, High Eye Appeal 1950's Mantle3 -
It could be a bogus bid, Richie. Bidder though has only 2 retractions in 6 months and no other bids for that seller (or any other) in 30 days.
If you are concerned that you overpaid, Aspie, see what the sellers return policy is.
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Unless I am misreading the bid history, the other bidder placed a bid for $65 after retracting the $490 bid. To me that indicates the other bidder used the knowledge gained to drive up the final price without outbidding you. Their final bid of $4.69 under may have been to avoid making the shilling blatantly obvious.
Soooo, assuming I am not missing something, it was either a deliberate "jerk move" or you were the victim of a shill bidder. And either way, not okay.
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@FallGuy said:
Unless I am misreading the bid history, the other bidder placed a bid for $65 after retracting the $490 bid. To me that indicates the other bidder used the knowledge gained to drive up the final price without outbidding you. Their final bid of $4.69 under may have been to avoid making the shilling blatantly obvious.Soooo, assuming I am not missing something, it was either a deliberate "jerk move" or you were the victim of a shill bidder. And either way, not okay.
Yes this. What you said exactly!
I usually wait until last 4 seconds but last week I forgot and lost. So I put in a "Doubled marker bid" just in case. ($69.96)
The seller claims this coin IS the coneca ddo #1. If it isn't we will have problem. If the die gouge is on the forehead I'll be ok. I would have gone to $100 anyway, but it just seemed weird with the retraction and close underbid.0 -
@Coinstartled said:
It could be a bogus bid, Richie. Bidder though has only 2 retractions in 6 months and no other bids for that seller (or any other) in 30 days.If you are concerned that you overpaid, Aspie, see what the sellers return policy is.
The only seller this bidder ever bids with IS the same seller. The bidder placed two retractions with same seller. 0 feedback. No purchases...
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I sure hope it's the coneca variety you seek. That would be a nice way of redeeming the situation.
In my view, the other bidder's last bid served the sole purpose of jacking up the final price on your coin. I have no idea what, if anything can be done about it but in the future if I were you I would be very careful when bidding on this seller's auctions.
Best of luck to you!
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@gtstang said:
You got shilled. Look at the times he bid. When he put $490 in, he knew your max bid was $66 which is why he retracted and then put $65 in. I would contact the seller and tell them you're not comfortable with the auction and will not pay and plan on contacting ebay about it.I already paid, with ebucks too. I need the coin, if it actually is the 05 ddo cherry pickers variety.
I sometimes misinterpret things in life so I wanted the opinions of fellow members here. Before I contact the seller or eBay.
Side note question
Do eBay bucks refunds go back in bucks balance? If it is not legit...0 -
How do you know that both retractions were with the same seller? That is a six month retraction total. If both were with the same seller, that greatly strengthens your case.
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yes it looks like you did....WAY too convenient.
I would contact the seller and complain to see what the reaction is.
If nothing else have the seller relist the item and start again bidding at the end of the auction.1 -
It's called Bid Shielding and is against eBay rules.
The purpose is to find out what the competitions maximum bid is by placing an ultra high bid and then canceling it. He can see the other bidder's max bid and comeback and bid again if they want to.
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@TopographicOceans said:
It's called Bid Shielding and is against eBay rules.The purpose is to find out what the competitions maximum bid is by placing an ultra high bid and then canceling it. He can see the other bidder's max bid and comeback and bid again if they want to.
But here they didn't come back, so it looks like a shill bid as the OP feared.
I brake for ear bars.0 -
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Looks like a shill..... You should report it to get it on the record anyway. On the rare occasions that I bid on ebay, I snipe.... after initial bid I just wait..... and then, (if I don't forget) I put in a nuclear bid with around 4 seconds to go.... Always works. Cheers, RickO
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@Shortgapbob said:
We recently had an auction where several bidders were putting in high bids, then immediately retracting them.Seemed like they were feeling out the resistance point on the item. It was not shilling on our part and we sent them messages through eBay telling them that they would be banned from bidding if they had any further bids followed by retractions.
When this happens on items I sell, the bidder is immediately added to the block list.
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I remembered this thread when I was shilled again recently. I thought of this old thread. This time I let the coin go after being outbid.
Now I don’t even enter a serious bid until the last few seconds
Happy ending... the 2005 shill was THE ddo, and it’s super hard to find. Here’s the true view or Pcgs pic. For you fellow hunters... the diagnostic give away is the die gouge “pimple” on the top forehead of Tom’s profile.
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Nice color on that buffalo nickel

Sorry you got shilled. A good snipe service can help you there.
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Another possibility, maybe even probability.
You put both of your bids in before r^^m placed his first bid. r^^m saw this:
a^^o (aspie_rocco): $39
a^^o (aspie_rocco): $39I believe it's been discussed here before, but this kind of bidding - while understandable - drives others to drive up your price - with little risk.
His first bid was $40. Then $43. $49 would be a reasonable next bump. However, if he did hit $490 (the 9 and 0 are together on the keyboard), he would of seen your $66, hence the $65 bid.
Just something to note - it you stack your bids in an effort to "make sure" you have the best chance of winning, others may adopt the, "I'm not going to let them get a bargain, if I can't win it I'll at least drive the price up" sentiment.
It could be a shill, but it seems unlikely given the only 3 bids he has in the last 30 days were on this item. Lot of trouble to go to for $30.
Regardless, I believe the "wait to the last minute" and/or sniping advice stated by others is a good way to avoid this happening again.
If we were all the same, the world would be an incredibly boring place.
Tommy
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