doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Online bidding with Holt's

I was hoping to get some feedback from people who have used Holt's online bidding function, specifically from those of us located in the US. I believe the online bidding service is run through Artfact online auctions. My main questions have to do with the reliability of the connection, and speed/reliability of putting your bids though. Is there a significant delay trying to use this service if you are located in the US? I know Holt's run through their lots very quickly, any significant delay may cause you to miss a bid.

Any experiences you are willing to share, would be most appreciated.

Artfact has worked well for me in the USA. However, with Holt's, I would prefer a phone bid in the stratosphere. My last phone bid in the stratosphere resulted in losing an item to a UK bidder in a higher stratosphere. I still think that's the safest way out.

I have used Artfact with Holts and it worked very well for me. I had to place 4 bids on a rifle that I won in September. I had no trouble placing very fast bids. The biggest problem with Holts is that it takes them an unreasonable amount of time for them to ship an item to you.

I have not used their online bidding system as yet since a 100% reliable internet connection at your end is an absolute must.

Instead, if I can't be there in person (and nowadays I rarely bother to attend the actual auction - too distressing to see who beats you!), I leave a 'commission' bid.

The advantage of this is that you never bid more than you work out you can afford in the cold light of the viewing day. So far I have never lost a lot that has gone for my bid or less and although a surprising number go for exactly my maximum bid (!) Holts have never let me down on bidding this way.

The few times I have been involved in some way with a telephone bid from the USA, the line has been horrible and I have been terrified of losing the connection or misunderstanding the bidder's wishes.

I know that some US customers have been disatisfied with 'commission' bids but they work for me.
Best of luck (as long as you aren't after the same stuff as me!)

Thank you for the input everyone. I have used their commission bidding in the past, and have won items using it. There is a gun coming up in the next auction that I have been looking for, for a very long time and will be bidding on.

Like Toby said, it seems like your commission bids always seem to end up at your maximum. This particular gun will most likely go for a very modest amount, and I would hate to place a very large commission bid on it knowing I might be wasting several hundred � if they automatically place my maximum commission bid.

Maybe the best plan of attack is to place a modest commission bid, and then try my luck with Artfact, if my maximum commission bid happens to be exceeded.

I have done commission bidding at Holts, with some success. But I would never bid at Holts unless I had someone there to physically examine whatever before hand. I would suggest using another service to ship and then try to consolidate with others; otherwise the costs get way out of hand. Don't overlook the buyers premium and the exchange rate when figuring your costs, in addition to the other services after the sale. I am pretty sure Holts photoshops almost every photo so what you end up with might be somewhat different than the photo would represent. But I never had a problem with the commission bidding part of it.

I've used commission bidding at Holts as well and with good results.

If it is a expensive gun that you really want I would suggest getting someone like John Farugia, owner of Cheshire Gun Room, to examine the gun & bid for you. John is present at almost every Holt's auction and is very honest and very knowledgeable. He will collect your gun for you and ship it direct to you, handling all the paperwork.

Best Regards, George

Flintfan, I am acting in a minor way for Holts out of Spain, there is another chap the Spaniards talk to but I generally get the guns from here to London or that is my remit, I would add that I haven�t yet done anything to help them but I have bid on a couple of things on the phone. You won�t have a problem normally but if you are worried about a line going down then talk to the chap at Holts, Roland is a friend of mine, and give him a number he can be sure of getting you on, best, Mike