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I don't really know why ebay prices get so high. Decades ago it was more like a flea market or yard sale. More people have a side business selling things on ebay now, making extra cash for one thing. I think some fools with no idea of what reasonable prices should be and more money than brains paid a lot for an item and then other sellers used that sale as a new standard of the going price.
Ebay is the last place to buy vintage items. Local auctions, Craigs list, yard sales, estate sales, club flea markets, etc. are much better. You can't predict what will be offered, you can't say "Today I will go to a yard sale and get a tube tester.". You have to be open to what you come across. Knowledge is the key. You have to get out there and look. Be patient.
Last month a relative that lives nearby told me of a yard sale across the alley from her having a yard sale. I don't really go to that many yard sales. I had some other things to do while out that day first and didn't get to the yard sale until the middle of the afternoon. Most things sell before noon at yard sales. When I showed up they were about to quite. They said "Pick out anything and you can have it." (meaning free). I found a box of audio/video cables, a box of power cables, a bin cabinet full of items, five vacuum tubes still in the box, a couple of spools of wire and two oscilloscopes (one a 1965 Tektronix), and a few other things.
All free! "Life is like a box of chocolates."
A couple of weeks later, at a radio club convention flea market I was able to sell some of the stuff and recoup the cost of the convention registration.
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