Pin Trading - I'm missing something...

[thorphin]

Ok, there are some really awesome pins out there. I get the desire to collect pins. I have 8-10 that I'm in love with and they are all attached to my park bag.

But here's the thing. I bought them because I thought they were really neat. Why would I trade them out with other people's pins? And why wouldn't I just spend money to buy the pins I really want, rather than trading the pins I paid for for the ones I didn't?

Obviously, I'm missing something... but I just don't understand the mechanics. Do you think most pin traders buy pins really cheap to trade away? Or do you think people buy lots of pins on impulse and then trade them out when they get bored of them?

I'd buy some on clearance and take them to the parks to trade for ones that are more interesting, but this seems.... less than desirable... doesn't seem fair to intentionally try to trade low value pins for higher value pins just because you know the CMs won't deny it. I guess there's also the risk that you might accidentally trade out for a scrapper...

Anyway, please help me understand the logistics of this very popular hobby!

 

[moorhunhe]

I think mainly because there are so many pins out there, if you are collecting a specific series / character / movie the only way to obtain them is by to trade with others (or pay for them, but there are people who prefer trading over selling).

I never understood it myself really, lol.
I only collect Lion King, so therefor I only want Lion King pins.

But I've just gotten really into this, where I'm focussing on these Lion King pins a bit more then other things for my entire collection, and once in a while I do just buy a pin now (limited editions mainly), so hopefully in the future I can trade it for a much high needed Lion King pin someone has, instead of paying a ridiculous price like +100 $ (and some pins do go for A LOT more then that).

So then in the end I can be glad, I only payed like 15 $ for the pin I didn't really needed so I could trade it for something I did really want without having to pay all that money.

But I guess everyone else has their opinion on it, this is just my point of view

 

[pixiewings71]

some pins are only obtainable by trading.

 

[figment_jii]

some pins are only obtainable by trading.

This!

Disregarding the issue of scrappers...the hidden Mickey pins are only available (at least initially) by trading with a CM. If it happens to be your favorite character, wouldn't you want to trade for that pin? I love to trade for pins. For example, my favorite character is Figment and last year when I went to WDW they had a whole new line of Figment pins for the CM lanyards. Trading was the only way to get them.

 

[micmac727]

I'm a big pin trader myself and I usually buy a bag of 50 pins off of eBay for a really cheap price, then I trade those pins for the ones I really like. Instead of buying pins you love, you can just trade the ones you really don't like in the bag of 50 (which is usually most of them) for really nice ones. Have fun pin trading!

 

[CarolinaGirlTiss]

Also...in some rare cases you might find a pin that was for sale years ago, maybe from a certain year. That you normally won't find in the stores. I just got a 2007 St. Patrick's Day pin off ebay that I love. Obviously I didn't trade for that but in the lot I got another 2007 pin that I don't really want. I plan to trade it when we go to Disney this coming week. Someone might see it on the CM's lanyard after I trade and score a pin they have been looking for or a character they really like.

 

[CarolinaGirlTiss]

I'm a big pin trader myself and I usually buy a bag of 50 pins off of eBay for a really cheap price, then I trade those pins for the ones I really like. Instead of buying pins you love, you can just trade the ones you really don't like in the bag of 50 (which is usually most of them) for really nice ones. Have fun pin trading!

I truly hope you have read the good/bad sellers thread here and know which ebay sellers to buy from. It sounds like you could be getting scrapper pins.

 

[mad madam mim78]

I haven't traded any pins. I just buy the ones I like. I don't know what I do if I saw one on a cm lanyard I just had to have. I guess I'd trade .

 

[micmac727]

I truly hope you have read the good/bad sellers thread here and know which ebay sellers to buy from. It sounds like you could be getting scrapper pins.

Yes I have, I know which sellers to buy from. I never had a problem with any of the pins I have ordered.

 

[micmac727]

I haven't traded any pins. I just buy the ones I like. I don't know what I do if I saw one on a cm lanyard I just had to have. I guess I'd trade .

I would recommend a pin book to keep your favorite pins in. The ones you want to trade you should wear on your lanyard so you can trade more pins and get more pins to put into your pin book.