OK, since the auction has gotten out of hand... I guess I will add some input on here. Some observations mind you. The seller is very friendly, he has taken the time to answer my questions, and to be honest, even agreed to a local pickup. This being said, he also will not provide pictures, will not answer about what the internals look like, and will only deal with cash or a bank transfer.
I was hoping the auction would stay low key, so that someone could get it (dump it) and do with it as they please (dump it)... but, as happens a lot, people post these things here and attract a lot of attention. So, now it is a collector war. The thing is, at <$500 it was a sizeable, but not terrible risk to take. At >$1500 where it is sitting now just about... it is getting crazy!
The seller does have a good history. IT may be real, it may be fake. Many of you know I am working on the conversion of this game from CD to MVS... what if you are paying that sort of money for a conversion? The big telling sign will be the audio, as it has been my stumbling block (since it is Redbooked). My curiosity is deffinetly peaked, but, I won't hold my breath on this one. You all with the big bucks can risk it, and if you get a 1 of a kind Iron Clad original cart... damn... you are one lucky SOB.
Have fun all,
-Nick