Newbie Pin Trading Qs

[RainyDayPixie]

Headed down to DL in 3 WEEKS!!!

I think my DS 5 will love pin trading and it is something that might keep him happy in lines, etc. I've bought 14 pins on ebay (from a reputable Disboard approved seller, all supposed to be authentic).

Will this be enough?

Where is the best/cheapest place to get a lanyard?

Are there Star Wars pins? I can't for the life of me remember!!

Thanks!!

 

[Tink91]

Headed down to DL in 3 WEEKS!!!

I think my DS 5 will love pin trading and it is something that might keep him happy in lines, etc. I've bought 14 pins on ebay (from a reputable Disboard approved seller, all supposed to be authentic).

Will this be enough?

Where is the best/cheapest place to get a lanyard?

Are there Star Wars pins? I can't for the life of me remember!!

Thanks!!

How Fun!!
How long will you be going to DL for?

I am a Pin Trading obsessed person so I took 50 for 5 days Although seeing as your son is only 5 14 should be enough!

I get a new lanyard every year and get it from 7/11, they are only about $5.99 and I keep my spare pins in the little pouch and put my DL pass and Fast passes in the plastic section attached to the pouch.

I have only ever seen Vinylmation SW pins - but I dont really look for SW pins so don't hold me to that

Good luck!

 

[Ariel224]

14 pins will be plenty. My own lanyard comfortably holds 10-12 before they start going too high up on my neck. My kids currently have about 13-15 pins each and I just gave them an extra lanyard so that they would have 2 each....one for "keepers" and one for "traders." One thing to remember on a young child is that the pins become quite heavy on their little necks, so it will be easier on them to just wear a few at a time.

Lanyards are available all over the parks where pins are sold. You can get them on ebay. If you booked a package and have the little coupon book full of extras, there is usually a ticket for a free pin and lanyard.

I know I've seen Star Wars pins. The ones I've seen are Disney characters dressed up as Star Wars characters (like Minnie as Princess Leia).

You might also want to invest in some locking pin backs. The ones that come with the pins aren't 100% reliable, and nothing spells disaster like a 5 year old losing a prized pin! It also keeps them from constantly taking their pins on/off/on/off and then fingers get poked! (Can you tell we've been there done that?) I get mine off of ebay from a seller by the name of disneypatriot. I've bought from him twice in the past year. Very nice quality and fast shipping.

Have fun!!!!

 

[Lillian Gracey]

14 pins will be plenty. My own lanyard comfortably holds 10-12 before they start going too high up on my neck. My kids currently have about 13-15 pins each and I just gave them an extra lanyard so that they would have 2 each....one for "keepers" and one for "traders." One thing to remember on a young child is that the pins become quite heavy on their little necks, so it will be easier on them to just wear a few at a time.

Lanyards are available all over the parks where pins are sold. You can get them on ebay. If you booked a package and have the little coupon book full of extras, there is usually a ticket for a free pin and lanyard.

I know I've seen Star Wars pins. The ones I've seen are Disney characters dressed up as Star Wars characters (like Minnie as Princess Leia).

You might also want to invest in some locking pin backs. The ones that come with the pins aren't 100% reliable, and nothing spells disaster like a 5 year old losing a prized pin! It also keeps them from constantly taking their pins on/off/on/off and then fingers get poked! (Can you tell we've been there done that?) I get mine off of ebay from a seller by the name of disneypatriot. I've bought from him twice in the past year. Very nice quality and fast shipping.

Have fun!!!!

This! I lost one of my Alice in Wonderland pins while I was at school one day and I was so devastated. I was in tears because it was my favorite pin.

 

[KJay]

There are lots of Star Wars pins available! Some are pure Star Wars, and some are disney characters dressed in SW gear, as the pp mentioned. My favorite is the Storm Trooper eating a Mickey Mouse head dark chocolate ice cream, with the quote "Get a taste of the dark side".

I second the idea of getting some locking pins, for favorites that he won't be trading. The regular backs do come off pretty easily.

Have fun!!

 

[LavenderPeach]

I got some cheap lanyards online for about $2.50. I wish I could remember what site but it was a couple years ago. But DH got his lanyard at DLR and it is much softer feeling on the neck. The cheap ones are just a bit scratchy so you might want to think about getting a "real" one. Plus they have kid sized ones in the parks.

 

[Lillian Gracey]

At Party City, I got a Princess lanyard for 99 cents. I think they had a Toy Story one as well. You could check there.

 

[RainyDayPixie]

How Fun!!
How long will you be going to DL for?

Good luck!

3 days. I'm hoping it's enough. We're going Wed Dec 1-Fri Dec 3, flying home Sat. Hoping for low crowds!

Thanks for all the tips, everyone! I think I will order some backs (better do that now!!). DS would be devastated if he lost one. He's loves little treasures!

DEFINITELY going to check Party City. That's great!!

I hope I can find the Star Wars one you mention KJay!!

One last Q: How much are the park lanyards?

 

[bumbershoot]

This is a great page to give you an overview of trading. There's also a link to a PDF in there of the official rules etc.


I cannot remember if DS was 4 or 5, but he thought he liked trading. Traded with my husband for a pin. Husband traded it with someone else for something he liked more. A few months later, DS wanted his pin back. He didn't realize the finality of the trade, that it wasn't HIS anymore. So either be prepared for that or really try to make sure he gets it. Of course, trading with a stranger, and having that stranger walk away, does make it a bit more obvious. And starting with pins that he doesn't care about (DS thought that his pin scared him, which is why he traded, even though he was the one that picked it out in the first place).

Disney lanyards are 5.95 or so. Not a bad price at all, IMO.

 

[pixiewings71]

Thank You for using the eBay thread OP.
14 pins might be enough, if not there will be booster packs at the parks for about $4 a pin, you can get those for trading as well. Lanyards are $6 and up in the parks, depends on whether or not you get a lanyard by itself or you get a starter pack that has pins. You can find lanyards other places as well, someone mentioned Party City, Michael's has them sometimes too, as well as Wal-Mart, you just have to look for them.
Keep an eye out for the kids only lanyards too, they are teal and only for kids 12 and under, my kids found lots of good pins that way. Enjoy trading and have a great time at DL!

 

[justliketink]

If the pins you got from ebay have Disney stamped on the back, you should be fine.

Definitely look for the teal lanyards as pixiewings said. They usually have nice pins on them and only children can trade for a pin on the teal lanyards.

Also, cast members wear them on their necks and around their waists. And if you are at a cash register, a lot of times, the check-out cm's have their lanyards in a drawer or hanging on a nail. Just ask to see them.

And most street sweepers have pins. Keep an eye out. They love to trade.

And beware of non-cast-members wanting to trade. Most are lovely people, but some have tried to trade with my kids because they know my kid has a "valuable" pin on his lanyard and we didn't even know. But then again, some have given us pins that we needed to complete a set. So you never know.

And look for hidden mickeys! If there is a little mickey head on the pin, it is probably from a hidden mickey set that you can only get by trading. My kids LOVED looking for hidden mickeys on the pins. You can see if it is a cast member set by reading the words on the back.

And I agree with bumbershoot about trading a pin that you really wanted. My daughter traded a Nala pin when she was small and began sobbing a few minutes later. Luckily, we went back to the cm and she still had the pin and we traded to get it back. She still has that pin today and she is 14! And we have waaaaay too many pins in our house because we love to trade!!!

The big pin trading places in DL are at the Buzz Lightyear store and the store right next to the Golden Horseshoe. They usually have a bunch of lanyards. The frontierland store has had books we could look through.

And I agree about the locking backs. They are a pain to lock and unlock (you need a little L wrench, but they won't fall off the lanyard.

Have fun!!!!!!

 

[Queenbillabong]

And I agree about the locking backs. They are a pain to lock and unlock (you need a little L wrench, but they won't fall off the lanyard.

Have fun!!!!!!

There are actually some awesome locking backs that you do not need to have an L-wrench to unlock. You just have to push down while you pull - easy peasy and no falling pins!

 

[RainyDayPixie]

Great link, Bumbershoot! Thanks!

Pixiewings79/Justliketink- I haven't gotten the pins yet, but the seller is listed on the DisBoard thread as good, has 100% positive feedback and says they're authentic. We'll see! I got some "boring" ones that hopefully DS will want to part with (like a Miss Piggy one, etc.). I paid $2-3 per pin. I had no idea that the huge lots were fakes and shouldn't be traded! I'm glad I investigated before I bought.

Great tips, everyone! We'll see how he likes it, but I'm guessing we'll end up buying a few more and only trading with CMs. And $6 for a lanyard in the park is not bad at all!

 

[pixiewings71]

Great link, Bumbershoot! Thanks!

Pixiewings79/Justliketink- I haven't gotten the pins yet, but the seller is listed on the DisBoard thread as good, has 100% positive feedback and says they're authentic. We'll see! I got some "boring" ones that hopefully DS will want to part with (like a Miss Piggy one, etc.). I paid $2-3 per pin. I had no idea that the huge lots were fakes and shouldn't be traded! I'm glad I investigated before I bought.

Great tips, everyone! We'll see how he likes it, but I'm guessing we'll end up buying a few more and only trading with CMs. And $6 for a lanyard in the park is not bad at all!

That's great, again, thanks for using that thread! We try to keep it updated and like to see people using it. That's about what I try to pay per pin, $2-3 is reasonable imo. After you get the pins please pop back into that thread and let us know how it goes. And if you have ANY questions please let us know.

 

[jemilah]

we have so many pins we had to get a bag , the lanyards were just too heavy! We got backs from ebay that lock , the ones sold at DL dont always work and I can pull them off easily