eBay can offer some outstanding deals, and just as easily, some truly terrible deals. My best single score was 12 pipes for $425 which consisted of a Barling Straightgrain pot in near mint condition, 4 Sasieni 8 dots and 4 sasieni 4 dots also in mint condition, a Comoy Blue Riband, a KBB Rivoli and a no name stamped "Algerian Briar". I also picked up another mint Comoy Blue Riband Canadian for $6, a Barling Quaint pot for $80, a beautiful Sasieni 8 Dot for a $40 buy in now, and assorted other buys.
But that was mostly a decade ago. If someone listed a "Lasieni" you could get a steal deal. Now if you type Lasieni, eBay takes you to the Sasieni listings. There are still buys out there for those who comb the listings daily, as I used to do, just not nearly as much.
And there are the often amusing sniper shootouts that end with pipe selling for anything from 4 to 10 times the market value.
It all comes down to who is looking on any given day. If two determined buyers get into a bidding duel, the seller makes out like a bandit.