Pin Trading

[lynzi2004]

Coming to Disneyland for New Years. On our last WDW trip, my son got into pin trading. We bought I think 3 of the mystery packs in the in park stores (they had like 5 pins for $35.) He happily traded around on the boards. Once home, I got to looking into it more and found out that people trade knock offs, etc at WDW and it’s not well monitored. He’s 12 and was thrilled with the pins he traded for, I don’t personally care if it was a “good/fair” trade or not. I spent $100 on pins and he spent 4 days happily skipping around the parks…best money I’ve spent to be honest! Lol each evening he was excited to pull them out and look everything over. Now, fast forward to this New Years trip. Are they much more strict about pin trading here? If he ended up with knockoffs, will they refuse a trade? Should I just buy more pins at DL to trade and save his others for trading back at WDW? Thanks in advance!

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

The pin boards here are also filled with fakes and scrappers. It’s safer to directly trade with cast members (they wear their pins for trade). There are a few boards that are more closely monitored. For instance there is a blind box trading board in Tomorrowland where you can only trade new pins of one of the sets on display. The cast members managing the pin boards are usually pretty knowledgeable so you can strike up a conversation with them about it all.

 

[lynzi2004]

Ok thank you!

 

[Genie+]

My theory is Disney Parks doesn’t decline pins for 2 reasons:

- It would put CMs in a very tough position to monitor because unless they were all scrutinizing the pins to the same level, a guest could trade for a pin in one place then a CM elsewhere decline it. Not a good look for Disney, and…

- They don’t need to. Pin trading the lower tier pins increases interest and results in guests buying more of the collector type pins.

Trading is an opt-in type situation which I think limits the risk of disappointment. But it is important that people know what is going here so they don’t feel obligated to only ever trade the more expensive type pins sold in the parks.

We trade some of our nicer pins that aren’t our favorites hoping to brighten someone else’s day. I just don’t feel obligated to use those type of pins for every trade, and we bought a bulk lot on ebay for ‘fun’ trading.

 

[LKing]

In addition to the location that @SOCALMouseMommy mentioned, the shadow boxes where you can trade a blind box pin you purchased that day (must have package and receipt) is also available at Seaside Souvenirs in DCA. There is also a shadow box for trading new blind box pins at Little Green Men Store Command.

Edit to add, look at the back of the pins to see if there are three small "diamonds" in the shape of Mickey Mouse. Until hacked, those are authentic. Many CM will trade "diamond for diamond" meaning that you need to trade an authentic pin for an authentic pin. Also, if you look at a CM's pins and some are backwards, ask if they do trivia. The trivia questions will be scaled to your son's level of knowledge. If he gets the question correct (you can help), they will reveal one of the pins that are backwards and he can trade for it if he likes.

 

[purple figment]

Another location for blind box pin trading is at the pin store on Main Street in DL.

In August in Tomorrowland there was blind box pin trading in the little pin store around the corner from Buzz Lightyear closer to Galactic Grill. Sometimes it was at a stand across from the little pin shop in front of Star Wars Launch Bay.

 

[pindecisive]

Historically CM's used to accept the scrappers and fakes and dispose of them, but in the last decade or so that's stopped happening. These days I would say 95% percent of the pins on the boards are fake, whereas 20 years ago it was maybe 5%. The amount of fakes is so high Disney was likely losing money by replacing them and simply stopped.

 

[LKing]

Historically CM's used to accept the scrappers and fakes and dispose of them, but in the last decade or so that's stopped happening. These days I would say 95% percent of the pins on the boards are fake, whereas 20 years ago it was maybe 5%. The amount of fakes is so high Disney was likely losing money by replacing them and simply stopped.

You're planning a DLP trip as well, aren't you? At DLP, there are no scrappers.

 

[irlandaise]

Can someone please explain the terms "blind box" and "shadow box"? It sounds like you're giving away pins when you don't even know what you're trading.

 

[pindecisive]

You're planning a DLP trip as well, aren't you? At DLP, there are no scrappers.

Really? Is that because they're different pins? I know that's the case in Hong Kong and Tokyo.

 

[pindecisive]

Can someone please explain the terms "blind box" and "shadow box"? It sounds like you're giving away pins when you don't even know what you're trading.

I think that's the fun? You buy a blind box and you open it and either choose to trade what you have or keep it. It doubles your chances of getting one you want. Or am I recalling the process incorrectly?

 

[LKing]

I think that's the fun? You buy a blind box and you open it and either choose to trade what you have or keep it. It doubles your chances of getting one you want. Or am I recalling the process incorrectly?

That is how it works. Plus there are shadow boxes in several locations throughout both parks where you can trade. If you have a pin and a receipt, you can trade it for a similar pin (ie. one pin bag, two pin bag or five pin bag). The receipt must be from the same day.

Really? Is that because they're different pins? I know that's the case in Hong Kong and Tokyo.

Because both CM at the pin boards and CM with lanyards, check the pin that you are trading to make sure it is an official Disney pin. No scrappers allowed.

 

[irlandaise]

I think that's the fun? You buy a blind box and you open it and either choose to trade what you have or keep it. It doubles your chances of getting one you want. Or am I recalling the process incorrectly?

Oh, so you don't know what's in the blind box when you buy it, but you're allowed to open it and see what you have before you trade it?

When you buy the blind box (at a Disneyland store?), do you have any idea what the theming is? E.g. something pertaining to a certain ride, or a certain character?

 

[LKing]

Oh, so you don't know what's in the blind box when you buy it, but you're allowed to open it and see what you have before you trade it?

When you buy the blind box (at a Disneyland store?), do you have any idea what the theming is? E.g. something pertaining to a certain ride, or a certain character?

Yes, you definitely open it. For the pins, you can see which pins might be in the box. You are buying a certain theme or collection. After you purchase it, you open it and see what you got. If you don't want it, you can trade it with others or swap it with a pin from a similarly priced box/category at one of the shadow boxes. As an example, click here to view a blind box on Boxed Lunch.

For the plush or figurines, it is the same set up. The display shows which options might be in the box. The side of the box also shows options. After you purchase it, you open the bag inside to see which one you received.

The Key to Disneyland is the same. You know what options for pins are inside the key. You just don't know which one you got until after you open it.

 

[twodogs]

That is how it works. Plus there are shadow boxes in several locations throughout both parks where you can trade. If you have a pin and a receipt, you can trade it for a similar pin (ie. one pin bag, two pin bag or five pin bag). The receipt must be from the same day.


Because both CM at the pin boards and CM with lanyards, check the pin that you are trading to make sure it is an official Disney pin. No scrappers allowed.

How does the CM handle it if a guest tries to trade a scrapper? We always trade real pins that I buy directly from Disney, but there are so many scrappers at DL…I wish they would do this but wonder how they do it in other parks?

 

[Vala]

How does the CM handle it if a guest tries to trade a scrapper? We always trade real pins that I buy directly from Disney, but there are so many scrappers at DL…I wish they would do this but wonder how they do it in other parks?

They refuse the trade, more often than not with a made up reason. I had "I can only trade for the same character" a lot, or insist they get to chose. A wrinkled nose and "do you have anything else?" was also common. They will not tell you a pin is fake.

A refusal might happen with any real pin if the CM doesn't recognize it. I had 3 people conversing and refusing a pin as "not tradeable". That one was one of the mystery fan pins, bought in person at DL. They will not accept Loungefly pins either.

Granted I have not been trading there in a bit and on the last trip I was trading the situation was extremely good at the beginning of the day, then deteriorated as people came in. Better than refreshed boards at DL in the morning and the fakes were not as obvious throughout the day. But in my eyes "no scrappers allowed" is a bit too strong. I've heard a CM at a pin board where even the 10 year old in our group saw 6 scrappers on the spot and there were over a dozen Puffles on declare that there were no scrappers in Paris.

 

[LKing]

How does the CM handle it if a guest tries to trade a scrapper? We always trade real pins that I buy directly from Disney, but there are so many scrappers at DL…I wish they would do this but wonder how they do it in other parks?

We're talking in Paris, right? I can only share our experience. They were always gracious and polite. They check the back, look for diamonds, copyright Disney, the year, etc. If they question the authenticity, they ask if you have another that you want to trade. We had heard they wouldn't accept Loungefly so we didn't bring any. To avoid any issue, we brought current pins with diamonds that had 25 Years of Pin Trading stamped on the back. We didn't have any problems.

There are far fewer pin boards, CM with lanyards, and pin traders in Paris. If a CM is busy, they tell you to come back later. In the hotel stores, often one person was the knowledgeable pin trader. If they were on break, the other CM would not bring the board out.

Back to DL in California. The past couple of weeks there have been more CM with pin lanyards. Some don't seem to know much about the pins and have more authentic pins. The boards are still filled with scrappers, but the CM have nice pins. If you are visiting DL in California, stop by the Emporium and trade with Hartati. She's great!

 

[pindecisive]

We're talking in Paris, right? I can only share our experience. They were always gracious and polite. They check the back, look for diamonds, copyright Disney, the year, etc. If they question the authenticity, they ask if you have another that you want to trade. We had heard they wouldn't accept Loungefly so we didn't bring any. To avoid any issue, we brought current pins with diamonds that had 25 Years of Pin Trading stamped on the back. We didn't have any problems.

There are far fewer pin boards, CM with lanyards, and pin traders in Paris. If a CM is busy, they tell you to come back later. In the hotel stores, often one person was the knowledgeable pin trader. If they were on break, the other CM would not bring the board out.

Back to DL in California. The past couple of weeks there have been more CM with pin lanyards. Some don't seem to know much about the pins and have more authentic pins. The boards are still filled with scrappers, but the CM have nice pins. If you are visiting DL in California, stop by the Emporium and trade with Hartati. She's great!

This is good to know! I used to buy disney store sets as traders but they rarely sell them these days so I'll have to go through my collection.

A lot of what I own is pre 2018 so I'm not sure what the backs look like and I'm not sure what the backs of the pins I bought in Tokyo look like either tbh.

Such a great tip and now I'm so curious about how different the experience of pin trading will be!

 

[NaptownMom]

You're planning a DLP trip as well, aren't you? At DLP, there are no scrappers.

I definitely got a scrapper at DLP

 

[LKing]

To avoid any confusion, maybe someone can start a pin trading thread on the Disneyland Paris forum.