By all means take a first punt by offering slightly more than the current bid and see what happens. If your bid is immediately superceded and it's not near the end of the auction, bide your time and keep a watching brief.
Closer to the end of the auction, probably with 10-15 minutes to go, take another look at where the price has got to and if it is still within your limits, keep watching. If it's already exceeded your maximum price just walk away and look for another auction of the same thing.
If you are still within your limit, perhaps make a revised bid with 5 minutes to go, again just above the current one and see what happens. If you are gazumped, keep edging it up as the auction moves closer to ending until you are either at your limit or are winning. Keep watching until the end because there are 'sniping' tools out there that will still bid in the last minute.
One small trick, particularly when the auction is nearing its end is to edge the bids up with 'strange amounts.' Most people think in terms of whole pounds, some now have cottoned on to this and now bid with 50p but be more obscure, perhaps place a bid with 79p on the end so it blows away anyone working in pounds or 50p increments and also covers those working in 25p ones too.
That's my strategy if I'm around when the auction is ending which is when the fun happens. If I'm not around when it is ending and have to rely on the automated tools, it takes some of the excitement away but sometimes that can't be avoided.
Have fun with it but don't end up bidding against me or things might get really weird.
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