When Can We Start Buying Groceries On eBay?

by: Benji Sorenson

Starting a new hobby is rarely cheap, and as I looked around at everything I would need to get started on fly tying from scratch it became abundantly clear that my new endeavor was going to get expensive quick if I wasn’t careful. A good vise is about the only single item that will actually cost you much in fly tying but there are a whole lot of little things that can add up quickly. I decided to start with the big item, the vise, and work around that. After doing my diligent research and going into a fly shop and handling several vises I came to the conclusion that I had to have a Regal vise. Coincidentally, this is probably one of the more expensive vises on the market but after seeing their simplistic and functional design, coupled with the ease of use it made it a no brainer. But buying a new Regal was not going to leave much room in the budget for the abundance of materials I was going to need so I started looking on eBay for good deals.

There are people on eBay selling their life’s worth collection of fly tying supplies all bundled together for prices that are very reasonable. I am no eBay whiz, this is for sure, in fact the only time I have ever used it, I used the “buy it now” feature so there was no bidding involved at all. Just click and pay and I was done.

Being an eBay rookie I learned a few things along the way, and had some fun as well. I started searching the site and found a whole tying set up, with a very good vise and a whole lot of materials, that at the time was very reasonable and well within my budget. There were 4 days left to bid on this set and in my exuberance I placed a bid right then and there. I was in the lead…for exactly 12 hours. Soon an item that had started out looking like a good deal was spiraling out of control in a price range that made me feel queasy. I bowed out. Then I found a great deal on a Regal vise. There were no materials with it, just the vise, but I figured I could always get the materials later. The deal on the vise was just too good to pass up. I started bidding early again and had the item won for a price so low I could hardly believe my luck. Then while I was at work, like most reasonable human beings, the bidding ended, and five minutes before it ended someone, obviously unemployed or maybe very irresponsible with the duties of their work, swooped in and outbid me, by $1. Oh, the agony of defeat! Now this was getting my competitive juices flowing. Just the emotion that I am sure eBay thrives off of.

Determined to not be out done again I found another great deal on a whole package. There were enough skinned animals, and full bird capes in it to make any small fur bearing, or feathered animal very nervous, and a very nondescript picture of a vise with very little information on it. One thing I know through all this is that I have done my homework when it comes to vises, and I was pretty sure from what I could see in the picture that this was an older Regal vise. Just what I wanted, a Regal vise with enough material to get me going and keep me going for a while. Time was running out on the item and the price was still right. I emailed the seller about getting more pictures of the vise to confirm my suspicions regarding it’s maker, but it was the night before the items bidding was to end so I was not sure he would even get my email in time to respond. I withheld the urge to bid right then and simply noted the ending time when I planned to come back and make my move.

Time was winding down that morning when I jumped into the fire. With 3 minutes left I placed a bid that put me in the driver seat with $21 to spare. Then I watched impatiently as the time ticked off. At two minutes all was well, no more bids. One minute, all’s quiet…good. At this point my cell phone rings and it is my lovely wife.

“OK I can talk and do this, no problem.”

Thirty seconds left, “Yes, sweetie I will pick up some eggs, and milk on the way home.”

Twenty seconds…19…18…UH OH we have another player in the game. I was bid up. By now I was not sure what my wife was saying on the other end of the line. I was focused on the task at hand. I upped my max by 10 dollars with 5 seconds to go in the bidding and by the time the screen refreshed it had confirmed I was a winner! I truely felt like a champion. I could actually picture myself in a boxing ring sitting in my corner getting a couple cuts stitched up, persperation wiped from my brow, and some yahoo squirting water in my face while my whole corner buzzed about the great fight “with a great flurry at the finish.” I had been beaten down by those veteran eBayer’s for the last time. I went back in to check the bid history and sure enough, my bid had beat my wily opponents by 3 seconds…for the exact same amount. If he had entered one more penny or 4 seconds earlier I would be mourning my 3rd defeat in as many days. It was that close.

The thing with eBay is, before you even have time to come down from the thrill of your victory a screen pops up to burst your bubble.

“Payment options.”

“Shoot, I knew there was a catch.”

I never did hear back from the seller on what type of vise I just bought but I am not overly concerned as the tying materials alone in this lot are worth more than what I paid, and if my suspicions are true that this is a Regal Vise you will hear another round of celebration once I receive my item. Now I just wish I could buy those groceries my wife asked me to pick up on eBay. That was kind of fun.