For me it was today, I lost a complete G1 onslaught for 10 bucks, a mere 50 cent from my max bid  

 

Honestly, my most frustrating one was a few years ago, before I was collecting Transformers. At the time I was collecting Bandai Megaman/Rockman models. The only one I didn't (and still don't) have was Forte. They are almost impossible to find.... and a loose one was going on eBay for a great price. I planned to snipe the auction.... then overslept and missed it. It ended up going for very little... and I've never seen one on eBay since. So annoying. I was extremely angry at myself.

As for Transformers, a couple months ago I lost an auction for a G1 Darkwing/Dreadwind pair. At least I didn't oversleep.... I watched it sail right by, right till the end. Probably could have won it, I just didn't want to spend as much as it went for. In retrospect.... I probably should have just pulled the trigger and bought the little bastards. Oh well.

 

My most frustrating eBay loss wasn't actually TFs either. I also collect Zoids, and I had been trying to get hold of 3 of the rarest for a long time: The Crystal Zoids. Molga (3000 made), Redhorn (1000 made), and Deathsaurer (100 made). I had a Molga, and a Redhorn, but I lost out on 3 Deathsaurers in a row, (at around the $2-300 mark each auction). And all to the same bloody bidder. I did get one eventually though; I won all 3 in an auction for $175  

 

I buy a lot of Reboot merchandise off ebay. vespertina and licensetodrive, two other big Reboot collectors, have pissed me off numerous times by outbidding me. vespertina is REALLY good at getting a bid in with 1 second to go. Most recently it was a Megabyte train playset. errrrgh. I don't even want to think about the war that will ensue if a Bob, Dot, or Enzo color-changing action figure comes up.

Another one recently was a all white protoype Rhinox figure. Man I love the lug.

 

MISB Powermaster Prime for 20 bucks

 

Most fustrating for me was a BW Scorponok that went for $10.00, overslept and missed upping my bid. Hes the last major BW character I want for my BW collection.

The best Ebay deal was when I got a MISB BW Inferno for $5, the guy accidentally instead of minimum bid 5 and buy it now 20 put the buy it now at $5 and I saw it right as it was listed, guess all the lost scorpy's netting me a damn good deal on the other one I was looking for as well.

 

I have lost far too many auctions for TF's by mere pennies to recall, but the worst:

Jurassic Park: The Lost World; MISB Dino Damage Medical centre (C10 Box)
Final price was £49.99 (by bid was £49.55)

I was suitibly pissed, until I bagged a loose complete Allosaur in C9 condition about a year later for a mere £7.90 (inc p+p).

For those interested in finding out just WTF im on about:

Front of Box: http://www.jptoys.com/toys/tlws1/playsets/medcenter/medcenter.jpg

Back of Box:
http://www.jptoys.com/toys/tlws1/playsets/medcenter/medcenter2.jpg

Allosaur figure with Dino-damage revealed:
http://www.jptoys.com/toys/tlws1/playsets/medcenter/medcenter6.jpg

Catalog scan:
http://www.jptoys.com/downloads/catalogscans/tlw/1997_1/toys_1997_medcenter.jpg


I still have it, and it is the best damn JP figure I own, and is displayed proudly with my TFs

 

THS-01, 5 pounds ($10ish), Free Shipping worldwide.

l lost, because I found it at last 40 seconds and it was sold by the time I signed in and checked to make sure everything was good.

 

Any loss is frustrating.... the things I watch end up going for a lot.

I'm sure the things I don't watch usually sell for less.

 

I lost a Complete G1 Jetfire....I had a 75$ bid on it, and kept it up until 5 seconds left, when someone outbid me!

 

Just lost a white grandus for $150 and couldnt get ahold of my american friend to bid for me

 

HangTenToyShack periodically auctions off cases of Tonka GoBots. Nobody sells a nicer product than these guys and I've been a client for nearly 10 years.

Well, I had a fairly sizeable amount of money available during one of their listings and they'd put up, among other items, a very rare 1983 edition of Scooter. Most GoBots typically went for $10 tops at the time so I put in triple that on a handful. I was focused on this Scooter, though, which I'd placed what I thought was an obscene $80 bid on it. The other key point, which will be important later, is that they were listed in 2 or 3 batches and the 20 items in each batch ended within a second of each other.

So, on the last day, I watched these auctions and I lost the first couple literally at the last microsecond. Then I lost a couple I'd put a fair amount more money on. I started to get really nervous, so I went back to Scooter and upped the bid over $125 thinking nobody'd be that insane. Having lost pretty much every other auction, I put the money I'd had on them on one of the Renegade giftsets I was missing. Well, I lost both for a few cents over. This jerk basically swept all the other auctions too...where other bidders had the same plans as I did. He/she got a handful of GoBots at $20 a pop and the rest between $60 and $160.

Anyway, that's not the worst of it. I contacted him/her to "congradulate" on the victory and to tell them they got ripped off on some of these. He/she said they were really huge GoBot fans and they were for a personal collection but he/she would gladly sell Scooter if they found a replacement. I know, I know, nothing good can come of these so I forgot about it. eBay didn't care about the robobidding so there wasn't any point, you know?

Two months later, this entire set shows up on eBay....except now, they're all AFAed and starting at well over triple the final bids. Just so we get a sense of perspective here: Leader1 used to sell for $40 in perfect unpunched condition, the last bid was $100 over that, and this new auction STARTED at $225. That giftset I mentioned earlier? He/she won all three and had them up for $375 each. Not a single GoBot was listed under $50.

Oh, but I'm not done yet. Scooter was nowhere to be found  

The only consolation was that it took him/her the better part of a year and a half to offload many of them and I think he/she even stopped trying on a couple of the more expensive ones.

 

Getting ripped off on some Macross stuff that I've never been able to find again.  

 

My most frustrating loss has to do with an Amiga CD-32 system with expansions, so not TF -related.

 

For a while I was trying to get a particular webcam model, but I'd always get sniped at the last second by someone. Ultimately, I gave up trying. Someday I'll research what's out and pick another one.

I spent a week or so recently trying to get a copy of "How The West Was Won" by Led Zeppelin (the CD, not the DVD). I lost by one bid on five or six. They were all used copies. Finally I won one, for less than $12 ... and it's new and sealed.  

 

A Trypticon in decent shape but not complete for a cheap price that I lost by $0.50.

 

Mine would be Alt. Grimlock, which I have attempted to win through several different auctions, but just haven't had the nerve to bid as obscenely as others have. But, on the few times that the auction stayed within the range I was willing to pay, I got sniped every time, usually within the last 2-3 seconds.

The most frustrating thing about this is that I saw several of them on the shelves when they first came out but thought, "oh, they're shelfwarmers, I'll see them everywhere. I'll just get one when I have a little more cash on hand."

So much for that idea. *sigh*

 

i got sniped on a "lost room" relica hotel key and bus ticket by a few cents. the keys, for what they are never seem to sell for a decent price anymore.

the BIGGEST piss off was loosing a C-9 DIACLONE browning box and styro insert for my kingdam browning for a mere $20. I was leeching a wireless internet connection of someone in the mall one sunday while doing the flea markets for work, i had watched teh auction all day, and was gunna snipe it. the day was long, and not many customers. then, my boss walks in. no big deal he's ok with me being online since it's a really slow day.

about 5 minutes after my boss shows up, this lady who has a toy table from across teh hall comes over and starts ragging me out for ripping her off on the canadian pepsi prime trailer i bought off her the week before. the auction has onlyminutes to go, and she's going on about how she wants the traler back, and how the $10 she sold it to me for was a rip off. Hey, it's a flea market, i asked how much she wanted. she told me $10. someone later told her what it was and that she could have gotten almost 10 times that... anyway....

she freaks out on me, then gets my boss involved, and making a big scene at the table while customers are there. i'm trying to difuse teh situation, all the while the auctionis endingnow,and i can't even look at the computer.

i missed the auction wich only ended around $20, and we got the flea market security to prevent the lady from ever coming to our table again, but still no consolation for loosing the box.

 

I can't think of one item in particular, but I've forgotten to go back to auctions multiple times to place my bid. They generally ended up going for less than what I was willing to pay.

 

The time i lost the space destruction minicons. Lost by 10 bucks over on Japan Yahoo. I waited oh a good 2 years to finally find them on there. Had to go pick up the G/f, came back and lost.

I was rather pissed seeing how i need one from the set. Then my collection would have been up to date with everything