Quote Originally Posted by FossilHunter View Post

As for ebay, just because you got scooped on a sporran doesn’t mean you can’t still buy it. If you really want it, just bid higher.
You're free to your opinion, and I too like the sense of community that helping others spot diamonds in the rough encourages.

From my point of view, it takes some of the sport out of hunting through listings knowing that it's just going to be spoon-fed to anyone who happens upon the forum. Obviously anyone could bid higher to win the auction, but if you, like me, enjoy finding a deal, this makes it harder. This isn't like a sale at Macy's, where there are multiple items for a set price. More often than not, it's something that's a one off, has either been misidentified by the seller or is just not something the casual forum member would be aware of or would even have cared about until someone explained the significance. Because it's an auction, the increased interest leads to higher prices. The idea of promoting "affordable" items is a little self-defeating, as increased competition makes it less affordable. It's not so much an issue of ethics and, as stated above, I know that it's made with the best intentions. Think of it like a great local bar or restaurant - the minute someone starts talking about it on Yelp or some forum, getting a table becomes impossible.


There is a ton of information on the boards and in this topic that could help teach people what to look for. I have no problem with suggesting methods for finding deals (the Morrison sporrans listed presently aren't exactly difficult to find) or reviewing recent auction results so people know what's out there, but come on... learn what to look for and then do the work yourself.


As far as putting limitations on not being able to link to items a forum member is selling, how exactly would that be monitored? Seems tricky.