Disney Pin Trading??

Question

Our family is going to Disney in three weeks, and my baby brother (he's not that baby, 11 years old) and I have always wanted to do the pin trading since it started (all those years ago). Our parents have finally said we could, if we play for most of our pins. So, I was wonder if it would be better/cheaper to buy a big lot from ebay or each of us buy a starter set when we get to Downtown Disney (our first night)? I am more worried about the pins not being trade-able if we buy them on ebay. What should we do??

Oh, and any tips/ stuff not on Disney's website about pin trading would be great. We are so excited about doing this!! I think we are actually more excited about trading pins than going on the rides (I know, sad)! (For now anyway, it will change in a few days, than change back)

Thanks For Everything!!

Answer 1

First of all, a starter set at Disney will have 4 pins and cost about $25.00. For that same money, you can get more if you watch the websites- yes Ebay is one. but also try www.disneyshopping.com , you can sometimes find pins there fairly reasonable.

Pins at the parks are usually $6.95 & UP. I usually buy a bunch of pins from one of the Disney sites, such as DisneyPinTrading.com. Keep searching for some of the cheapest ones, take those with you to the parks and trade with cast members. Other guests would want to trade more expensive pins. Also, watch for cast members with green lanyards, they are only allowed to trade with kids!

Have fun!!

Answer 2

Any pin that is "Disney" is tradeable.
I mostly traded with Cast Members, because I just wanted the fun of trading and didn't want to get into the cut throat stuff. Some traders can be reall, really aggressive and hostile at times.
If its cheaper to get the starter lanyard, then go right ahead. If you'd rather get Disney pins on eBay, then do that.
Cast Members trade with everyone, no matter how small your pin or if its from a starter set.

Have a great time!

Answer 3

Pin trading is sooooo much fun. My kids did that the last time we went to Disney and cannot wait to do it again when we go back there in June. We bought them the starter sets and whenever we came across a pin trading cart, they had to stop to either buy a new pin or trade with the castmember. Castmembers love to trade with guests. When we stayed at the Wilderness Lodge there was a pin trading cart, if we didn't like any of the pins that the castmember was trading, there was a book of pins that my kids could trade with. They found more pins there than what was on the castmembers, however, I am not sure if all carts or stands have these books. Good luck with your trading and have loads of fun doing it.

Answer 4

pin trading is easy and fun so you will love it i have been doing it for 2 years i don't trust ebay so i wouldnt go with them i would buy them in disney also some pins that you may really like may be like 11 dollars so you buy one for 8 dollars and you try to find somebody who has the one you want and you just saved 3 dollars awesome i love it good luck

Answer 5

Unless you know what to look for I would start with the starter sets when you get down there. THere are many many fake pins out there that are NOT tradeable. Better be safe than sorry later.

Answer 6

Pin trading is so much fun and is a great way to meet new people. My sister had so many pins, she bought one for every ride, parade, show, park, hotel, etc. She loved it.

As far as where to get the pins, that is really up to you. With ebay, you always have the risk that you will get fake pins that are non-tradeable. As long as it says Copyright Disney, then you should be good to go. A seller that knows about trading pins will show that on the back in a picture on their auction.

Now, if you are only wanting the pins for trading, then you really don't need to worry about what pins you get. You may get lucky and find some that you like and keep them. But, if you just want them to trade, look into the least expensive auctions. When you search it generally brings up the auctions ending soon by default. Just be sure you have enough time on the acution to read all the information before bidding and getting into something that you don't like. That will save you money and you won't have to worry as much about getting outbid. A lot of people sell old lots they find for good prices or even their own collection that they no longer want (real collectors collection generally sell pretty high because there are good pins) Since you are leaving so soon, just be sure that you confirm with the seller you will be able to get the pins before you leave. You will probably need to use Paypal and depending on when the auction is, you may need to have them overnighted or shipped with a faster method.

Now, if you have a Disney store in your area, they may have some pins for good prices as well. I've seen them sell older pins for as low as $1.00. Generally, now, the Disney stores only have small pins and don't offer as much as they used to. But, if you are lucky you will find a good deal. Aside from that, there may be some stores in your area, like a thrift store, some people find them on ocassion there as well. Finally, you can wait till you get to Disney. Pretty much everywhere you will go you will find some pins in Disney. However, you are looking to spend more money this way, since most of them sell at full price, I think they are up to $8.95 a piece now. So, they will be a little more expensive in the parks. The starter sets are the least expensive ways to get pins in Disney, for the most part, unless you get lucky and find some clearenced somewhere. The starter sets do come with lanyards, but you can find them pretty easy if you buy the pins elsewhere (the pin store has everything you need for pin trading) If you can find some at good prices before you leave, this will be best to save you and your brother some money.

The best thing to do is trade with cast members. If you get to the cast members early in the morning, they have exclusive pins on their lanyards that are only available to them, which are more rare. After a few hours they are usually traded. The rule is, anything on the lanyard you can trade for, anything off the lanyard you cannot trade for. It is always a good idea to look at cast lanyard because of all the people that trade with them throughout the day, you can get pins from around the world, rare pins (not quite as common unless someone has a bunch or found one they liked better or doesn't really understand trading) older pins, etc. While some of the pins may not be as valuable or something, it may be something that you like, so it is worth it to trade.

You can also trade with other guests. Disney has tables in front of their pin trading store where you can trade with other people, some people will bring their whole collection just so they can trade. The problem with trading with non-cast members is that the general public is a little harder to trade with. For example, you will see more serious traders and people that won't trade one of their pins for one of yours because of the value, or they may make your trade several for one, etc. Some of the less serious traders will trade with people (generally younger kids) because they do it to have fun and don't care so much about the value. Some people love to trade, while others just wear their pins to wear them and don't always want to trade, so just a warning.

Also, another thing to keep an eye out for is pin events. Disney offers these several times a year and they are a lot of fun. For example, you may have to go to all of the resorts on the monorail (Polynesian, Contemporary and Grand Floridian) they may have several stations at each resort where you go to. At each station you get a stamp on your map and then purchase a pin that will go on your map. When you get to the final station you receive a free pin. All of the pins then complete the map, you can frame it or do whatever with it. Of course, you don't have to buy the pins, but then that would defeat the purpose somewhat. This is just one example of the events they offer, so be sure to check if they will have anything for your dates.

Aside from that, just have fun. Pin trading can be a lot of fun and really interesting. It is almost like taking a picture of your vacation, you can get a pin for most everything you do and then look back on it years from now and you will remember everything you did.

There are a lot of great sites online, just search Disney pin trading and you will find a lot, but I think the most helpful are the actual Disney site and Pin Pics (I will include links) There are also a lot of great books (I know the author of one of them) that have pictures and information on each pin, similar to PinPics but a little more portable. You can check at bookstores, online or even on ebay for these, if you want them before you. go.


Good luck with your pin trading and have a great time with everything and enjoy Disney!

Answer 7

We sell traders pins for $2.25 each with shipping. ALL are tradeable at all parks. If you are interested, please email us [e-mail]

Answer 8

ebay all the way~~~~i did it