[Chuck]

Hi All

How much do pins cost? Is the best and safest place to get them right at Walt Disney World?

[Dopey]

Originally Posted by Chuck

Hi All

How much do pins cost? Is the best and safest place to get them right at Walt Disney World?

I think they are not inexpensive but I also think you better buy them at Disney to be sure that they aren't knock offs.

MissDisney and Dhoughton = a.k.a. donut will be able to tell you so much more than what I am babbling about here.

Howzit going Chuck? How are the trip plans coming? sorry for threadjacking, couldn't help myself

[timkelmom]

They usually start at $6 or so and go up from there depending on the pin. They are all over the World. You can buy them from e-bay and Disney Shopping as well.

There are some serious collectors and traders here who I am sure will have lots of info.

[Daisee]

You can also "build" a pin at Disney. You start with a background and add little characters, etc. to it. You pick out the pieces and then they put them together for you. They are more expensive than most, but they are really neat.

[MissDisney]

Chuck -- There are lots of options for buying pins. There are Pin Carts at the theme parks, as well as little stands in a lot of the shops. A few of them offer a wider selection -- Pin Traders at Marketplace, the Sorceror's Hat at MGM and also a Pin Traders by the fountains at Epcot. World of Disney has an entire room devoted to pins. The pin carts are spread out all over the place, and the resorts and water parks have pins too. Each resort has a little selection of pins that are associated with that resort, too, which is nice.

Usually, there are some local themes happening with the pins... like, at the Pirates of the Caribbean shop, you will find lots of pirate pins. At the Lights Motor Action cart, they will be sure to have pins for that attraction...

Some of the pins are $6.95, and the prices go up is they have extra stuff on them, like crystals or moving parts. Sometimes, there are whole sets of pins, which can be fun to collect. We bought a few Sparkle Princess pins once, with the intention of trading for the others. We never were able to finish out the set and I had to buy the last princess on eBay! So now I buy a whole set if I have the $$$.

On eBay, you can find all kinds of pins, current and older. You can spend hours looking at all of them and maybe fall in love with a pin. I always look at the seller and I only buy from sellers who have 100% positive reports and who have sold lots of pins in the past. eBay is good for finishing a set.

eBay prices are wacky! You can get pin lots for good prices sometimes, and the price per pin can be only a couple of dollars. But I was also recetly watching a pin that sold for hundreds! Huh???

If you are at a pin traders shop at WDW, you will see some adults outside the shop with huge books of pins, trying to trade to people. I think now it may be mostly trading with adults. But it used to be that they'd trade with little kids, when they saw a hard to find pin on a kid's lanyard. And they will not trade just anything from their books, especailly anything rare. I boycott those traders, just because I have seen them try to rip off kids in the past.

Once you have purchased a lanyard and some pins for it (there are also starter sets with a few tradable pins already attached), trading with CMs at the parks is so much fun. They are infinitely patient as you look at their lanyards, and they will trade any of their pins. So if you see one you like, go ahead and trade for it!

Hope this helps...

[Chuck]

MissDisney,

Thanks for the pointers on pin collecting!

[MissDisney]

Originally Posted by Chuck

MissDisney,

Thanks for the pointers on pin collecting!

Hi Chuck! I hope I helped with the prices question. Good luck with your pin hunting!

[XQIXX]

I see some on Ebay from China. Are they tradable?

[emamasa]

i would be leary, but they may be! I don't know much about it. I think there is a pin trading website (maybe google it) - it may have the info you need!

[DisneyTeacher]

Originally Posted by XQIXX

I see some on Ebay from China. Are they tradable?

I can't say for sure but I would be a little concerned. Make sure the pins are official Disney pins and have the stamp on the back. Stay away from Sedesma, they aren't tradeable in the parks and are very cheap (they're junk) compared to the official Disney pins.

[Monique]

Originally Posted by Daisee

You can also "build" a pin at Disney. You start with a background and add little characters, etc. to it. You pick out the pieces and then they put them together for you. They are more expensive than most, but they are really neat.

I didn't know about this. My son and I are going to be extra vigilant to check this out. It would be so much fun to make our own pin. Thanks for the information.