Most of the hardware on places like e-bay are all second hand and a lot of what starts out as really cheap is ex Government stock that was sold off at auction in bulk lots. The people/companies then resell the individual bits on places like e-bay and people being what they are tend to go mad with greed. I've seen some second hand video cards sell for more than what a new and better one would once things get going and in other things I've seen what is described as "In New Condition" sell for more than it costs to buy retail.
As a good guide if it's what you want check out what it costs and then bid accordingly remembering that after the auction finishes there is still freight to pay so place your bids accordingly. On the other hand I've seen some very old items that are now very hard to get go for unreasonable prices just because they are must have items to keep some old computers running.
Try finding something like an Intel 200 Pentium Pro CPU and you'll either pay nothing for it as no one wants one or you'll pay the earth for it because of what it is. Like all auction places it's anyones guess as to what will happen. But before you get involved find out what these things really cost new delivered and then weigh the advantages and disadvantages of buying second hand unsupported hardware. It might be financially viable or it might not be depending on just how important your network is and how long you can tolerate down time before it begins costing you far more than you think you've saved.
Col
