Posted by Clint Dixon on Tuesday, September 16, 2003 at 1:40AM :
In Reply to: Pretty strange way to run an auction... posted by David Sherman on Tuesday, September 16, 2003 at 0:04AM :
If you compare it to a real auction:
You go to a farm auction. There are five Power-Wagon wheels, each with a mounted 9.00x16 tire. The auctioneer says he is selling "choice". You are the high bidder, so you can pick which ever one you want for the amount you just bid. Or, you can pick out 2, 3, 4, or take all 5. You just multiply what you owe by the number of items you pick out.
Basically, if you want one or more of the items going for bid as "choice", you had better be the winning bidder the first time around. If not, chances are good that the winning bidder will take all and leave nothing for you to bid on. The trick is not to let others run up the bid on you. You may end up becoming the high bidder the first round at say $100.00 and you take only one tire/wheel because you only need one and you pick out the best. This leaves 4 remaining. The next bidder may win at only $10.00, and his "choice" may be to take all of the remaining four. You go home with one tire/wheel and you have spent $100.00. He goes home with four tires and wheels and he has only spent $40.00.
A variation of this scenerio that some auctioneers follow when selling "choice" on a group of items, is if the first winning bidder does not take all, the auctioneer will offer any or all of the rest, at the same money, to the first person who raises their hand at the auctioneers call. If that person does not take all of the remaining, the auctioneer may offer any or all of the rest one more time for the same money, or he may start the bidding over again, in which case the third winner may end up paying more or less for each item than the first two winning bidders did.
I sold a 9N Ford tractor at auction. Along with it, I had a 2-bottom plow, sickle mower, rear blade, and an extended drawbar and belt pulley. I asked the auctioneer to auction each item individually, and then to auction all as one lot, with the final sale to be which ever way made the most money for me. He first auctioned each item individually, recorded the bidders numbers and the individual winning bids, and added up the bids for a grand total. He then grouped all of the items together and auctioned them as one lot. One person bid higher on the whole lot together than the grand total of all of the items as auctioned seperately, so he was the winning bidder of the auction on my stuff and went home with it all. This is just another variation of ways items can be sold.
Clint