I finally joined cigarbid to place a bid on what I thought was a good deal. I didn't win but will continue to monitor the situation. I don't like bidding on things that are days away though, seems like it is inevitable that you will be outbid. Anyone have any tips on how to game the system?
Bidding early is the key because of the bid increment amounts. Basically find the items you want, check them out for a few days and see what their typical going rate is, then bid on them when the new auctions first open...at least that's what works for me :-)
I agree, place your max bid early. If you set on the fence you'll lose almost every time!
I seem to get better deals on the on day ones (Quickies)
My general advice, most of which many of you already know, but I'll offer it up again:
1. Do your research. Know the retail prices - and not just on CI but on other sites too. Use the comparison shopper spreadsheet on CigarCyclopedia. http://www.cigarcyclopedia.com/webapp/content/view/944/48/ Why would you ever pay more at auction than you'd pay at retail?
2. Another great source of information is at www.c-h-i-m-p.com, which is a database of CI winning bids and prices. It gives you a good sense of what the going rate on CBid is (often very different than the going rate at retail -- case in point: Gurkhas).
3. Set your max price and autobid. Don't get caught up in the auction emotions. The point is to get a good price on cigars, not to win at any cost. If you win, great. If not, you can always bid another day. Most items reappear at auction regularly.
4. Don't be afraid to bid low on high priced sticks. I've been surprised by how often a bid at the low end of the range of reasonableness will win, usually on higher priced sticks but not always. I've picked up 5pks of decent sticks like Perdomo and JdN for under $10, and I've won 5pks of La Aurora 100 Anos, Funete Don Carlos, and Tat Browns, for instance, at prices well below what a 5pk would cost at retail. Yes, retail price for these cigars is high to begin with, but if you're in that market and you can pay $35 for a 5pk that goes for $50 at the lowest priced retailer, you've saved yourself a lot of money.
5. You can sometimes get deals on 5 packs, but I have found that the better deals are on boxes.
6. Early or late? Both. I usually try to bid early, set my maximum price, and forget it. These are the bids that usually win. But sometimes I'll breeze through at about 7pm at night to see if there are any deals to be had. This last minute sniping often works -- so long as I show restraint and don't get caught up in a bidding war.
7. Quickies. I often get a better deal on quickies, because the window of opportunity is smaller. But check around first: I've seen higher bids on quickie lots than on identical lots that are up for the usual 3 days or whatever.
8. There are other auction sites beside CBid where deals can be had. CigarAuctioneer is the Famous auction site. JR Cigars generally auctions boxes. Thompson has both boxes and smaller packs, but I don't go there.
Good luck.
Eddie is exactly right I have seen alot of people bid more than what they could buy them retail. Also thanks for the link to Cigar Encylopedia. I am usualy got about six tabs open researchin this is definatley easier to use
BlackIrish is right on several points: Have a max amount to spend b4 you bid.
Dont get in a pissing contest, when I was looking for an Xbox 360 on ebay, people were WAYYYYYYYY over bidding just to get it. A 300 system should NEVER be sold for 450.00, thats just stupid.
I usually don't bid till the last moment. If I'm not on the radar till the end other bidders are less likely to feel threatened.
Thanks for all the input. I have no intention of overbidding (sometimes easier said then done) and I am just looking for specific higher end cigars at this point that I am hoping to get deals on but if I don't, so be it.
I don't let myself get caught up in the whole bidding war aspect of it. When I shop on there, it is usually early at the start of auctions. I'll set a max bid at anywhere from 50% to 90% of what they are going for on CI, based on how much I care about getting those particular cigars. Then if I get outbid, that only means I didn't get a deal, and therefore I don't sweat it.