I don't know that getting these through ebay auction would be the best idea. First, I think that ebay is the place where forgers or thieves might bring their items for sale. You might be better off going directly to a reputable artifacts dealer. And if you went to another auction site with less traffic you'd have less competition and may be able to get an item for a lower price. $20k+ seems like a lot for Sheridan's saddle.
True, but anymore alot of reputable dealers are using ebay. I dont know how famieler you are with the site but the live auctions are usaully pretty safe as bidders and sellers have to meet certain criteria before they can use ebay. And as for the expense, the civil war is hot right now and there are alot of people out there with more money then they know what to do with.
Yeah, I'm not familiar with ebay live auctions. I'm currently selling a textbook on regular ebay. As long as you're working with reputable dealers it's ok. I know of fraud perpetrated on the site in the past, so high priced items based on rather subjective valuations raise red flags for me.