Pin Trading

[Planner4Mickey]

Do they do pin trading in Disneyland like they do at WDW? My son loved doing it in WDW, wasn't sure if I should pack them!

 

[Diszona]

Yes, they do pin trading at DL.

 

[figment_jii]

As the PP said, they do pin trading at DLR. It's pretty much the same rules/system as WDW. I've found that the best places to look for CMs doing pin tradings are in shops, so be sure to check at the registers to see if they have a pin board/book to trade with. It is worth noting, that like WDW, DLR does seem to have issues with scrappers and fakes.

 

[ktlm]

We think the pin trading at DLR is better than the pin trading at WDW. We have found that there are far less scrappers there, than there are at WDW. We usually trade more pins at DLR than we do at WDW. To us, at WDW after the first couple of hours it seems like most of the CM's lanyards and boards etc. are all or almost all scrappers. At DLR while there are scrappers and more scrappers later in the day, there are still usually still a bunch of real pins around too. DD may trade a few pins in a day at WDW, but she always seems to trade a ton at DLR.

 

[figment_jii]

I used to think that way too, but the last few trips haven't been as productive in terms of pin trading. I do think the CM lanyards tend to have fewer scrappers, especially in the morning, but the boards seem to be loaded with scrappers even in the morning. It sounds like the boards and lanyards can be "refreshed" (i.e., the CM can trade in the pins for other pins), but it's up to the CMs to decide whether to do that or not.

 

[Planner4Mickey]

My son does it just for fun, if he likes a pin, he will ask to trade... LOL Def not into it for getting better pins!
Thank you for the info!

 

[my*gracie*girl]

My son does it just for fun, if he likes a pin, he will ask to trade... LOL Def not into it for getting better pins!
Thank you for the info!

That is my dd also! We haven't been to WDW to compare, but dd loves to trade with CMs at DL. She doesn't know which are real and which are scrappers....she just goes by what she likes. She almost always trades at the info kiosk outside security and then any time she sees a CM with a lanyard.

 

[SMD]

Here's an example of a pin board at an AP event. There's 2-3 times more pins than you'll find on a board in a shop. Also, there was another board next to it that had many of the same pins, plus FL Orange birds, Figment and those 2012 pins that every board has by the end of the day. Those pennants, and the other grouped pins are pretty typical of what you'll find. The U character pin was traded by someone before me. My guess is the safari pin, which is blurry in the pic was also a guest contribution. Actually finding something like Peter Pan or the Genie is very rare.

 

[figment_jii]

To be honest, I tend to think that the pin boards are pretty much entirely composed on scrapper pins within the first hour of being replenished. My general sense is that if you find a Hidden Mickey Pin (WDW and DLR) that is from a set that is one year or more older, you're probably looking at a scrapper - some are easy to tell (e.g., Belle with red hair) and others have practically indistinguishable. It doesn't seem to take very long for the scrapper pins to make they way into the trading "market" - if you see the same pin on multiple boards, that's another indication that something might be amiss. Ultimately, it comes down to how each person feels about scrappers. If you don't care, then trade away! If you do, then you're going to have a much tougher time trading.

For me personally, I do like to trade, so accept that scrappers and fakes are part of the system. That being said, I do try and avoid the obvious scrapper (e.g., Orange Birds that are brown, Belle in a green ballgown, etc.).