Pin Trading

[KCarr2000]

Is there a website that shows all of the different series? I have had no luck googling to find this. I have found pinpics, but would like to see something with all of the pictures of each series. Thanks for your help!

 

[figment_jii]

Different series of what type of pins? Pinpics.com is probably the best location to see all of the possible pin designs, but I agree that it's tough to find pin sets (that are sold as individuals). If you're asking about the Hidden Mickey Cast Member pins, Disney has them listed by "wave" (release grouping).
WDW: http://www.disneyparksmerchandise.com/blog/hidden-mickey-pins-walt-disney-world-resort/
DLR: http://www.disneyparksmerchandise.com/blog/hidden-mickey-pins-disneyland-resort/

 

[KCarr2000]

Thanks Figment. And I have to say that I have enjoyed and really appreciated your posts while planning for my upcoming trip. You have handed out such great information and advice. I truly appreciate you.

When at DW over Christmas, we started collecting a "family" series with the Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister, dog, cat, fish, the elusive pig - which we never did get, etc..... Once we got home, I realized that there were two series. I think we are still missing one from each, but I can't seem to find them on the internet. If I go to pinpics.com, I don't know how to search for that series because it isn't a certain character or event. Then there is the "nerd" series that we want to complete. Is there a website that I can go to and see the different pins that are included with each series, as well as the numbering?

 

[figment_jii]

I'm glad that I've been helpful! I have to agree that old version of PinPics was much easier to use. I haven't quite figured out how to navigate the new version quickly, so finding pins on it is still matter of hunting.

A pig? I've never seen that one either. The original series (it looks like there were ten pins in the set) was released in 2009 at WDW. I scanned through the DLR Hidden Mickey lists and didn't see one.
WDW: http://www.disneyparksmerchandise.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/WDW_2009_HiddenMickeyPins.pdf

In terms of the Nerds pins, I think there have been two series (available for purchase).
http://pinpics.com/pinMT.php?pin=80477
http://pinpics.com/pinMT.php?pin=90174

 

[KCarr2000]

I guess that helps to show my point of how difficult this can be.

 

[KCarr2000]

He is really cool, isn't he? At DW over Christmas, he was the one to find. It seems really odd to me that this series isn't out there on the internet much since it was so popular just six months ago. I am hoping to find him on my trip next week.

 

[KCarr2000]

Thanks Figment, I see the two different series for nerds. One has full body and the other face shots. That is good to know.

 

[figment_jii]

I think it depends...the series first debut back in 2009, so the likelihood of finding legitimate versions of it in the parks at this point is fairly low. I do know that it's a fairly common scrapper pin, so it's possible that the scrapper-manufacturers only replicate some of the designs and not all of them and that's why it's harder to find some than others. I do recall seeing a bunch of them at DLR last year and now they've kind of disappeared, which I tend to think means DLR has cycled them out of their trading supplies.

 

[ADLFAN]

Different series of what type of pins? Pinpics.com is probably the best location to see all of the possible pin designs, but I agree that it's tough to find pin sets (that are sold as individuals). If you're asking about the Hidden Mickey Cast Member pins, Disney has them listed by "wave" (release grouping).
WDW: http://www.disneyparksmerchandise.com/blog/hidden-mickey-pins-walt-disney-world-resort/
DLR: http://www.disneyparksmerchandise.com/blog/hidden-mickey-pins-disneyland-resort/

Are the pins with mickeys on them exclusive to cast members? I have a bunch in the batch I bought off Ebay... I know nothing about anything collectible so excuse my ignorance!

 

[figment_jii]

Are the pins with mickeys on them exclusive to cast members? I have a bunch in the batch I bought off Ebay... I know nothing about anything collectible so excuse my ignorance!

Yes...the pins with a little Mickey head are part of the Cast Member Hidden Mickey pin series. The only way to get these pins (in theory) is to trade with a CM. These pins were designed and manufactured specifically for trading with a CM (meaning you cannot purchase them inside the parks). (I make this distinction because there are also Cast Member exclusive pins which can only be purchased by Cast Members, usually at the CM stores backstage.)

You mention eBay and sound fairly new to trading, so this is part of the longer answer I often give when someone asks about starting pin trading...

Scrappers, Counterfeits, and Fakes: The second issue is scrappers, counterfeits, and fakes. For some folks this matters, for others it does not. You'll need to decide which camp you are in before you get heavily into pin trading. To the average pin trader, I don't think the difference between a scraper, fake, or counterfeit really matters (because none of these are legitimate pins), but there are slight differences.

• A scrapper is a pin that looks legitimate, but is not. It can be a factory overrun (i.e., the factory was contracted to make 1 million, but they made 1.1 million instead) or a pin that has some kind of error that should have been "scrapped".
• A counterfeit pin is a copy of legitimate pin made by someone that was not authorized by Disney.
• A fake is a pin design that was never authorized by Disney.

Unfortunately, it's not always easy to tell what pin designs are fake unless you know a lot about pins and what designs have been released. These pins can often look like legitimate designs and may contain all of the markings (e.g., copy right) to look legitimate, but they are not. Luckily, I tend to think that outright fakes are the least common type of non-legitimate pins out there.

In terms of the scrapers/counterfeits, those are harder to distinguish the legitimate from non-legitimate. You'll often be able to tell a scrapper/counterfeit because the colors are weird/off, elements are missing or incorrect, or the back stamp (the copy right) is wrong/missing/damaged. Others say you can tell because they feel "rough" or the edges are sharp/pronounced. Sadly, there is no sure fire way to tell a scrapper/counterfeit. My guess is that it’s easier to identify the counterfeits and the scrappers that should have been “scrapped”. The factory over-runs probably look exactly like the ones shipped to Disney, so those are nearly impossible to distinguish once they’re in circulation.

It's worth noting that if you do end up trading with CM, the CM lanyards tend to be filled with scrappers, counterfeits, and (to a less extent) fakes. So if you really dislike scrappers/counterfeit, I would avoid trading with CMs. That's the crux of the argument: those that dislike scrappers/counterfeits feel they cheapen the trading and make it not worthwhile. Those that don't care, tend to say that they like the pin, so it doesn't really matter if it's a scrapper/counterfeit or not (they also say that if you can't tell, does it really matter?). Both points are valid.

eBay: eBay is a popular source for pins, but it can be a tough place to buy legitimate (i.e., non-scrapper/counterfeits/fake) pins. The general rule of thumb is that you buy a "lot" of pins (e.g., 25-pins) and the price per pin is less than a couple of dollars each, you're likely buying scrappers. Also, if you buy pins that come in little baggies (instead of pin cards like the ones you see at the stores in WDW/DLR), those are more likely to be scrappers as well. My recommendation is to look for sellers that are selling pins still on their backing and/or unopened booster sets (also still on their cardboard backing wrapped in plastic). In truth, unless you only buy from Disney directly, it is hard to say whether you'll get scrappers/counterfeits/fakes or not.