I Need A Pin Trading 101

[jcross74]

We are heading back to Disney in 5 days and last year on my daughter's first trip we saw the pins and lanyards but I wasn't sure how to go about starting her on it. Can someone explain what I would do? Do you start with a lanyard and a few pins and then trade them? I would like to understand it before we arrive.
Thanks!

 

[ktlm]

Buy her a lanyard and a starter type pin set. I would look for a set that maybe has a bunch of the smaller pins (they did have toddler princess set that I think had 8 or 9 pins in the set) where the price per pin is not that high. If possible, make the pins ones she doesn't really like and will be willing to trade. ( Don't go spending a ton of money per pin for some of the really fancy single pins unless you are absolutely sure she will keep that one, because chances are, she will trade that expensive pin for a cheap pin or a fake.) After that, all you do is keep an eye out for CMs with lanyards - some Any CM that has a lanyard, she can walk up to and ask if she can see their pins. They will say yes. If they have one she likes, then she can pick one of her pins to trade and ask them to trade with her. They will say yes and the trade will be made. Some places will also have pin boards out sometimes that you can trade from too- so keep an eye out for those. You often see them at the DVC or concierge counters at the resort- out at some of the resort activites etc. Of course, once she has traded all of the ones you bought her for ones she is not willing to trade again and give up for something else, she will be begging you for more pins! Trading is really fun!

 

[rf53]

We are heading back to Disney in 5 days and last year on my daughter's first trip we saw the pins and lanyards but I wasn't sure how to go about starting her on it. Can someone explain what I would do? Do you start with a lanyard and a few pins and then trade them? I would like to understand it before we arrive.
Thanks!

Pin Trading 101: Buy some Disney pins (no non-Disney pins allowed). Find a cast member who has a lanyard on waist pin pad with pins on them (they are at every park, and at DTD, etc.). Ask them to trade. Select one from their supply and give them one of yours (which you select to give up). Cast members must trade.

Pin Trading 102: Lanyards and other devices to keep your pins are nice, but not needed. You can keep your pins in your pocket, or purse if you like. The lanyards and starter pins are available at all shops, but they can be expensive. If you have the time, pick up a batch of Disney trader pins from Ebay and have your kids use those to trade. No sense having them trade their expensive new pins for a potentially cheap pin a cast member may have because they like the character on it... Been there!

With 5 days until departure your best bet may be to buy the cheapest starter set available.

 

[niroc]

If you have the time, pick up a batch of Disney trader pins from Ebay and have your kids use those to trade. No sense having them trade their expensive new pins for a potentially cheap pin a cast member may have because they like the character on it... Been there!

Beware of these trader pins on Ebay. Chances are they are fake (aka scappers) and shouldn't be traded in the parks. If a CM recognizes the pin as fake it is the only time when a CM won't be allowed to trade with you.

 

[jcross74]

Thanks for the tips - my daughter is six and I think she will love this. I will see if I have time to order something online and if not I will get a lanyard and starter set when we arrive!

 

[ktlm]

Thanks for the tips - my daughter is six and I think she will love this. I will see if I have time to order something online and if not I will get a lanyard and starter set when we arrive!

6 is a great age. I think you can get a lanyard starter set - which has a lanyard and 4 pins for right at $25. Beware though- if you do that with a Princess set, you might find that she won't trade any of the pins. 4 pins go fast too. There are sets without lanyards of 7 pins for $29.95- most are the mini pins but some are more regular sized- but the minis trade the same as regular sized. You can trade a mini for a regular size with a CM. The sets I know they have right now among probably a bunch of others are a Princess shoe set and a mademoiselle Minnie (with some artsy looking tall skinny Minnies), and I know they have some mini pins of baby Disney characters and of just the princesses. Then a lanyard is about $9 or $10 extra. One thing we found out from a CM, is that if your DD has any type of sensitive skin, it is better to buy one of the silky lanyards than to use one of the rougher material ones, which are the kind that usually come in the starter packs. DD was getting red marks on her neck from her 1st lanyard and was making DH or I wear it a lot because it was rubbing her neck and hurting. A CM told us that if we got the silky kind of lanyard it wouldn't do that to her neck, so we did and she was absolutely right. It was much better. DD still dumps it on DH or I when it feels heavy after a while, but not because it hurts anymore.

I don't know where you are staying, but if you are on property, most of the resort gift stores have a pin area inside them, so you should be able to pick something up on arrival if you want something before you hit a park. You will find them all over the parks.

 

[disneylovin24]

Heads up since you are staying at the WL, they have a pin cart with a decent selection of pins so you can pick some up there to start

 

[sharonabe]

Here's a link to disneystore.com and one of the multiple pin sets that doesn't cost too much:

http://www.disneystore.com/disney-character-cupcake-pin-set-7-pc/mp/1285607/1000286/

 

[figment_jii]

Here is a link to some of the basic guidelines from Disney:
http://www.disneyparksmerchandise.com/parksauthentic/disney-pin-trading-guidelines-for-guests/

Some other basic information about pin trading...
I would also recommend looking into buying some starter sets pins or lanyard pin sets. If you live near a Disney Store Outlet, I would check those also for inexpensive pins. Finally, the DisneyStore.com sometimes have pins on the clearance sale section of the site.

If you buy pins on eBay, be aware that many of the pin lots (e.g., bulk buying) tend to include scrapper pins. These look like official Disney pins, but they're technically pins that are not legitimate. They can be anything from over-runs to pins that failed quality control tests to outright knock offs (think Ariel with brown hair, Belle's yellow ballgown is green, etc.). If the pins tend to less than $1.50 each, that's generally a sign it'll be scrappers. Now having said all of that, if you daughter trades with CM's there is a 99.9% chance likelihood that at some point she'll get a scrapper. They're pretty prevalent on the CM lanyards. For some, that's a deal breaker, for others it's just something to be aware of, but it's not a big deal. It's up to you to decide how much getting scrappers would bother you.

In terms of trading with CMs, they will always accept the trade as long as a few basic requirements are met. The pin must have the Disney copyright logo on the back, it must be in "good" condition, it cannot be personalized, and they cannot already have the same one on their lanyard. Other than that, they'll accept it. Trading with CMs is "safe" because you don't risk rejection or scams.

Now, there are also "professional" traders. These are folks that are trying to make money while trading. I'm sure there are some nice/honest ones, but most that I've run across seem to be trying to take advantage of other (less expert) guests. If they ask you to buy them a pin in exchange for one of theirs or make anything other than a one-for-one trade, I'd walk away.

As for the lanyard, that depends on your daughter. I'd consider having a little baggie or something to put the pins that she really wants to keep into. The lanyard are great for displaying pins, but pins can fall off and be lost. Also, the lanyards can get heavy over time and get snagged on things.

In addition to the CMs that are wearing lanyards (some around the neck and some at their waist), there are also pin books and boards scattered throughout the resorts and parks. You never know where one might be, so keep your eyes open and be sure to ask! A lot of the Guest Service locations in the park have one, as due some of the resort check-in desks.

Pin trading is a lot of fun, but it can be very addictive! Just keep that in mind and be aware that you might be starting something from which there is no return!

 

[beldred]

I never realized fake pins were such a problem! How can you tell if you have one of these "scrapper" pins (outside of the obvious errors mentioned in color and such)?

 

[Reddog1134]

I never realized fake pins were such a problem! How can you tell if you have one of these "scrapper" pins (outside of the obvious errors mentioned in color and such)?

A lot of times, you can't.

 

[way2tyred]

.r?

 

[ObsessedWithDW]

No it doesn't! The only people that truly worry about "scrappers" are the ones that are trying to complete sets and make money. I trade for pins I like without concern for fakes. In fact some of the pins I have traded for are known scrappers and are some of my favorite pins.

 

[disneylovin24]

No it doesn't! The only people that truly worry about "scrappers" are the ones that are trying to complete sets and make money. I trade for pins I like without concern for fakes. In fact some of the pins I have traded for are known scrappers and are some of my favorite pins.

This is how I feel. I buy pins to get ones that I like and that I want to look at to remember trips/movies/shows/good times. I probably will never get rid of them so it doesn't matter if a pin I really like to look at is not an official Disney one

 

[jbish]

Not pin trading related, directly, but since it's helpful information for a newbie, I'll ask here - does anyone have problems with the pin backs falling off? This past time I went, I even bought the "locks" and locked all of my pins. I was so disappointed when I looked at my bag and found one missing!! Another one fell off too but fortunately it was still right there where I was sitting. I'm not a pin "trader" but usually buy one or two each trip to commemorate.

 

[rf53]

Beware of these trader pins on Ebay. Chances are they are fake (aka scappers) and shouldn't be traded in the parks. If a CM recognizes the pin as fake it is the only time when a CM won't be allowed to trade with you.

I beg to disagree. I have purchased two batches on Ebay from reputable dealers. They are basically old smaller Disney pins that are a bit worn, but nevertheless genuine. They include genuine Disney pin backs. My son has never had a problem. In fact, from time to time he will actually find a cool vintage "trader" in the batch he keeps for his own "collection".

... and not that I promote the use of fake pins (since that would offend the sensibilities of the true collectors out there), but trust me, the CM's aren't looking beyond the obvious anyway. They could give a hoot if the pin is old, worn, a scrapper, etc. when a six year old comes up to them asking for their Minnie Mouse pin. Its all about fun for kids. Like everything else... it is really when the hard core crowd gets involved that things go south.

 

[figment_jii]

I never realized fake pins were such a problem! How can you tell if you have one of these "scrapper" pins (outside of the obvious errors mentioned in color and such)?

As a PP said, sometimes it's very hard to tell if a pin is a scrapper or not. In the end, there is really no fool-proof way to identify a scrapper. Many scrapers have the same design as a legitimate pin, but the coloration might be slightly different (e.g., medium orange instead of light-medium orange). So, unless you have one of the non-scrappers in your hand for direct comparison, it's probably nearly impossible to identify the scrapper versus non-scrapper.

I mostly agree with the PPs that say pin collecting is just for fun and I don't worry too much about scrappers. That being said, when I do see a pin with obviously weird/wrong colors, spelling errors, etc. I tend to avoid them.

Not pin trading related, directly, but since it's helpful information for a newbie, I'll ask here - does anyone have problems with the pin backs falling off?

As you found, even the locking backs aren't going to be 100% safe. I use the locking backs from Disney as well, but make sure to re-tighten them each night. It's not fool-proof, but I haven't lost any pins due to the backs coming loose on all of my travels. (The only pin I've lost got snagged on a ride vehicle and pulled off.)

 

[Sandy321]

when dd was little someone here recommended buying pins from mouse pinsonlinedotcom - and get a grab bag - I actually hooked up with a Diser to split a grab bag! IT was the best thing! There were pins dd fell in love with and wouldn't trade, and then lots of pins to trade.

From reading here, it seems that pins are going away, slowly - the Magic Bands are coming about, and blinging them seems to be catching on!

I will say like the PP stated, losing the backs of pins is annoying - and the Lanyards got very heavy - so we had pins on the lanyard, but I kept the lanyard in my bag....

we still have them, and we do have great memories!

 

[disneylovin24]

when dd was little someone here recommended buying pins from mouse pinsonlinedotcom - and get a grab bag - I actually hooked up with a Diser to split a grab bag! IT was the best thing! There were pins dd fell in love with and wouldn't trade, and then lots of pins to trade.

From reading here, it seems that pins are going away, slowly - the Magic Bands are coming about, and blinging them seems to be catching on!

In regards to pins slowly going away, I may have to agree with that. Usually during a trip I buy 10-15 pins but last week I bought like 5. I was very disappointed with the pin selection and I think it may be because they are not popular and WDW are not coming out with new ones. But on the other hand, all Holiday pins were out by the 28th so I guess those were still popular I saw the Candlelight processional on the 28th and wanted a Holidays Around the World pin for 2013!

As for MB bling - my family tried them and HATED them. They aren't very secure and kept getting in our way, would not put anything on the bands next trip. And actually on that note, I personally saw very few other people with bling on their bands. In fact, I only saw one woman with a cover and none with gems. (Yes, I was looking at other bands because I was curious what colors people had)

I will say like the PP stated, losing the backs of pins is annoying - and the Lanyards got very heavy - so we had pins on the lanyard, but I kept the lanyard in my bag....

we still have them, and we do have great memories!

I haven't carried my pins in the park for years on a lanyard solely because I am afraid of losing them. My pins are too valuable to me memory wise!

 

[Shadowcat70]

Not pin trading related, directly, but since it's helpful information for a newbie, I'll ask here - does anyone have problems with the pin backs falling off? This past time I went, I even bought the "locks" and locked all of my pins. I was so disappointed when I looked at my bag and found one missing!! Another one fell off too but fortunately it was still right there where I was sitting. I'm not a pin "trader" but usually buy one or two each trip to commemorate.

We have that problem too. I read on the boards here somewhere that the best thing to use is the butterfly clutch pin backs. We're going to buy a bag of like 50 of them off Amazon to hold our pins on the lanyards. I heard they work wonderfully!