Are all pins on ebay fakes?

[CandleontheWater]

I am really paranoid about the pins I buy on ebay. I make sure they are not pro-pins or sedesma, but I'm still worried that they are fakes. I just bought a lot of 30, and while most of them look really good, there are one or two that look dodgy. The individual I bought them from said they were all traded for in the parks, and I know there are fakes on CMs lanyards, so that might account for the one or two off-looking ones. Is there a way to tell for sure if a pin is a fake? Do you all have any good hints? And if all the pins on ebay are not fakes, how on earth can they sell lots of pins for $2-$3 and make any money, when they cost much more than that in the parks?

 

[wdw4us2]

Not all pins on ebay are fakes. I have bought and sold pins on there many times.

In answer to your question, many of these pins were purchased in lots a long time ago, for much less money than pins cost now. Up until the mid 1990's, most pins for sale at WDW and DL cost $3.95-$4.95. The prices didn't start going up until right before pin trading began for the Millennium Celebration.

I found a seller that I bought several individual pins from. I asked if he had lots available and he did so I purchased from him for a few years. I also picked up sets that were for sale on Disneyshopping.com and the Disney Stores and used those to trade with. Now I have enough traders that I don't have to worry about it.

If you want more info on fake pins, go to this link on Dizpins:

http://www.dizpins.com/pinventory/scrappers.htm

If you have any other questions, post again and I'll try to answer them for you.

 

[CandleontheWater]

So now I think I'm even more paranoid. I looked at the link that you encluded and I have many of those pins. I've bought many pins from the Disney store to trade, and I'd hate to think I've been duped by fakes. Many of the pins on in the posting are cast lanyard, is there a way to tell a real cast lanyard from a fake cast lanyard. Someone told me once that real pins have two prongs sticking out from the pin back, but fakes only have one. Is this true?

 

[wdw4us2]

I don't think you should get worked up about the pins being counterfeit. If you're just trading with Cast Members for pins on their lanyards, you shouldn't have a problem.

Most of the CM's won't take the Sedesma pins anymore. Could you check on PinPics for the pins you purchased and post the pin #s? We could then check them out and maybe set your mind at ease.

BTW, when my kids and I trade. most of the time the CM's just turn the pin over to make sure it's backstamped Disney. I think you'll be okay.

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

The number of prongs on the back of a pin doesn't tell you anything. The majority of counterfeits probably are cast lanyard series pins, but it is HARD to sort out which are fakes. There is a section on DizPins called "Comparisons" where people post a real pin beside a fake and point out the differences.

For the most part the back stamp info is wrong, but there can be multiple different back stamps for authentic pins, too. That's where Disney shot themselves in the foot. By changing the terminology and the font on their own authentic pins, they have made it next to impossible to tell which pins are fakes!

We have some pins where the back says D sney. We have pins that are numbered incorrectly - 3 of 4 when that particular one should be 1 of 4. We have pins that the back stamp is all off center and tilted to one side.

It infuriates me to go to the parks with traders from the Disney Store and Disney Shopping and come home with a bag full of counterfeit crap from eBay, but it's unavoidable. It's best not to think of it like that or you will drive yourself nuts.

 

[GoofyWaterCoaster]

Is there any way to tell if a pin is fake after you get it?

 

[Dancenash]

There is a new set of lollypop limited edition you can get in a tin. There are fake ones. The real ones have two little points the fake ones have nothing.

 

[CandleontheWater]

Ok, that might have been what they were refering too about the prongs. I have another ebay question. Should you try and avoid individuals who show pictures of pins in little plastic baggies. Does that mean that they are fakes, or is it just a common way to sort them. What about individuals selling huge ammounts of pin lots, are those people likely selling counterfit pins?

 

[DansBride2009]

i worked for walt disney world at the pin booth in the contemporary resort. from what i remember as long as it has 'disney' or 'official walt disney pin trading' on the back you should be fine. i don't rightly think i ever turned down someone who wanted to trade, except when we had too many of the same pin; because they would buy like 200 of the SAME pin in one lot. that's not fair to everyone else who wants to trade because then they have the same pins to look at over and over again.

but you should be fine. we'll basically take any 'disney' related pin. we don't take like, for example, a softball team came in and wanted to trade homemade pins with us, and that doesn't fly. i couldn't accept those. it can't be home made, and it has to be disney related.

i hope my post made sense and helped. if you have more questions feel free to pm me ! i have been pin collecting since 2004.

and generally ebaying is fine. i got a lot of good collectable pins from reputable sellers. check out what customers have to say about the seller and you should be fine.

 

[missj1975]

Ok, that might have been what they were refering too about the prongs. I have another ebay question. Should you try and avoid individuals who show pictures of pins in little plastic baggies. Does that mean that they are fakes, or is it just a common way to sort them. What about individuals selling huge ammounts of pin lots, are those people likely selling counterfit pins?

Yep, pins in plastic baggies is a common thought sign that the pins are scrappers. It usually means the seller bought the pins in mass quantities.

On the otherhand, maybe the pins aren't scrappers. It is really hard to tell because plastic baggies can be bought at craft stores and some traders do buy the bags to put their pins in so they don't get scratched. I have also seen managers take HM pins out of plastic baggies before handing them out to CM's. CM's can also purchase pins at their own merchandise store and those pins commonly come in little plastic baggies.

Are the individuals selling huge amount of lots selling fakes? Maybe, maybe not. No one can really know in less they are the seller themselves. There are many legit ways to buy Disney pins.

My advice is to look at the seller's feedback. And if you are worried about scrappers, keep up to date on the user comments at pinpics.com.

 

[wdwgirl03]

OK, now I am wondering about my ebay pins too (they're cast member ones). When I got them I thought they all looked official but now I guess I'm paranoid too. Is it a good sign if they all have the official pin trading logo on the back, or do the fake ones have that too? I guess I don't really care seeing as I don't intend to trade them anyway (and they look real to me...) but I'm still sort of curious.