Pin trading tips and tricks!?

[MainMom]

I had a CM complain as well. It was our first trip and I had bought pins off eBay bc I had no idea the ones in lots are usually fakes.

My son was making a trade and he handed the CM one off his lanyard that he wanted to trade. She looked at it in disgust and said "This is a fake pin. It's called a scrapper. You can find out more information online" then she threw it in the trash right in front of us.

I was completely mortified and my son was upset. After that I read up on fake pins and started purchasing genuine ones to trade.

That's terrible! I hope you reported that CM.

 

[MommytoaPrince]

Another question, let's say you are trading with a cast member, do they pick the pin that they want or do you choose the pin that you trade to them?

 

[DisneyWorldbuff]

You tell the cast member which pin you would like from their lanyard. Then you may trade whichever pin of your own to give them as a trade. Easy peasy!

 

[rwdavis2]

I understand the idea of real pins. But they do not have any actual value anyway. They are retry much like Beanie Babies. Fun to collect but essentially worthless.

 

[gunderda]

I decided at the last minute to do this for my nephews. We're going next saturday so I ordered some pins and lanyards from ebay last night and they should get to me in time if the listings are accurate (sellers with lots of sales and good ratings).
I also kinda wanted to buy some so I could decorate the strap of my camera bag

And the other adults in my family (4 of us not including me) have been discussing lanyards to use for the Epcot drink around the world passports and were just going to bring some lanyards picked up at work conventions - but that's no fun! So now everyone will have a disney lanyard

It's going to be a surprise so I hope my nephews enjoy it.

 

[kimj88]

What about the pins or lots on Amazon, are they reliable, or just as risky as Ebay?

 

[Mommy2Jameson]

I've bought booster packs on ebay that were unopened and that's what I tend to use for trading in the parks. I get the ones with 7 pins for around 15.95 or 17.95 so it makes it cheaper. I also have bought starter sets from the Disney Store to use as trading pins. Again, I try to get the ones that have more pins that just the starter sets with 4 pins.

I've found that if I trade with CM's first thing in the morning I can find nicer pins on lanyards. For example, I stop in the store of my resort around 8am when they open and trade then and when I get to the park instead of heading right to the rides, I'll pin trade with CM's in the stores on the main drag of each park on my way through.

I do the same thing. I don't by the lots that are usually scrappers, but I have a couple ebay sellers that I always buy from that have NEW booster packs with 7 pins for 9-12 shipped. They are obviously from the outlets and are not the NEWEST pins available, but it's better than the $29.99 a pack they charge at WDW.

Also, I have a son, so I try and buy the princess/tinkerbell booster packs. Otherwise, he ends up wanting to keep them all! haha!

 

[broncobill]

About 6-7 years ago my daughter ended up getting a few pins that had a gold palm leave. A CM told us that those are limited editions. So keep an eye out for them.

 

[Lisaloo]

DD(12) has loved pins since she was 6. We let her buy a couple of special ones each visit and I always visit the gift shop before we leave and snag a few for her stocking. She is tickled to get them months after vacation. She only trades with CMs and she usually trades at gift shops at our resort and other resorts while we are waiting for meals, it cuts down on pin-time in the park.

 

[Wendybird55]

Trying to get back a bit to actual trading in Disney..My son has enjoyed pin trading for the past few years and he is now 8. I had pins from my many past trips to Disney that we started with. You can buy starter sets at Disney or they also sell mystery pins that may not be as expensive and if you purchase any you don't like you can trade....I one time purchased some pins off ebay for my sons birthday party. We made lanyards with pins as party favors for his friends and sorry I wasn't going to spend the $ needed to do this with actual pins from Disney. It was a favor...there were pins in this lot that I knew were legit and we kept them for trading.

Anyway...when you go in any store ask if they have a pin-trading book or board. Many stores - especially resort stores have them and there are many pins to look through for trading. Also ask at pin carts especially in resorts if they have pin trading board. Of course we always keep our eyes out for CMS with pins...however, I had to make sure my son understood that he needed to be patient as sometimes a CM was busy with another guest or otherwise occupied and we needed to wait before we could ask to look at their lanyards. This is especially true if you're in a busy store and the CM is at the register ringing up guest or your walking onto an attraction line and you want to stop to look as a CMs lanyard..

The people trading pins in the trading area in EPCOT are usually serious about trading and unless you get someone how is sympathetic to a young child it's not the best place for kids to trade. I find wearing a lanyard for my son is the least comfortable or effective...sometimes pins fall off..it gets uncomfortable around his neck. I have a small drawstring pouch I keep in my bag with his trading pins. And he now wears his own fanny pack in the park to carry his ipod, autograph book and some pins so he always has them handy if he wants. We bought a caulk board for his bedroom and that's where he displays his pins. Happy Trading

 

[Fizban]

Ok gonna bust a few bubbles here. The pins on ebay are as legit as the ones you buy in the park. Look on the back of them and they all have a stamp mark of C, meaning China. All of the junk sold in Disney is now made in China so there is no difference. We have been trading these pins for 5 years and have a cast member in the family so NO there is no reason to spend the extra $$.

 

[gunderda]

my starter pack is apparently trying to make the scenic route to me..... started in PA, suppose to ship to me in Iowa and be delivered today but is currently in California... so I hope it makes it way back quickly......cause I need it by Friday!!

 

[skullsplitter]

Stop by Guest Services at each park. Ask to look at their big book of pins.

 

[dprincessmom]

Green Lanyards on a CM are supposed to be for 12 and under only. You may find some cool ones there.

 

[aleksandr]

If you are concerned with scrapper pins, don't bother trading with CMs. The bulk of the pins on cast member lanyards are all fakes that got there by trading with guests who bought large lots off of ebay. Our pin trading has died down in the past few years because CMs rarely have anything new, or interesting. You'll find the same series of "Hidden Mickey" cast member pins from the mid-2000's that are all fakes from China. You can occasionally find a hidden gem, but it is becoming harder and harder.

I know this sounds defeatist and depressing, but pin trading has lost its luster for us, and it is a self-defeating system when so many fakes have flooded the market because no one would ever trade a $10 genuine pin for a $0.50 fake.

 

[IrishNYC]

DH and DD pin traded on our trip in May. (Ok DH really collected and used our 5 year old as an excuse to buy pins!) But we bought the lanyard and a few packs of mystery pins at our resort, then traded with CMs in the parks. The mystery packs were mostly Figment designs, and a few other less popular (to us) characters. It was an easy way for us to spend a little, then be more active about getting pins DH and DD really wanted.