...what a buyer might need, instead of just how to maximize their profits?

I'm looking at the parts put up for auction by the same guy who put up that Moto frame, parts that clearly go together. Whoever wins the frame will need a French headset, and it really should be a Campy though I guess it doesn't have to be. (The winner will also need a BB, crank, pedals, etc, but options for those are more available.) If someone wins the headset but loses the frame ( I have my limits!) he will be sitting on a French headset with no bike to put it on.

But the thing is, the frame auction ends last. Whoever puts in a winning bid on the headset must already have a use for it or else be willing to gamble. Had the finishing order been the other way around the frame winner could then place a high enough bid on the headset to (almost) guarantee a win.

Now, one could figure that winning the headset first might make someone bid higher on the frame. But that really is a case of building up a bike around a small, though essential part. Parts come and go but good frames in the right size are harder to find.

And another thing. Why end auctions for recreational stuff in the middle of a day when people might be out recreating? Do they think buyers are sitting by their computer terminals ready to type in a higher bid? Not me today. As soon as the temperature goes up a few more degrees and I finish second breakfast I'm going out riding.

I'd bet dollars to donuts that the seller never thought about any of this.