Gene,

Good question. Here's why;

1. The seller, who is new to eBay, knows nothing about casino chips, says so, and lists it at $5.00 with no reserve. Says it's been kicking around in a drawer for many years. A dream scenario for a knowledgable collector!

2. Several knowledgable chippers begin bidding low amounts. I'll assume them and others had plans to "snipe" at the end of the auction, if the price was still low.

3. Someone emails the seller and tells him he's got a valuable chip on his hands, maybe worth $400 or more. Seller realizes he's gotten himself into a bad situation, price is currently at around $40.00 (or maybe $100, I don't know Pete's eBay username). What does he do? remember, he's new to eBay. He emails Pete, the high bidder, and says this:

""I'm considering ending the auction early, since someone has told me this
chip could be worth much more than I ever thought, several hundred
dollars in fact. I will probably not sell it until I can determine it's
value better. I'm giving you the courtesy of this notification since you
are the current high bidder."

4. Since the auction is not yet ended, he has every right to end it early. This is not my opinion, it is a fact. Pete responds by saying "never judge an auction until it's over", which is decent advice, I suppose, but the seller is new, unfamiliar with casino chips and the market for them, and is not inclined to gamble. He responds to Pete saying "I have a firm offer of $400. It seems foolish to throw that away in favor of a maybe." I agree with him completely.
A knowledgable seller might realize that snipe bidding occurs, especially with sophisticated bidders like this auction will attract, but this is not a knowledgable seller, this is just an ordinary guy who mostly buys and sells inexpensive tools and militaria on eBay. For heaven's sake, his (or her) username is "Reneegramps".

5. In the mean time, a thread with a sarcastic title is started here on the chip board, and several members post completely unsympathetic comments about the seller, and several posters get the eBay rules for this kind of thing completely wrong. Whether this is merely ignorance, or selective interpretation of the rules to support a fellow chipper, I do not know. No one invites the poor seller to the discussion, it's all occurring behind his back.

6. I find the thread, and point out that this kind of situation, where an "ignorant" seller finds himself with a very valuable item listed for no reserve, is anticipated by eBay, and eBay actually encourages users to end the auction early if they get a better offer elsewhere! eBay does not want this seller to feel bound by a contract that does not exist! There is a specific procedure for doing this, cancel all bids, then end the auction.

7. The seller neglects to cancel the bids first, either due to ignorance, laziness, or both, and ends the auction. Gene, perhaps you missed the fact that the seller did end the auction early, as he informed his bidders he intended to.

He has probably already agreed to sell to the $400 offer. Perhaps he felt that by notifying the bidders, he was off the hook? I don't know. This puts him in a situation where he is obligated to sell to Jim for $102.51, or face negative feedback or a lawsuit.

So, you ask "Why would Jim, paying the high bid price be taking advantage?".

Because Jim would be attempting to get a $400 chip for $102.51, not because of his shrewd bargain hunting ability, or because of the seller's indifference to the true value of the chip, but merely because of the fact that a new seller failed to fully understand the complexities of the eBay rules.

I don't think Jim intends to sue the seller, knowing that the seller has probably already agreeed to sell the chip for $400 (or more?) to someone else. I think Jim said he just wants to see what the seller has to say. Maybe Jim wants to make him "twist in the wind" perhaps? Make him squirm? Maybe plop a nice negative comment in his feedback file?

It's clear where my sympathy lies.