Newbie to pin trading - need help!

[diggdug]

This isn't so much for me as it is for my DS8. Last summer we were in Disneyland and he wanted to buy some pins. Well of course we didn't because we had not budgeted for them. I had never heard about pin trading before.

My sons buddies are into pin trading this year and He wants to get involved. We're going to DLR in August and I would like to make sure he's up to speed by then. So my question is, where do I get him started? There seem to be so many resources! What does he need to get started? What are the must haves? I'd like him to have a good experience at this.

Thanks in advance for the advice!!

 

[diggdug]

Bump - No one has any advice to offer?

 

[daber]

Ok I'll take a stab at it. First and foremost the idea is to have FUN.

Second, there's a site called pinpics.com which is a database of all the Disney pins that us collectors know about and there's now over 30,000. So don't even try to collect a complete set. Pick a theme or two and just go after those pins.

Third, a lanyard is something we wear around our necks to display pins, either ones we want to show off, or for trade.
The CMs wear lanyards to trade with the guests. A CM must trade with a guest if the pin the guest wishes to trade has a Disney copyright on the back and they don't have one of that pin on their lanyard. So trading with CMs is a great way to start. To trade with another guest, you have to have a pin I want and I have to have a pin you want, and we have to feel that the trade is equitable.

Another interesting sidelight is that CM lanyards have what we call lanyard pins. These are pins that you can't buy, you can only get them by trading with a CM.

Not sure about DLR, but at WDW there are different colored lanyards. A green lanyard is one that a CM will only trade with kids (not sure what age is the cut-off)

Other terms rack pin ....a pin with no edition size.
LE pin....... a pin with a specific number issued
CM pin...... a pin only sold to Cast Members at Co. D.
Auction pin.... sold on the Disney Auction site of e-bay
I know there's someplace on this board which has FAQs, but I don't know where it is. Hope this helps.....it's a start!
Again, HAVE FUN!

 

[diggdug]

Originally posted by daber
Ok I'll take a stab at it. First and foremost the idea is to have FUN.


Another interesting sidelight is that CM lanyards have what we call lanyard pins. These are pins that you can't buy, you can only get them by trading with a CM.

Awesome, thank you so much for the input. So do you just ask the CM which are his lanyard pins?

I've been tempted just to buy some pins at our local Disney store or from their online store. Is that an acceptable way to start? Since he/we are new to this, I don't want to buy any auction items since I don't yet know how to judge quality, etc.

 

[daber]

I've never asked the CM because I know what the lanyard pins are, but why not? (go to pinpics and there is a group labeled Lanyard Series I, II, III etc that will show you what they look like. Just tell them you're new to pin trading and have heard about the lanyard pins and are there any on their lanyard. If the CM is knowledgeable, they will answer you, but some may not know.

Also, the CM may not have lanyard pins on their lanyard because someone else sucked them off the lanyard before you got there. Believe it or not, there are people who get there as the gates open run up to every CM and trade for every lanyard pin in the park within an hour. I may be exagerating, but only a little. But don't be discouraged, CMs do refresh their lanyards throughout the day and new CMs are always walking onstage. The hunt for the pin you want is what makes it fun.....and sometimes frustrating. You will learn patience with this hobby.

Buying pins at your local TDS is a great idea. The pins sold there right now are about $4.50 and the ones at the parks start at 6 and go up from there. Since they won't be sold at the parks, there shouldn't be too many on the CM lanyards. I wouldn't go with the catalog because those pins are normally LEs with a higher price tag and you have to include shipping costs, so TDS store pins are cheaper traders. But if you see something in the catalog or on-line that you want to put into your collection, then that's the only place to get it unless you plan to trade for it later.

 

[ontariodisneywoman]

You cansometimes find good prices for pins on ebay also. Watch for lot sales. Use pinpics.com to verify the pins (make sure they are real Disney pins). I'm not sure about DLR but at WDW they won't trade for the pins manufactured in Spain any longer (they have a black ccross-hatched back.

Try going to the Official Disney Pin Trading site
they have good hints and some basic 'rules' to follow.


Most of all, let your son Have fun trading... don't push him to choose one pin over another -let him choose the pins he likes....



Hopefully I have been helpful and if you have any more questions just PM me.

 

[CoolDisneyCat]

Only thing I would add to all this great advice is to have your son pick a theme. Does he love Buzz Lightyear or some other movie? Maybe he would rather have pins with the rides on them.. or simply a favorite character.

Keeping him narrowed down will save $$.

 

[amiejoy]

I say go to Ezboard then go to dizpins on ezboard. they are very helpful. also every wed @ 8 pm there is a chat for new traders. they will asnwer anything you want to know.


Amie

 

[ValerieK]

Have your DS be careful trading with other pin traders. I had my Ds always trade with a CM. We had one pin trader at DTD give my DS a hard time because my son had a pin he wanted and DS wouldn't trade. I thought it was totally inappropriate for a grown man with 1,00s of pins bully a 10 year old. My DS was only interested in learning more about pins and how to know if they were good ones are not. DS didn't trade as many pins after that. It still makes me mad thinking about it.

My DS did have a lot of fun with it and is interested in getting more pins and trading on our next trips. It is very expensive though. I bought a bunch of pins on a lanyard off ebay. Good luck.

 

[shirley 38]

Here is what I use to do and it was fun.
1 Go to Ebay
2 Hit the search button
3 Hit the advance search button
4 Hit the buton that says lowest price pins
You can get pins for .99 cents but buyer beware of shipping cost
Read everything about what they have to say.

Also in the advance search you can hit pins ending first. If there are no bids on them and there is only 2 minutes left go for it.

Pin Pics will tell you what a pin looks like and a discription of he pins. You can go into Brouse Pins and start with pin one and keep looking.
The smaller numbers are the oldest pins and hard to find.
It is a very good way to educatue yourself and your son.

BY THE WAY HI DABER.

 

[daber]

Shirley....you're back???? It's been a long time! How's John and the hat? I've been traveling way too much these past few months and haven't been to TDS.

 

[diggdug]

Thank you all for the advice. We're looking forward to the trip and to getting some pins for my DS to trade.

 

[Figgy]

welcome to pin trading. The only thing I have to add is on pinpics there is a link on the left side that says Pin Groups. There you can find groups that members have put together that show some of the themes you can do... such as characters or the lanyard series of pins. You can print them out and then take them with you so that it can help you spot what you want. Later as you get started you can actually keep track of which pins you own, have for trade, or want via pinpics by creating an account...

figgy