I paid $350 plus tax for my 1894 in 357 about 2010 and $400 for the 1894 44 mag about 2012. It seems to me either one is worth about $1000 or $1200 now from prices I see at gun shows and online.
As for online auctions, it only takes one serious bidder who really wants it and one a**hole to bid up the price. And it's not unheard-of for the seller or seller's cohort to be the second bidder just to make the poor sap pay their price. Then there is the auction mentality too.... I have seen buyers overbid just to "win" the auction. It becomes more about winning than about buying the item up for bid.
