My DD10 wants to try pin trading???

[DadSparrow]

Every time I have gone to Disney I have always found a pin lot on ebay and bought it for my kids to have "traders". They can also pick out one "favorite pin" to buy while in Disney but the rest they have to trade for. I always buy the lots that say that they are authentic and that they have mickey shaped backs to them. It's an excitement thing for the kids to find their favorite characters and gives them a good break from the heat or standing in long lines. We do not have piles of pins and quite often the kids give them to friends they have back home after the trip. Cheap souvenir with a lot of adventure for the kids and then they are remembering their friends back home to bring a gift to them of their favorite character that they can put on their backpack or jacket that you can't buy living outside of the parks

 

[mom2AidanAndEli]

Every time I have gone to Disney I have always found a pin lot on ebay and bought it for my kids to have "traders". They can also pick out one "favorite pin" to buy while in Disney but the rest they have to trade for. I always buy the lots that say that they are authentic and that they have mickey shaped backs to them. It's an excitement thing for the kids to find their favorite characters and gives them a good break from the heat or standing in long lines. We do not have piles of pins and quite often the kids give them to friends they have back home after the trip. Cheap souvenir with a lot of adventure for the kids and then they are remembering their friends back home to bring a gift to them of their favorite character that they can put on their backpack or jacket that you can't buy living outside of the parks

Have to tell you that the pins you're talking about are probably the ones that most people consider "scrappers". If they're in the $1 per pin or less price range, those are the ones people are talking about. They look real, they have the stamp on the back, they have the Mickey ear pin backs. Personally, I see absolutely nothing wrong with them! And we do the exact same thing. The ones that we buy for $8, $9, $10 are keepers--no trading those away! The lots from ebay are for trading.

And, as you can tell, most people won't even know the difference.

 

[DadSparrow]

no, I have never been "challenged" by CM's.

I have seen some fake ones before that do not have the clear laminate over the top of them. I have felt ones that feel extremely light and figured they were fakes. But we are going on a trip soon and we got a small bag off them off of ebay and they feel and look the same as I have always received.

I do not go out of my way to buy scrappers, I buy the pins with the intent of letting my kids have fun "trading up" for the ones that they like and teaching them the value of money and that it is not about "stuff" but rather enjoying the memories. I know some people may think my logic is flawed, but honestly I don't care. Like I said, I am not trying to beat the system or skate by or show my kids how to be a cheat.

As far as the "serious" traders go, I have seen my kids very upset because of the rudeness that those trader can be. I greatly appreciate the serious traders that have "kid books" so they can feel like a trader and not tell my kids to go into the pin store to buy them a limited edition pin in order to get a generic pin in their book.

 

[Lavitz]

I want my kids to have fun, talk to some CMs, collect something with good memories, and not worry about it. And that's what they do.

Agreed.

I remember hearing about scrappers for the first time. I noticed I had some duplicate pins and decided to see if I could find out which was fake. Found a few guides online, tried to tell the difference. Almost all the time I couldn't. These guides even mentioned that sometimes you will find pins for sale at Disney Parks and if you were to follow the "spot a scrapper" guides they would fail the test. They even showed pictures of them, in the park with the price tags still attached, and explained in detail how these pins would fail the scrapper test. Seriously, are you going to hassle 10 year old girls when the pins you think look funny were bought in the park?

 

[cheribear]

I figured the ebay pins were just like garage sale items - somebody who knows they are Disney pins finds them at a bargain or collects and sells pins other people don't want anymore. If pin trading is a hobby there will be pins some people value more and others that are less valuable - and those who do it as a hobby will be careful to find what they want and know what has value to them. I don't doubt that plenty of fakes are being made, and that they are being made well enough that most people can't tell the difference - but the people who assign a certain VALUE to them aren't going to be fooled, so they are not being harmed.

Maybe I am naive, but honestly - what do people think happens to the all of the pins that are made and sold and traded each year? Does it not make sense that a bunch of them will end up in a lot on ebay? Not everyone is going to take them all home and cherish them forever. I don't think there is anything wrong with finding unwanted pins and buying them at a discount and trading them - but would like some tips on how to know what is what. All of the ebay sellers say they are 100% authentic pins, surely some of those are real but just old or unpopular pins?

 

[JessicaW1234]

I've traded in the Emporium, no problem. And your way sounds a whole lot less magical for the kids! Do you really think the little girl who just wants a Cinderella pin really cares if you bought it on eBay or the Disney Store, whether you paid $1 or $10? She likes Cinderella. Simple as that. Instead you're going to tell the little girl, "Sorry, you can't have that one because the pin you have is a fake and I won't take it. Come back with a real one and maybe your Cinderella one will still be here. If not, oh well."

It's much worse in reverse. My DD 8, started pin trading this trip. She traded real pins away for metal pins b/c the CM told her it was "aurora's castle". I felt awful about it because I knew she just got taken, and I did not say anything because I did not want her to feel badly. Even writing about it gives me a bad feeling.

 

[Sunray16]

The pin trading guidelines are confusing me a little with regard to sets. I bought some sets with the intention of trading, but it looks like the guidelines indicate you can't break up a set, you have to trade the whole set together? Am I reading that wrong? I've never traded before, so I'd love some clarification from someone with more experience.

 

[mom2AidanAndEli]

"It's much worse in reverse. My DD 8, started pin trading this trip. She traded real pins away for metal pins b/c the CM told her it was "aurora's castle". I felt awful about it because I knew she just got taken, and I did not say anything because I did not want her to feel badly. Even writing about it gives me a bad feeling."

See, don't think of it as she got taken. Think of how happy she was getting the pin she really wanted! Why feel awful about that? Was she happy with the pin? Isn't that all that really matters? This is exactly why getting hung up on the value of what you're trading for is taking the fun and magic out of it.

And for the PP who thinks the lots being sold on eBay are just garage sale items. When the same seller is selling hundreds or thousands of lots, each containing 25-100 pins, I don't think those are being found at the local garage sale!