Dawes-man,
You originally wrote "get the item for less than they would in an open bid. Is that the angle? It's seems a very sleazy approach. Or is there another angle?

I wrote "Nothing sleazy to me.Both parties are adults with eyes wide open.The other bidders are just SOL, so what??Let them send an email with a $$ offer. They lost nothing.
You then wrote "If you followed the thread, you'd see that's not what I asked about."
You clearly said it was sleazy to try to buy a item...... by asking the seller to sell it ?? Yes, that sure is sneaky-sleazy also.
Others suggested getting it more quickly is a possibility- money(paying less) and certainty are also good reasons.