atnits wrote:I'm tempted to bid for the c5 aviator Even though I already own one Is that crazy? It's not, is it

Not at all but I would caution you not to open the door to the men in white coats who are coming up your path.

scooter

Would have loved the C80 but the price is already too high for me even for charity, hope it and the rest make a lot more for a worthwhile cause! Good on CWL a nice gesture in an increasingly commercial world.

Gradie wrote:I suspect the charity and CWL would like the auction run fairly and legally, which I'm not entirely sure tactics to increase activity and drive higher prices are.

scooter wrote:An excellent point Gradie.

scooter

really?
perhaps when you can think through what you mean by fairly and legally - and how a valid bid of any type doesn't fit with that then it would be fascinating to know...

I am out of this auction - no doubt if I won any of them I would be accused of having somehow hacked into the system, reverse-engineered it and made my bid win - the absurdity of some of these comments is ridiculous - not worth taking part, shame that it might well mean the charity doing worse...

Alasdair

Reserves are one thing, starting bids another thing entirely... you bid what you are happy to pay, and if the auction closes at a price below the reserve it is up to the seller to decide if they wish to sell at that price or not. Probably not in this instance, but there is nothing to stop a person bidding below the reserve if it is known.

I am somewhat perplexed that people can be of the opinion that normal auction practices are somehow and suddenly not cricket.

The only auction no-no would be shill bidding, and I don't think for a minute CWL would indulge in that kind of sharp practise. Beyond that, anything that gets the maximum value is fair game, so I'm with akirk on this one, it's a shame people are second guessing others motives on what is a charity auction.

I don't see any problem with bidding what you want, but akirk specifically referred to 'seeding bids' in order to 'increase activity' which is clearly dodgy and not something I'd suggest being so open about.

I asked a perfectly reasonable question as to what was the point in bidding under the reserve price to which I received an ambiguous response accompanied by one of those witless smilies.

I then asked for a simple yes or no response to :

"Am I right by saying that if the bidding doesn't reach £400 then the watch will not go to the highest bidder below £400?"

to which I received a highly convoluted reply.

scooter

C4 Peregrine £450 (reserve £350)
C5 BoB £365 (£350)
C1 Russell £405 (£400)
C60 Trident £500 (£450)
C8 Pilot Blackhawk £600 (£400)
C70 GP GB £650 (£650)
C5 Malvern Aviator £350 (£250)
C7 Rapide BRG £425 (£250)
C80 Sector £600 (£350)
C3 Malvern Chrono £350 (£200)

scooter

Good to see the target almost reach and sure to be exceeded.

What brilliant news!

With 5 days and 20 hours still to go CW have already exceeded their £5000 target with a cool £5035.

C4 Peregrine £575 (reserve £350)
C5 BoB £375 (£350)
C1 Russell £500 (£400)
C60 Trident £500 (£450)
C8 Pilot Blackhawk £625 (£400)
C70 GP GB £650 (£650)
C5 Malvern Aviator £350 (£250)
C7 Rapide BRG £450 (£250)
C80 Sector £650 (£350)
C3 Malvern Chrono £360 (£200)

scooter

That's fantastic news! Interesting to see how the bids are evolving

scooter wrote:I asked a perfectly reasonable question as to what was the point in bidding under the reserve price to which I received an ambiguous response accompanied by one of those witless smilies.

I then asked for a simple yes or no response to :

"Am I right by saying that if the bidding doesn't reach £400 then the watch will not go to the highest bidder below £400?"

to which I received a highly convoluted reply.

scooter

I think that's unfair Scooter. You did actually ask a yes/no question initially (which Alastair later elaborated on) and I think he answered your follow-up question as best he could, which was basically "I don't know, that's up to CW". He was never in a position to give you a straight yes or no on that one.

My take is that usually no sale takes place unless the reserve is met but this is up to the seller. As for seeding bids, I think they are pointless in this auction format because the reserve is public and in my brief look earlier I saw no indication of number of bids, thus there is no indication of bidding activity. So in this respect I would say Alastair's heart was in the right place but on this occasion it's wasted effort.

Anyway, some lovely pieces on offer, auction has (not surprisingly) already exceeded its charity target, and all in day one. What's not to like?