This is the problem with grading...

[veloce]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

If a consignor wins his own card, then he tries to sell it again, or in a different format, or someplace else. This happens constantly, as many threads noting how soon after auctions cards appear someplace else attest to. It's just a fact of life -- people aren't giving cards away, for the most part. The good news about ebay is that nobody can see your snipe.

The bad news about ebay is, although you may not be able to see the snipe, that doesn't mean you can't shill a sniper on ebay. I had a buyer on ebay asking about shipping because he intended to bid on several of my auctions. As I was watching them sell, it became obvious where his snipes were set and I could have shilled him and made more on those cards. Similarly as a buyer, I have bid on several related auctions only to get outbid last minute by the same guy every time. I would not be surprised if some large volume sellers used the bid information on the first few items to predict bidding on future items. I think in many instances they could make a lot more money shilling them.

~R1ck St. Ephen