With items that a CR list member intends to copy and make available to the community, there is a pretty easy strategy to just "rent" the item for long enough to get the needed data, then you can "sell" the item back to the community.
Simply pick the item instance that will go for the lowest bid, and bid high enough to get it. If you scan it (e.g. a catalogue or toe clip cover) quick enough and put it back on the market, you may only lose a few $$$, maybe $5 or $10. trivial, if you are intending to manufacture more of that item.
It's not always easy to predict which item will go for the smallest bid. I recently bought a ***531*** decal, and out of 3 sequential sales, it turned out that the middle sale was the lowest price ( I was lucky to win the middle sale, too.) I guess on the 1st sale, people were overconfident of their sniping bids. On the last sale, people were getting desperate.
- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA