Recreating the past with modern technology

In my search for vintage tools, such as spoon bits for a hand brace, I've turned to Ebay and have dived into the modern electronic world of online bidding. Sometimes, I've awed by things like a cast-iron kettle that sold for US$265. I've discovered the practice of 'sniping' or lurking without bidding until the very end. The point is to deny any competing bidders the chance to out bid you (technically, a chance to raise their maximum bid above yours). For some, the very end is the last five minutes or so. For others, it's the last ten seconds. I've watched tools I was interested in sit for five to seven days without a single bid, and then end in a flurry of a dozen bids in the last hour. I'm starting to recognize familiar usernames. I've also found it necessary to search under various terms and categories, since one person's collectible shell bit is another person's rusty odd tool (perhaps a chisel?).
So far, I've managed to pick up two shoemaker's hammers, one US and one French made. A modern spoon bit in 5/8", and a lot assortment of small spoon bits and gimlets. There was a lovely rosewood hand brace that eluded me, but I found some online selling for three times the bids. I should make my own brace. Wood and brass I can handle. Tool steel is a little harder to deal with.