How do "you" surf ebay

[pa knives]

Just a question. By now all of you are well aware of my preference to Pennsylvania related pocket knives. One of the tricks to finding those is to search correctly. I usually use "pa knife" and that brings up about 400 or so choices. I will then try "pennsylvania knife" and so forth. Using city names sometimes helps but rarely. I also use "vintage knife" and that gives me a largest source but with a lot of junk. This also is true for "old knife", "rare knife" and "antique knife" My question then is this. What do you fellas do to find those special knives for your collection?

 

[Gryffin]

eBay's search function is really very powerful, with many options and boolean logic capabilities. It would behoove you to learn it well.

Coupla quick hints to get ya started:

Logical AND: iThis is the default. If you search for:
pa knives
...you'll get every entry that includes both "pa" AND "knives", regardless of order.

Exact Phrase: this comes in real handy, too. By enclosing you search in quotes:
"pa knives"
... you only get entries that includes that exact phrase. It will not match "knives pa", or "pa brand knives", for instance. Still, it can help limit your results to what you really need.

Logical OR: This lets you search for multiple words or terms:
(pa,penn,pennsylvania)
...will give you all entries that include the words "pa" OR "penn" OR "pennsylvania". You can combine both AND and OR:
(pa,penn,pennsylvania) (knife,knives)
...will give you all entries that include the words "pa" OR "penn" OR "pennsylvania", AND the words "knife" OR "knives".

Negation: you can use this to EXCLUDE words or phrases:
-(case,queen,schatt)
...tells eBay to NOT show you entries that include "case" OR "queen" OR "schatt". This can help you weed out stuff you know you *don't* want.

So, an example... let's say you're interested in oddball-brand knives made in Pennsylvania, specifically split-backspring whittlers. You might try searching for this:
(pa,penn,pennsylvania) ("split backspring","split-backspring") whittler -(case,queen,schatt)

To cast your net wider, be sure to check the box that says "search title AND description".

Note that I entered the phrase "split backspring" two ways; eBay is sensitive to punctuation, which can complicate matters. You've probably seen enough auctions to have an idea of the terminology that sellers use; keep that in mind when you build your searches!

Also, you might want to limit your search to certain sub-categories, although some of the best bargains I've found were listed in the wrong category!

Oh, and one last thing: once you've crafted a search that gets you waht you want, save it by clicking the link near the top that says "Add to Favorites". That way you don't need to remember the formula later.

Have fun!!

 

[pa knives]

Sir,

I found your response to be most informative. All this time I thought I had a good grasp of the situation and you have shown to me that I have only touch the tip of the iceberg. Thank you so much. I hope that others will learn from this too.

Now let me think "Case Mfg Warren PA" oh I hope to get that hit someday!!!!!
thanks

 

[Gryffin]

Be careful not to make your search term *too* specific. You might miss something good!! Some of the best bargains are from sellers who have no idea what they're flogging.

That text you listed looks like a tang stamp; not all sellers will transcribe the whole thing like that. If you want to find a specific stamp like that, *definitely* check "search title AND description"! Also, you might want to save a search for that specific stamp, with an email alert so you dont' miss it; and also save a more general search, and look through the results manually every day or two, to catch the ones that aren't labelled very well.

There's a fine line between finding too many hits and not enough. It takes practice, and a good knowledge of your target, to strike the right balance. Good luck!