You ask the seller. I do it all the time to see if I am interesting since I always come up with a maximum price I am willing to pay for a item and submit my bid one to two seconds before auction ends. However my observation is that most Harleys with crazy high reserves are sold after auction closes and the seller reels in interesting buyers. Perfectly OK since that sale is a prepaid auction. Sometimes if I really want an item I will throw a bid out there to hopeful lock in an auctions and then throw out my maximum at the close. Never ever chase an auction.

 

I don't mind sellers setting a reserve price. Just like a live auction. Sometimes the bidding starts low and gets a few people interested. As buyers see what others are willing to pay they may decide to pay more.
Also when it's all over the seller may decide that his expectations were a bit high and can lower the price.
It makes a lot more sense than setting a high starting price.

 

Heres what I do...I ask the seller what it will take to take it off of auction and make it into buy it now. If we agree on the right price, he makes it buy it now and I buy it.

My brother bought a springer with no bags... the original bags that match the seat without all the crap on it are extremely hard to find and I've seen them go for 1K.

I asked him for some close up pics and they looked brand new. We agreed on 375 delivered, he made it buy it now for that price and I bought them. He didn't realize that if he let it go through action he would have gotten at least 1K for them and he got his money right away. The only thing he asked was to send him a pic of them on the springer after we installed them...he loved it and we scored

 

May want to try JustSnipe.com
I haven't used mine in awhile but you put down your max bid and it bids for you in the last possible minute. I think it may have a free trial.

 

Ask the seller what the reserve price is -- some will give it to you and some will not. You can then decide if it makes sense to bid. SJ Ron

 

That's sales psychology working for you - like a yard sale - if there are a lot of cars in the road more people will stop and look. so smart sellers park their own cars in the road to seed the process.

 

I once sold a restored Model A Ford on ebay. I set my reserve at $12,000 because that was the least I would sell it for. Several guys contacted me and asked what the reserve was and I told them. I wound up selling for about $1,500 over my reserve.

 

Respectfully, I would say you're the one not following. This is an AUCTION, not a store. Every auction that I have seen has a reserve feature. Even Barrett-Jackson, and I'd say that they have some fairly serious bidders. The whole idea of an auction is to generate interest. A low starting price does this, however, maybe the seller does not want to take the chance of losing a valuable item on a slow auction. This is their protection. I've done quite a bit of buying and selling on Ebay and I've gotten some steals...I've been robbed a few times as well. My fault!

Do some people "overvalue" their stuff? Yeah....but its their stuff. Their are plenty of overpriced items on Ebay with a "Buy-it-Now" feature if you don't want to play the game. As someone else mentioned, there will ALWAYS be another one......

 

I totally agree BUT...I put a 72 GMC truck on ebay with my reserve as an opening bid ...listed it twice...no bidders. Listed it again with a really low opening bid, and a reserve...within no time it was bid up over my reserve, and sold for quite a bit more than the reserve...go figure.

To the OP ...many sellers(not all) will tell you the reserve if you ask

 

I think some put a way high reserve to feel out the market then they relist with start price at last high bid and No reserve.