Super Soaker Central

I'm new here and me and my brother are trying to start a small super soaker collection, here's what we have.
Flash Flood
Arctic Blast
Max-d 6000
Max-d 3000(x4) two don't work
Secret Strike(x4)
XP 215, I think this would be a great arsenal if we had a CPS line blaster and a backpack blaster, probably the SC Big trouble because its least expensive.(I almost had a CPS 1200 on ebay yesterday but someone outbidded me by alot) Does anyone know a good way to obtain these blasters, Any Cps line blaster is good for me.

cobralex297 is selling off much of his arsenal at the moment,
http://forums.sscentral.org/t5199/

You should also check charity shops (often called thrift stores in the US). It's a bit of a long shot, but water guns do turn up sometimes, and will be very cheap.
And yes, a proper CPS would be a good addition. Any one but the 1-3-5, or any monster, are all pretty good (though some are better than others).
If you're looking on ebay, I believe the 2700 is somewhat underrated (it has power but does have issues), meaning it might go cheap.
Also the SS 300 or XP 300 (same gun different names) is as powerful as a small CPS. It's fragile though, and will probably be expensive.
Alternatively, the Orca and Tiger Shark are current blasters that are comparable to the CPS line. And they'll be a lot cheaper.

As for a backpack blaster, you can get a 100oz backpack to attach to your flash flood or arctic blast. I wouldn't necessarily go for the Big Trouble because it won't outperform your your current guns.

Yard sales, pawn shops, friends' closets/garages, Freecycle, and eBay are just about the only ways to buy old water guns now. See this article for more information.

And if you're interested in building your own, you can get CPS performance at much lower cost. You're in the right place, too.

The Orca and/or Tiger Shark seem like they would go along with your collection well.

Keep going at eBay though. Later in the summer, near autumn, was where I landed on some good deals on well working CPS's: 1200, 1000, and 2700. In September, I missed a Monster XL that went for $15. (plus $15 shipping)

Its something that takes a good amount of patience and time to look after. If you're worried about bid sniping, place a bid that's significantly higher than previous bids at the last second. I haven't bidded in a while, but right now I'd go with 2 or 3 bids. A first bid within the last few minutes to secure a spot (and/or drive up the other bids), a bid in the last minute to secure a spot, and a bid on the last second that's significantly higher than before. If someone bidded a lot, then your first bid should take care of that and drive costs up. (though you may be unable to buy it)

All this sniping business is nonsense. Just bid the most you're willing to pay. You should bid late, so you don't convey information to other buyers about how much the item is worth (which would make them willing to pay more), but you don't need to bid VERY late. If you don't win an auction, it's because someone else was willing to pay more than you. While ebay only makes them pay a dollar or so more, don't be mislead by that; chances are their maximum bid was actually much higher.

Remember that winning any sort of auction can end up being a pyrrhic victory, in that unless everyone has underestimated the item's value, the winner will end up paying more than it is worth.

Also if you do win an item, you're almost certain to see another sell cheaper. You'll also see others selling for more, but you won't take so much notice of them.

Here's another vote for bidding by proxy. It's a good thing to not be concerned about other's seeing your bid. If you get lured into a bidding war you'll end up making a decision that you'll regret. Proxy is ideal because you never pay more than you think something's worth. If you're inflating your bid to counter another's actions, you're only cheating yourself. And sniping is a sign that you're falling prey to bidding wars all too often.

I mean the generic "you," of course.