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jillshumway
02-15-2006, 05:58 AM
I have read many of the good articles about Pin Trading and I think My kids would enjoy it. I have 5 kids and while my Husband is at a confrance I will be alone with them at the park. We get a free Lanyard and Pin from AAA with coupon redeamable at several diffrent places. Does anyone know if we should redem it at one of the places more than an other. Will we be given the same pin at each of the places. I will have 6. Will the pins be hard to trade because they are giving them away free? It would be nice to have 6 diffrent pins not just 6 of 1 pin.

If I get more pins what should I look for when buying them. Should I get them at the character outlet? What makes them collectable? I think My kids will Trade for what they like not what will be valuable but I just want to know how it should be done.

I know that the people with teal lanyards are just for kids. What is the benifit? Are they hard to find or will My kids see people to trade with several times a day?

Thanks for answering my questions there is just so much to learn. I think My 5 year old will love it he loves to talk to people and trade in his happy meal toy if it is not the one he wants.

3894
02-15-2006, 06:33 AM
If I get more pins what should I look for when buying them. Should I get them at the character outlet? What makes them collectable? I think My kids will Trade for what they like not what will be valuable but I just want to know how it should be done.

My youngest just traded for what she liked. We didn't worry about value. She was 12 at our visit in Oct. '04 and decided on her own to specialize in pins with moving parts. To give just one example: Tinkerbell with tiny wings that move. I think she bought maybe six pins.

The pincart CMs were all great to her but the Tomorrowland guy was a real standout. He took time with her, discussed her little collection, made her feel like a princess.

It's a fun souvenir for kids. When we got home, she put them on her cloth purse.

Malcon10t
02-15-2006, 06:39 AM
I have read many of the good articles about Pin Trading and I think My kids would enjoy it. I have 5 kids and while my Husband is at a confrance I will be alone with them at the park. We get a free Lanyard and Pin from AAA with coupon redeamable at several diffrent places. Does anyone know if we should redem it at one of the places more than an other. Will we be given the same pin at each of the places. I will have 6. Will the pins be hard to trade because they are giving them away free? It would be nice to have 6 diffrent pins not just 6 of 1 pin.

If I get more pins what should I look for when buying them. Should I get them at the character outlet? What makes them collectable? I think My kids will Trade for what they like not what will be valuable but I just want to know how it should be done.

I know that the people with teal lanyards are just for kids. What is the benifit? Are they hard to find or will My kids see people to trade with several times a day?

Thanks for answering my questions there is just so much to learn. I think My 5 year old will love it he loves to talk to people and trade in his happy meal toy if it is not the one he wants.For me, I get pins I like. My daughter collects pins of Grumpy, I do the various Mickey's, and my son does anything with golf (Goofy and Mickey had some nice ones.) If you are looking simply at value, look at limited edition. They will be more expensive. Personally, I collect what I like. Some are pretty valuable, some are just nice reminders of the trip. Cast members are great to trade with, but rarely will they have a valuable pin on their lanyard. I don't display my "valuable" pins, they don't retain value that way. If you are doing this for the kids, just let them trade for what they like and don't worry about value, making sure they don't have a valuable pin. (My 17th pins stay home.)

katiesue
02-15-2006, 08:51 AM
My 10 year old is way into pin trading. I tend to buy her the less expensive pins to trade. She has some that were a little pricier that she has just for keeping. She could also care less if they are valuable or not. It's the thrill of the trade. Half the time she'll trade for one pin, and turn around 15 minutes later and trade it again for another one.

The plastic lunch boxes you get with the kids meals work great as lanyard/pin holders when the kids get tired of wearing them. That way you don't loose any. We also started using the pin lock things for the ones she really wants to keep or are more valuable. That way they can't "accidentally" trade them.

Tinker Bell
02-15-2006, 09:06 AM
Ah pin trading my new pass time at DL with my sis who is real big on it. I collect what I like she trades for fun. If you are going to the outlet they have a few pins for $5-$6. Now what I like to do is get the cheap pins for trade. Don't get ones you like cause then you wont want to trade them. Once your trip is up and there where more costly pins you want then go back and get those. ( If you did not find them already on lanyards) Ok you did not say when you was going. They have Pin with Purchase at the first Sunday of the month. They also have Pin trade nites now and again. Not sure when the next one is. They have an area just for kids. At the park they have come out to trade. This is when 2 vest Cm, 2 Bag Cm and lots of Lanyards come out. I have done all three they have the same results. The one in DL is 1:30-3 I think the DCA is less people and is I think 2 or something like that. The DTD one is in the morn. There is a nice guy who hangs out at the sliver spur in the morn with a bag with pins all over it. And another one in PT flea in DCA. I do say watch those major pin trader some can be nice but some it is their living and if they want your pin they become sharks. Oh I forgot to say yes no matter where you go for the free pin it will all be the same sry. It is a little harder to trade some times. Some CM are real nice and trade it any ways. A few cool web sites I visit are Pinpics.Com and Dizpins.Com. Pin pics show you most of the pins that are out there how much they cost, when they came out and how many people want it. Dizpins shows up coming pins and it has a forum on it. You can trade 2 pins per CM they must trade you unless you are 1 trading a pin they have 2 you are trying to trade a non Disney pin. I hope I helped if you have any more question let me know.

hlbtimes2
02-15-2006, 09:15 AM
The cm's that trade with kids will take your free pins that came with your lanyard. It doesnt matter if they already have that pin. Its what they are there for. I have 6 duplicate, free, pins we are taking on this trip. Plus we'll get 4 more with this package. That will give my kids 10 to trade. Should keep them busy for a while- and save me some money!

My dd just trades for things she likes. We dont worry about value. We dont plan on ever trying to make money off from them.

Tinker Bell
02-15-2006, 09:15 AM
My 10 year old is way into pin trading. I tend to buy her the less expensive pins to trade. She has some that were a little pricier that she has just for keeping. She could also care less if they are valuable or not. It's the thrill of the trade. Half the time she'll trade for one pin, and turn around 15 minutes later and trade it again for another one.

The plastic lunch boxes you get with the kids meals work great as lanyard/pin holders when the kids get tired of wearing them. That way you don't loose any. We also started using the pin lock things for the ones she really wants to keep or are more valuable. That way they can't "accidentally" trade them.


Pin locks are great for the keeps. But the are hard to get on and off when you do. Also when getting on and off rides and no and again press the pin backs to make sure they are still on tight. If you are going to but them away in a lunch box or something to the like. Put tissues in it. Some CM wont take scratched up pins. And this will save your keeps too. ( but best to keep the keeps at the hotel) If you are into spending you can also buy a pin bag for your keeps. I have a large on here at home and take my small on to DL with traders in it. I do not like lanyards they pull my hair and rub holes in my neck. But my Sis where 2 lanyards all day long and no problems.

Tinker Bell
02-15-2006, 09:20 AM
The cm's that trade with kids will take your free pins that came with your lanyard. It doesnt matter if they already have that pin. Its what they are there for. I have 6 duplicate, free, pins we are taking on this trip. Plus we'll get 4 more with this package. That will give my kids 10 to trade. Should keep them busy for a while- and save me some money!

My dd just trades for things she likes. We dont worry about value. We dont plan on ever trying to make money off from them.


Sry to say that is not always true. Please do not expect them too. Some go by the book and will not be moved in any way. I have seen it happen. ( of course I then tell the people to give me the pin and I give them a pin not on the lanyard. I can always bring the pin back on a slow day and trade it then :D .) Do not blame the CM they are following the rules.

hlbtimes2
02-15-2006, 10:22 AM
The rules from the Disney site:
"IS IT TRUE DISNEY CAST MEMBERS HAVE TO TRADE THEIR PINS?
Yes. Cast Members at our Theme Parks and Resorts have to trade their pins displayed on their Company issued lanyards. Guests can make up to two (2) trades per "lanyard," per Cast Member, per day. When trading with Cast Members, Guests should offer a pin that is not already displayed on the Cast Member's lanyard. "

So, while you should offer them one they dont have, they are supposed to trade regardless. I can't see many cast members telling a small child NO because of it. I also dont think most of the cast members put the free Disney travel pin's on their lanyard, knowing most people are going to start with trading them. When we went in 2003 we were all given 2 pins. One to trade, one to keep.

Malcon10t
02-15-2006, 10:37 AM
The rules from the Disney site:
"IS IT TRUE DISNEY CAST MEMBERS HAVE TO TRADE THEIR PINS?
Yes. Cast Members at our Theme Parks and Resorts have to trade their pins displayed on their Company issued lanyards. Guests can make up to two (2) trades per "lanyard," per Cast Member, per day. When trading with Cast Members, Guests should offer a pin that is not already displayed on the Cast Member's lanyard. "

So, while you should offer them one they dont have, they are supposed to trade regardless. I can't see many cast members telling a small child NO because of it. I also dont think most of the cast members put the free Disney travel pin's on their lanyard, knowing most people are going to start with trading them. When we went in 2003 we were all given 2 pins. One to trade, one to keep.Actually, cast members check out a lanyard with 13 pins (some more, some less) and they have to return the lanyard with the same number of pins as they checked out. So, if you trade the travel pin, they will have to place it on the lanyard or they will be short a pin at turn in. On occasion, a CM will allow a duplicate trade, but it really is rare and against the rules. They can't take a lanyard back with 13 travel pins on it...

hlbtimes2
02-15-2006, 10:58 AM
So what does a family do if they have 4 children that all want to trade? Only one child gets to? I can't see that being very guest friendly.

I'm pretty sure I remember one of the traders we traded with put it (the travel pin) in the pocket of the black waist lanyard, rather then putting it on display. Maybe not, but I'm pretty sure he did. I also know that on our last 2 trips my dd and MIL have both traded with the same CM, at the same time, and both were using travel pins. So, I know they do it sometimes.

MissKIA
02-15-2006, 11:11 AM
How much to pins generally cost?

Tinker Bell
02-15-2006, 11:17 AM
I will give you a story. My Aunt came to DL for a 3 day trip. I meet her at DL our first stop was to get the free pin and Lanyard. My Aunt came with her family. There was a total of 9 people from small kids to large. I gave them the run down on Pin trading. Then we went on to go on some rides. We came across a CM and they wanted to try the pin trading thing. One person got to trade . Because they all had the same pin. The little kids wanted to cry. I ended up taking all the Free pins and giving them a pin they could trade. So yes some CM go by the book this not the first time I have seen this. I am at the park at least every other week so I see it a lot. There is even a CM. I will not go near because she is so by the book it is not even funny. I can't stand that lady. She does not even care if she makes kids cry.

Tinker Bell
02-15-2006, 11:18 AM
How much to pins generally cost?



$6.95 - $100s

3894
02-15-2006, 11:19 AM
So what does a family do if they have 4 children that all want to trade? Only one child gets to?

How do you figure that?

katiesue
02-15-2006, 11:20 AM
So what does a family do if they have 4 children that all want to trade? Only one child gets to? I can't see that being very guest friendly.


There are plenty of cast members with laynards, each child does not need to trade with the same cast member.

Malcon10t
02-15-2006, 11:25 AM
So what does a family do if they have 4 children that all want to trade? Only one child gets to? I can't see that being very guest friendly.There are usually 2-3 CMs with lanyards in most areas. All sales leads must wear a checked out lanyard, the rest are voluntary. Imagine if all 4 of your kids, and all 4 of mine traded their travel pin with the same CM, that would be 8 travel pins and 5 other pins on a lanyard. Not a lot of fun for others.

hlbtimes2
02-15-2006, 11:38 AM
How do you figure that?

I'm thinking if they are first time visitors to the park, they bought a travel package, and all the same pin to trade. If the cm can only have one of each kind of pin, then only one person in the party can trade at that time. The rest have to wait until a new cm can be found.

hlbtimes2
02-15-2006, 11:39 AM
There are usually 2-3 CMs with lanyards in most areas. All sales leads must wear a checked out lanyard, the rest are voluntary. Imagine if all 4 of your kids, and all 4 of mine traded their travel pin with the same CM, that would be 8 travel pins and 5 other pins on a lanyard. Not a lot of fun for others.

I guess I just assumed that they had a way to restock their lanyard during their shift, if their specific job is pin trading.

Malcon10t
02-15-2006, 11:45 AM
I guess I just assumed that they had a way to restock their lanyard during their shift, if their specific job is pin trading.No one has a specific job of pin trading. Sales leads must wear a lanyard to promote pin trading. But their specific job is supervising the sales area. Other cast members can wear one to volunteer, in addition to their normal sales or attraction position. They may be able to swap out lanyards (not pins, but the enitre lanyard) during breaks, but that would be a hassle. I'm not sure if attraction leads must wear lanyards. Perhaps a CM who volunteers for this fun position could chime in here!

CariBelle
02-15-2006, 11:55 AM
I'm going to be new to pin trading as well and I have a few questions- What's a pin lock? I have a pin that I don't want to trade, but would like to wear on my lanyard, should I just suck it up and leave the pin home, or could I get away with wearing it and not trading?

DangerMouse
02-15-2006, 12:00 PM
I'm going to be new to pin trading as well and I have a few questions- What's a pin lock? I have a pin that I don't want to trade, but would like to wear on my lanyard, should I just suck it up and leave the pin home, or could I get away with wearing it and not trading?

Some of the nicest pin trading CM's I have found are janitorial CM's, specifically in DCA! They take so much time with the kids and encourage them to pick just what they want.

MammaSilva
02-15-2006, 12:06 PM
I'm going to be new to pin trading as well and I have a few questions- What's a pin lock? I have a pin that I don't want to trade, but would like to wear on my lanyard, should I just suck it up and leave the pin home, or could I get away with wearing it and not trading?

The pin locks are special pin backs that help keep your pin on your lanyard/bag....personally if your pin has a lot of meaning to you I'd recommend leaving it home for multiple reasons. You're not required to trade anything you don't want to no matter what, but I'd be concerned that you could lose the pin off your lanyard even with the locking backs. I have several pins that were gifts and I do wear one of them on occasion but more often leave it home because I would be devastated if I lost any of those pins....their sentimental value is beyond measure. Another reason for leaving it home is that there are ‘shark’s …traders that are very high pressure folk that take the fun out of trading and depending on your pin they might get very aggressive in wanting to convince you to trade, risking spoiling the fun of trading for you. I know a lot of people who trade that recommend you only take those pins you’re willing to trade so that if worse case you were to lose your entire lanyard (and it does happen on occasion) you haven’t lost a sentimental favorite or any of your expensive collectibles.

CariBelle
02-15-2006, 12:09 PM
Thank you for the advice!

Also, I'm thinking of concentrating on villian pins at first, do you folks think there are enough villian pins out there for that to be possible?

hlbtimes2
02-15-2006, 12:23 PM
No one has a specific job of pin trading. Sales leads must wear a lanyard to promote pin trading. But their specific job is supervising the sales area. Other cast members can wear one to volunteer, in addition to their normal sales or attraction position. They may be able to swap out lanyards (not pins, but the enitre lanyard) during breaks, but that would be a hassle. I'm not sure if attraction leads must wear lanyards. Perhaps a CM who volunteers for this fun position could chime in here!


I dont see where them being assigned the job or voluntering makes much difference, in this context. They are still using a Disney issued lanyard, with Disney issued pins- not their own personal collections. My comparison was them being a Disney employee, on the clock vs a being a guest trading personal pins with other guests.