So you say you would never buy scrappers

[Abyssinian28]

I don't know....I think it depends on how you started. I never got sucked into the lots when I started because I started collecting, not trading. The lanyard thing just didn't appeal to me much so when I started I wasn't just looking for pins to trade, I was looking for pins I liked. I was probably collecting for almost two years before I ever got into trading. That's how I avoided it.

+1

I bought years and years before the lanyard thing even really started. At first, I put a few full retail pins on there. Then, I discovered outlets. Finally, I discovered salsa sales, and things like $1 PwP pins. I never even considered lots on Ebay, mostly because I never really got into the HM thing whole-hog...just dabbled. By then, I was already on Dizpins, so I knew about scrappers.

I can honestly say I've never bought a scrapper- I've pulled some off lanyards that OTHER people put on there, but I've never purchased any. Hell, the only "lot" I've even bought was from Rocke, and that was just once, 'cause I was curious.

It's much easier to avoid when you don't collect Hidden Mickeys and you're near a park so you can buy straight from the source...

 

[erudolf]

+1.
privacy is privacy and it shouldnt matter if your name shows up on feedback or not,why are you going to take all that time to try and bust scrap traders?its not going to stop them.i think thats up there w/stalker status.get over it,ive bought them before i knew better have i bought any since i found out the difference no.will i ever agai,no.but if you buy them knowing what your doing,thanks a lot for putting crap on lanyards for us to get,but are you evil no way.to each their own,remember the real bad guys are those selling them knowing their selling fake product.

I don't think privacy has anything to do with it. If the information was supposed to be private it wouldn't be sitting out there for everyone to see. If you want privacy, then you probably shouldn't be buying on ebay at all.

And I strongly disagree with this comment:

"to each their own,remember the real bad guys are those selling them knowing their selling fake product."

If you knowingly buy bad pins just to save money and dump them off on others then you are just as bad as the person selling them in the first place. If it wasn't for the buyers, there would be no sellers. If someone trades you a scrapper for your good pin are you just going to say "hey, to each their own"? Or if someone decides to counterfiet the best trader you have an circulate it to the point that yours is practically worthless, are you just going to say "hey, to each their own"? Probably not. That kind of approach doesn't help the situation.

While it may have been misdelivered, I don't think the intent was to bash people that didn't know better and bought a lot when they were first starting. I don't know the details on what Dan found, but when I read it my impression was that he saw names of people that publicly condemn scrappers and claim to only have good pins here but at the same time are making recent scrapper lot purchases off of ebay. Perhaps Dan should clear that up so that people who made a mistake when first starting out don't feel like it is an attack on them.

 

[Uncle Pig]

Why buy scrappers when you can trade for them at the park? Sheesh, I cannot recall the number of times I have been excited about a trade and then arrived back at home to find it's on the "s-list".

I spoke with a CM at DCA on Saturday regarding the pin-demic. She said that they were trained on how to distinguish the real from the fake and even given a magnet to test the metal properties, but with the sheer number of scrapers entering the park they were instructed to accept all pins.

It's all just a shame.

 

[imatronaholic]

I don't think it is creepy. I personally find it more creepy when someone thinks that because they are hiding behind user names on the internet that they can say one thing here and think that nobody can see or figure out what they are really doing.

I run across, let's say....."interesting" things on ebay all the time. Half of the time it is on accident but sometimes I am looking for the information. We are a very small community and if you participate in it long enough then you are bound to connect some dots. Here are some things I've found in the past along with the reason I found them:

1) Who bought a specific pin because it is one I am looking for - I was looking for this on purpose so that I can get an idea of who might have it and what it might take to get it. Finding difficult pins sometimes requires some detective work.

2) Who bought a pin because I was watching it or looking at a specific seller's feedback - this is mostly on accident. On a couple of occasions I have been watching a pin or ran across some feedback that caught my eye, mainly because of the price tag. When I'm scanning through and see $500, I stop and think "what was that". Then all of a sudden I see who bought it and think to myself "interesting.....this person just posted on the boards claiming to know nothing of this pin's value...." or "interesting....this person just claimed that they paid half the price for this pin but this says different....". Those aren't exactly things I'm looking for, but when I see them, I take note. I think it speaks to their character that they would lie about such a thing when they could just keep their mouth shut.

3) I look at (typically masked) bidders to identify shill bidders or people that are just bidding up an auction with no intention of following through with the sale. I try to avoid bidding on these auctions or am very careful about what I bid because bidding against someone like that can end up costing you money because they are falsely driving up the price. After watching these bidders over time I can sometimes figure out their ID. Keep in mind, the reason I care is because they are bidding on the things I want, not because I just have nothing better to do.

4) Sellers playing pricing games - this I found mainly on accident because I looked at a seller's other items. I then say that they had two of the exact same pin listed, on at $400 and the other at $700. That got me wondering "why?" and the only thing I could come up with is that they were trying to make their lower (still overpriced) item look more appealing. If someone is just surfing, comparing prices, and doesn't know any better they might say "Wow! Others are listed at $700! $400 must be a great deal!!!" Doesn't make much sense to me, but that's all I could think of....

5) It can give you an idea of who you can trust and who is safe to trade with - I rarely do this personally because I typically go for the higher end pins that don't have many scrapper/counterfiet issues, but I can see where it would be benificial. If you can see that someone is buying scrapper lots, do you really want to trade with them? Even if they are laundering them first? By continuing to buy them they are just adding to the problem.

I guess I don't really see the difference between looking at ebay activity and checking references. It is all out there for the public to see, why not use all the information available to make an informed decision? If you were hiring a babysitter, wouldn't you want to look into their background so that you can be sure you can trust your children with them? Or if you are buying a used car, wouldn't you want to know the car's history? This is similar, just on a much smaller scale. Pins as a hobby is not cheap when you do it legitimately. I don't want to deal with untrustworthy people or those that cheat the system because in the end all they are doing is hurting the hobby and those that play by the rules. Couple that with the fact that we are on the internet and you never know if people are who they say they are.....I for one will use every resource I can so that I can protect my self and my purchases. I don't see that as creepy, just being informed and not turning a blind eye to what is really going on.

I edited my post on this thread. You're right - and I like the way you have looked at this whole thing from all different angles. I have to say that I have purchased some legitimate pins off of eBay for less than half the original price - people sell pins for all different reasons. ..and I have definitely paid several times the original price - that's supply and demand for you..

..and sometimes I have seen pins listed on other DPFers pinpics lists (owns / wants / trades) and like them and add them to my wants list. And there are times when I have purchased pins on eBay with the full intention of trading, PIFfing, or even ZAPping another fellow DPFer. When the bidding process is happening real time on the Bay, you don't know who your bidding against. And I have bid on pins that I didn't 'win' - but if I really want it, I will continue looking for it.

..like this pin..

I have only seen it for sale on eBay one time - I was watching it - with plans to bid on it towards the end - and got busy doing something else and missed it completely - it sold for $51.00 - ugh!

..and I have found a seller or two on eBay that are listed on 'bad seller list', but since they post pictures of actual pins, I took a chance, and lo and behold, all the pins I got are real, legitimate, authentic Disney pins. Will I buy again from these sellers, even though they are bad listed? Of course I will. This is how I currently get my in park traders. A lot of times, when I show my daughter a recent haul of pins, she picks several of them for her own collection, and the rest of these authentic Disney pins get traded. It's only since I joined this forum that I learned about pin trading with CMs - it's soooo much fun - lots of the CMs wear pin trading lanyards just to have interactions with some of the visitors and to break up the monotony of the day - I love it when we come across a group of CMs from the cleaning department that all have lanyards on - that makes for a GOOD time.

 

[simbanino]

Okay, if u said u will never buy them and u do, shame on you, if u buy them and put them on lanyards, it might benwrong but is not a crime, but what I think is really unacceptable, is: some people buy lots of 200, around .50 cents a pin, these people go to parks, and trade for anything, doesn't matter if it is good or not, as long as it is not a obvious scrapper, then these people come come, and sell real pins on eBay or here for 2 to 3 dollars a pin, they are real, but now we know how the got them, they are making it a business by not just pin trading but buy hundreds of fake pin and leaving them at the parks then selling them, then getting more fakes to keep doing the same thing. I don't judge, but I know 2 people that do that here, is sad but I don't trade with them for that reason. I had bough manny pins from Disney, real pins, as everybody knows my boyfriend spoils me lots and let me spend lots money doing this pin trading stuff, but when somebody once told me that they sold them on eBay, I boigh a lot of 20 or 2, then I actually keep a few of that scrapper lot in my collection not knowing better, then we bought a bigger lot, that is when thanks to breagirl I was shown what is a scrapper, I went through most of them, and the obvious ones I took them aside and later on I gave them to my cousin who is 5, now thanks to the lots I had bought before and since I traded some of them I have the good pins I do, but as manny know, most of my pins are real pins with original cards since I like to buy good traders in order to trade for my nice wants. Are you a bad per for getting scrappers out of eBay not knowing better, no, are u a bad person for buying them now, no, however, if u said the word, never in the sentence "I will never buy scrappers" and you do, then that is a different story, and don't get me started with buying pins at .50 cents then trading for them and either selling them as traders for higher value or selling them individual with a obviously higher value than what you payed for them, also keeping in mind that u are infecting lanyards with scrappers to get some money on your packages. I know this is off topic, but for example, many people here are amazing individuals, but when it comes to selling, they become selfish, greedy people who takes the fun out this fun event and make it a bussiness, back when the mystery stamps were being sold, a few people said that they had them for sale because they needed to get some money back they had spend in order to finish their sets and have a lot of repeats, lol, oh please, funny people using the words"recovering some money", they were making a paycheck, a pouch for mystery stamps are $16, that is $8 a pin, these people were asking $34 to $40 for one stamp, the lower I saw was like $14 for one, that is not getting some money back from buying the stamps, that is making money out of the poor people who can't go to the park often and get them, same thing with the Alice in wonderland event at Disneyland, I know this one u had to payed for the entrance on Saturday and some missed work and that is okay to race the price a little but some of these people were asking for 3 times how much they are worth. We all have dirty secrets, we all want to be liked here in this community(pin trading) but don't say you hate this and that, when u are so very much doing this thing u said u dislike so much, it could be buying scrappers, or whatever it is, that is called being a two face person, which is not nice. Let's just keep it fun people, like theressa has in her signature, "live the dream" and just smile, let's not make more drama. Hope u all having a great day, and happy trading to you all.

 

[imatronaholic]

Okay...

...Let's just keep it fun people, like theressa has in her signature, "live the dream" and just smile, let's not make more drama. Hope u all having a great day, and happy trading to you all.

Ditto

 

[jjgasman]

Dan, this is an interesting subject you brought up, and the comments are equally interesting.

Again, we're back to the age old quandary, legal vs. ethical. Too often, people are only worried about the legal issue without thinking about the ethical one. Illegal = you can get arrested, Unethical = you should have trouble facing yourself in the mirror (or, if you're religious, you might have trouble facing your god).

The bottom line is that if you're doing something that you don't feel "right" about sharing with others, then it is quite likely to be unethical.

Those who are buying counterfeits in bulk for the sole purpose of trading with CMs to get authentics for resale are doing something unethical. If you know who they are, I'd love to know, so I can avoid supporting their "habit" when I need to stock up on traders.

 

[iamdisneydan]

Yes, I have unknowingly done so ! There I said it ! I have officially taken the pin oath :lol: Now I buy from Calvin @ Miami Pins on ebay . $1.10 a pin, but I know they are real .

Very Easily:
Here is an example:
Notice every completed auction had the buyers email address.

[EDITED]

 

[lovethestitch]

And you know this because? $ 1.10 per pin and, regularly selling at this price on ebay and you seriously believe he doesn't at least sell part scrappers?
I haven't dealt with them personally, but I did remember seeing that user name elsewhere before:

http://www.www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=36302934&highlight=miami+pins#post36302934
http://www.www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=38602133&highlight=miami+pins#post38602133

I agree with Vala - it's highly questionable that $1.10 pins are real. Even if he somehow gets them for 99cents, with the Ebay fees, it would negate the profit. These are likely scrappers.

 

[iamdisneydan]

I don't think privacy has anything to do with it. If the information was supposed to be private it wouldn't be sitting out there for everyone to see. If you want privacy, then you probably shouldn't be buying on ebay at all.

And I strongly disagree with this comment:

"to each their own,remember the real bad guys are those selling them knowing their selling fake product."

If you knowingly buy bad pins just to save money and dump them off on others then you are just as bad as the person selling them in the first place. If it wasn't for the buyers, there would be no sellers. If someone trades you a scrapper for your good pin are you just going to say "hey, to each their own"? Or if someone decides to counterfiet the best trader you have an circulate it to the point that yours is practically worthless, are you just going to say "hey, to each their own"? Probably not. That kind of approach doesn't help the situation.

While it may have been misdelivered, I don't think the intent was to bash people that didn't know better and bought a lot when they were first starting. I don't know the details on what Dan found, but when I read it my impression was that he saw names of people that publicly condemn scrappers and claim to only have good pins here but at the same time are making recent scrapper lot purchases off of ebay. Perhaps Dan should clear that up so that people who made a mistake when first starting out don't feel like it is an attack on them.

See the bold print above......

This is in no way an attack on new people. I personally bought 3 100 lots before I met some people at the park (you know who you are) who explained to me very nicely what these pins were. I had not idea other than "WHAT A GREAT DEAL!" This is geared at the people who have been collecting a while, make post condemming scrappers and are currently buying them, hence my description of a DOUBLE STANDARD. Thank you for pointing this out. As most of you who know me, sometimes I have a way of conveying my point but with loose ends. (I did say it WAS NOT a case study right? lol)

Just like when I was a newbie, we did not know better. And as I posted somewhere before this, you can easily check a persons feedback, sold auctions and about 10 more ways to see closed auctions and who purchased them.

AND ON A SPECIAL NOTE, NOTICE MOST OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE NEVER BOUGHT SCRAPPER ARE NOT CLOSE TO THE PARK AS PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED BECAUSE THEY WOULD HAVE NOWHERE TO TRADE THEM.

This is to all the seasoned traders who have that dirty little secret. Gee, maybe I should call them out.............

Did I make ya nervous? You know who you are!

 

[iamdisneydan]

Why buy scrappers when you can trade for them at the park? Sheesh, I cannot recall the number of times I have been excited about a trade and then arrived back at home to find it's on the "s-list".

I spoke with a CM at DCA on Saturday regarding the pin-demic. She said that they were trained on how to distinguish the real from the fake and even given a magnet to test the metal properties, but with the sheer number of scrapers entering the park they were instructed to accept all pins.

It's all just a shame.

OK, you mentioned the MAGNET.

We took a MAGNET to over 100 pins right in the westward ho and about 20 of them were magnetic. Is Disneyland selling scrappers right on their boards?
I thought this was previously debunked as a way to tell. Got a magnet? go to the park and see for yourself.

 

[erudolf]

[/B]

AND ON A SPECIAL NOTE, NOTICE MOST OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE NEVER BOUGHT SCRAPPER ARE NOT CLOSE TO THE PARK AS PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED BECAUSE THEY WOULD HAVE NOWHERE TO TRADE THEM.

I don't think that is really a fair observation. I may not live near a park but I typically visit on at least once a year I could potentially have a need for traders as well. I just choose not to buy them. Also, I believe Abyssinian28 lives near WDW but doesn't buy them either.

Any avid pin trader is probably visiting the parks on a regular basis no matter where they live. They just may not require trader pins as frequently. It all boils down to the person's choice.

 

[HeatherFeather]

What an interesting thread! I really had never even suspected that some of those vehemently crying out over the issue of scrapper/counterfeit pins might merely be paying lip service to such and were actually contributing to the problem for their own personal gain. I guess I am a little too trusting but I suppose I shouldn't be surprised since it seems at least one of those guys recently arrested for counterfeiting pins in SoCal was also a trader/collector. I had wondered on that thread whether either of those guys were members of this or any other pin forum.

That said, I think I bought one trader lot of about 30 pins maybe in 2005 or 2006. No idea about scrappers/counterfeits until after that.

 

[breadnbutterflies]

Okay, if u said u will never buy them and u do, shame on you, if u buy them and put them on lanyards, it might benwrong but is not a crime, but what I think is really unacceptable, is: some people buy lots of 200, around .50 cents a pin, these people go to parks, and trade for anything, doesn't matter if it is good or not, as long as it is not a obvious scrapper, then these people come come, and sell real pins on eBay or here for 2 to 3 dollars a pin, they are real, but now we know how the got them, they are making it a business by not just pin trading but buy hundreds of fake pin and leaving them at the parks then selling them, then getting more fakes to keep doing the same thing. I don't judge, but I know 2 people that do that here, is sad but I don't trade with them for that reason. I had bough manny pins from Disney, real pins, as everybody knows my boyfriend spoils me lots and let me spend lots money doing this pin trading stuff, but when somebody once told me that they sold them on eBay, I boigh a lot of 20 or 2, then I actually keep a few of that scrapper lot in my collection not knowing better, then we bought a bigger lot, that is when thanks to breagirl I was shown what is a scrapper, I went through most of them, and the obvious ones I took them aside and later on I gave them to my cousin who is 5, now thanks to the lots I had bought before and since I traded some of them I have the good pins I do, but as manny know, most of my pins are real pins with original cards since I like to buy good traders in order to trade for my nice wants. Are you a bad per for getting scrappers out of eBay not knowing better, no, are u a bad person for buying them now, no, however, if u said the word, never in the sentence "I will never buy scrappers" and you do, then that is a different story, and don't get me started with buying pins at .50 cents then trading for them and either selling them as traders for higher value or selling them individual with a obviously higher value than what you payed for them, also keeping in mind that u are infecting lanyards with scrappers to get some money on your packages. I know this is off topic, but for example, many people here are amazing individuals, but when it comes to selling, they become selfish, greedy people who takes the fun out this fun event and make it a bussiness, back when the mystery stamps were being sold, a few people said that they had them for sale because they needed to get some money back they had spend in order to finish their sets and have a lot of repeats, lol, oh please, funny people using the words"recovering some money", they were making a paycheck, a pouch for mystery stamps are $16, that is $8 a pin, these people were asking $34 to $40 for one stamp, the lower I saw was like $14 for one, that is not getting some money back from buying the stamps, that is making money out of the poor people who can't go to the park often and get them, same thing with the Alice in wonderland event at Disneyland, I know this one u had to payed for the entrance on Saturday and some missed work and that is okay to race the price a little but some of these people were asking for 3 times how much they are worth. We all have dirty secrets, we all want to be liked here in this community(pin trading) but don't say you hate this and that, when u are so very much doing this thing u said u dislike so much, it could be buying scrappers, or whatever it is, that is called being a two face person, which is not nice. Let's just keep it fun people, like theressa has in her signature, "live the dream" and just smile, let's not make more drama. Hope u all having a great day, and happy trading to you all.

well put.

 

[imatronaholic]

OK, you mentioned the MAGNET.

...

Another "tell tale" indication that a pin is a fake or scrapper is that the finish on the front of the pin may have dips on the hard enamel sections?? Well, when we were at DLR and DCA last week, we purchased several pins off of racks at different stores AND we noticed that a large number of these pins' enamel finish were not smooth and had dips in the enamel section(s). Well, those pins went back on the rack - but the reason I mention this is that this alone is not an indication that a pin is not authentic - I actually prefer to say things in positive ways - so I am saying that some authentic Disney pins have dips in the enamel sections. I know that this has to do with Quality Control, but even with QC, there will be items that are not perfect. And in businesses, QC moves forward based on good enough. If everything had to be perfect, there wouldn't be much of anything out there (cars, clothes, food, people, even Disney pins).

 

[jTrack]

I've bought from eBay but that was before I knew there were fakes. I don't live anywhere near a park and have only went to WDW once. The pins are still nice for show

 

[unibear]

I guess I have another take on Simbanino's concern about selling the Disney Mystery Stamps for double their price (or more). I only wanted the Pooh pins, so if I bought the packages I would probably have a success rate of about 25% (also not near Anaheim). So, it made good sense for me to buy the 18 Pooh pins I needed for double their price (here and at eBay) because odds are I wouldn't have gotten the 18 pins I needed for that price (buying 18 packs and getting 36 pins).

 

[heyyouwannatrade]

As far as the scrapper lots and why I never even bought one as a newbie. We have always tried to take the kids to Disney once a year so I have taken traders with me but I have never wanted to take pins I did not actually like with me. I have never ever cared for Hideen Mickey pins. Back on our first trip the cm's would try to talk me into them. This was before the scrapper issue was a big problem. They told me how rare they were and such but I never wanted them. I told them I liked more of the rack pins and such as they just looked nicer to me. I have always thought hm's looked cheap and uninteresting so I never collected them. Trader lots have always been full of them and I just did not want to spend money on something I did not like, even if it was for a trader. Yes, I bought pin lots from ebay but they were collections that people were parting with, pins found at estate sells, etc. I had great luck with this. It is still the way I buy pins 6 years later. I have just never had a single bit of interest in trader lots that people sell over and over again so no I really have never ever bought one. haha

 

[tinkerbelle1956]

I've never got a bad batch of pins from Calvin . I'm really sorry to hear that about him . I only just buy a pin I want now, rather than lots . I'm getting away from the CM lanyard pins . When I did, I got from him, but no more .
Another way too tell is if there is 1 of 3 in a set set of Hidden Mickey Cast Lanyard pins and the back of the pin states 1 of 6 . I've picked them off lanyards .

 

[imatronaholic]

nevermind. TMI!

Hey - I caught your original post - and I completely understand - cuz I'm pretty heavy $$ into pins like it sounds you are. I will probably have to sell some of them, like you have, but I'm not quite there yet. You're fine, don't worry, we understand. I had made a long winded post on this thread. in the wee hours of this morning, and edited it out like you just did - wow - let's just remember that this is not true confessions time.

 

[heyyouwannatrade]

Hey - I caught your original post - and I completely understand - cuz I'm pretty heavy $$ into pins like it sounds you are. I will probably have to sell some of them, like you have, but I'm not quite there yet. You're fine, don't worry, we understand. I had made a long winded post on this thread. in the wee hours of this morning, and edited it out like you just did - wow - let's just remember that this is not true confessions time.

LOL!! Yeah, I figrued a few people saw it first. I was reading it to dh and he thought I was crazy...told me it was way to much info so I edited it. I give out too much info sometimes without thinking... too emotional I guess. Good thing I have somebody to keep me straight. haha Glad it came across as understandable though instead of me just yapping away!

 

[simbanino]

As far as the scrapper lots and why I never even bought one as a newbie. We have always tried to take the kids to Disney once a year so I have taken traders with me but I have never wanted to take pins I did not actually like with me. I have never ever cared for Hideen Mickey pins. Back on our first trip the cm's would try to talk me into them. This was before the scrapper issue was a big problem. They told me how rare they were and such but I never wanted them. I told them I liked more of the rack pins and such as they just looked nicer to me. I have always thought hm's looked cheap and uninteresting so I never collected them. Trader lots have always been full of them and I just did not want to spend money on something I did not like, even if it was for a trader. Yes, I bought pin lots from ebay but they were collections that people were parting with, pins found at estate sells, etc. I had great luck with this. It is still the way I buy pins 6 years later. I have just never had a single bit of interest in trader lots that people sell over and over again so no I really have never ever bought one. haha

Yeah I saw the first message as well, first of all, I understand why u prize them like that, do I agree, no, do I have to agree, no, but I respect your point of view like I always respect everyones, and FYI, this message was not really for you, there are people that live out of over pricing their pins, and u don't have to feel attack if u are not them. A few things:

I don't blame you for selling your extras, none does, however I can't sell a pin I bought for $8 for 3 times that price, does that mean I am better than you, absolutely not, it is just my point of view.

Second, u said, u were selling them at eBay prices, and that you "did hoped to sell the extras to ad least make back some of my money, of corse I did, who wouldn't", well I wouldn't, and making up money is by selling for original price, making prophet is selling for a higher price, that is for sure. So not trying to be disrespectful or anything, but by selling them a twice the price, u making up money with a prophet. Also, I think you are a sweet girl, that help people with their collections(stamps) and I never said u were greedy, I said people who takes the fun out and make it a bussiness by over pricing their pins are greedy.

Third: the comment you said, about selling a open edition that originally cost $6 for a huge price, and we say nothing about it, mmm, yeah that open edition is: sold out, came out YEARS ago, and almost nobody is trading it. Let's not compare that with the stamps that are still camping out from time to time and have not been out for mora than 5 months.

Fourth: u bought the pirate stain glass pin for a high price, that was your choice, and hope u are happy with it, now did he made a prophet? Yes. So nobody is saying that is wrong to sell them for a higher value, just that the person doing so, it is making a prophet.

Again, this was not directed to you but now that u felt called out, I am saying how I see it. Also u finished your previous message with, people like to talk and stuff, well, they do, but hope u don't mean I am talking bad about you, because I wasn't I am a person that actually don't like conflict, and that is why I am finishing this message with an apology if u got offended, again, I was talking over all and to people who are making a prophet out of people who can't go to disney often enough and get these pins. Hope u having a wonderful day. And hope everybody else is also having a great day.
Smiles for miles.

 

[iamdisneydan]

I don't think that is really a fair observation. I may not live near a park but I typically visit on at least once a year I could potentially have a need for traders as well. I just choose not to buy them. Also, I believe Abyssinian28 lives near WDW but doesn't buy them either.

Any avid pin trader is probably visiting the parks on a regular basis no matter where they live. They just may not require trader pins as frequently. It all boils down to the person's choice.

I am not saying if you live near a park you buy scrappers, its just by doing some homework, the majority of the people buying these lots are typically close to the park. I never said all, mostly. Of course many people will buy these lots for when they visit one of the parks. As always, I have to be more defined or are you not reading it as written. I never said all, I said most.....

 

[breagirl]

Here's my .02 for what it's worth. Started collecting in 2007, but had a very modest collection mainly only collecting themes my kids liked. Although I had friends that actively collected, I didn't realize there was a whole online community...matter of fact, I went on disboards multiple times in vacation planning and never even realized that people discussed pins in the collectibles area.

Fast forward to 2009 when we were planning another vacation. Having sold on ebay for years (vintage dolls), I naturally thought to check there for pins, thinking I would find collections similiar to what Amanda mentioned above. I also consulted the friends who I knew had collected long before I started. They told me to buy the trader lots on ebay....no emotional attachment to the pins, great price and if my kids wanted to keep a few no biggie. Because I am super cheap, I averaged it out and figured out that my best bang for the buck was to buy the 1000 pin lot. Yep, you read that right. I got the pins and was so impressed with how they were individually bagged and I loved that I got multiples of the same pin which was great for trading. We went on our happy little vacation in 2009 and traded our hearts out, but I began to question how in the world this guy could sell the pins so cheap once we returned as on that trip was the first time I realized that a lanyard with 4 pins was $29.95. That's what led me to researching and realizing scrappers even existed. Sounds crazy, but honestly, I didn't realize that all this was going on with scrapper pins...to me, I thought that surely Disney would keep a keener eye on what was going on with their pin production. At this point, I had already resold some of the extras on ebay, traded about 300 at the parks, and I was stuck knowing that there was no way I could now knowingly trade these pins for pins that were the real deal. What still makes me sick is that when I approached the people that told me to buy the lots off ebay with my newfound knowledge, they seemed to not really care. Those scrappers either went into my kids collections, we made magnets out of a ton, and the rest got donated to the scrapper project one of the forum members here needed pins for.

Do I hate knowing that I knowingly gave $500 to one of those scam artists on ebay and that I traded some of those junk pins in the park? Yes! But I'm proud of us for not knowingly continuing the practice and instead showing anyone that we know that has any interest in pins the difference between real pins, scrappers, and counterfeits. I used my knowledge to only buy collections like the ones Amanda mentions and even then, I still get some scrappers from time to time, but those either go to my kids collections or will continue to be sent to the forum member here. Let's face it, anyone that trades in the parks is bound to get a scrapper BUT to continue putting it back into the parks is just ridiculous if you KNOW it's a scrapper. Just my .02

 

[heyyouwannatrade]

Reply points in purple.

Yeah I saw the first message as well, first of all, I understand why u prize them like that, do I agree, no, do I have to agree, no, but I respect your point of view like I always respect everyones, and FYI, this message was not really for you, there are people that live out of over pricing their pins, and u don't have to feel attack if u are not them. A few things:

I knew it was not specifically meant towards me as I understood you were talking about people who make a living doing this but I can't help but take it personal when you specifically call out the stamp pins that I was selling my extras of AND talking about saying we were making some money back from spending on them. As I had said, with what I had in them, yes I really did NEED to make some of the money back.

I don't blame you for selling your extras, none does, however I can't sell a pin I bought for $8 for 3 times that price, does that mean I am better than you, absolutely not, it is just my point of view.

I can appreciate your point of view but I am not so lucky as to have that kind of money lying around so I need to try and cover some of it. If you have the money to buy that many and pay for them that is great! I was not forcing anyone to buy anything and like I said, anyone who did not have the money to buy them I happily traded them the stamps they needed. I also came down quite a bit in any prices I had up each time somebody would pm me and ask me to so I really did try my best to help everyone out as much as I could but still try to at least get a little bit of the money back.

Second, u said, u were selling them at eBay prices, and that you "did hoped to sell the extras to ad least make back some of my money, of corse I did, who wouldn't", well I wouldn't, and making up money is by selling for original price, making prophet is selling for a higher price, that is for sure. So not trying to be disrespectful or anything, but by selling them a twice the price, u making up money with a prophet. Also, I think you are a sweet girl, that help people with their collections(stamps) and I never said u were greedy, I said people who takes the fun out and make it a bussiness by over pricing their pins are greedy.


I did not say I was selling them ALL at ebay prices. I did say that the Stitch was bringing that much and more on ebay so I did price him higher. I did not pull him from a pack... I bought him so he was not one I was only in $8 just to be fair.

Third: the comment you said, about selling a open edition that originally cost $6 for a huge price, and we say nothing about it, mmm, yeah that open edition is: sold out, came out YEARS ago, and almost nobody is trading it. Let's not compare that with the stamps that are still camping out from time to time and have not been out for mora than 5 months.

At the time the stamp packs seemed to be sold out... nobody was able to get them for a while there! It was one reason I jumped at the chance to buy the ones I did. ...but really, this is still the same as an le100 ds.com set coming out and a person having them up here or on ebay for higher prices b/c they sold out. Does this make it right for them to sell them at higher prices just b/c it has sold out? If not, is it ok to hold onto said set for 6 months and then sell it at those higher prices since it has been sold out for a while? What about those who bought that carriage set for $69 the other day? Do I expect them to then come here and sell it to me b/c I missed out on it for $12 b/c that is what they paid for it? Of course not and I don't ask. Would it be nice if somebody did? Absolutely! Would I be happy? Without a doubt! I would be extremely greatful and do all I could to return the favor but not many people would be willing to do that and that is just the way the hobby is. They will want to sell them to make back the money they spent #1 or #2 will hold onto them to trade up for a pin that they could not have bought for $12. I don't see how this is any different, by the way.


Fourth: u bought the pirate stain glass pin for a high price, that was your choice, and hope u are happy with it, now did he made a prophet? Yes. So nobody is saying that is wrong to sell them for a higher value, just that the person doing so, it is making a prophet.

but you WERE saying that this was wrong in your original post. You were complaining a lot about people doing this. If you are not willing to ever spend more than what a pin costs then it will be hard to get the ones you are not in the right location to buy b/c there will not always be people willing to help you out each and every time when they know that they would be able to keep it for themselves and use them as good traders. Yes, the person made a nice profit off of me buying the pin but I choose to do so. It is an le150 and I knew nobody was going to get it for me at cost so I spent the money on it.

Trust me, I am all for helping somebody out. I have done my best to make trades with people when they really wanted something. I have zapped others. I have even bought ds.com pins for people out of the US who wanted them and did not want to pay the high shipping in the past. These are the things you do as a community and I am all for that. It is what I love about being here. I don't however think that every single time I run across a deal I should have to pass that same deal on to somebody else so to speak.

Again, this was not directed to you but now that u felt called out, I am saying how I see it. Also u finished your previous message with, people like to talk and stuff, well, they do, but hope u don't mean I am talking bad about you, because I wasn't I am a person that actually don't like conflict, and that is why I am finishing this message with an apology if u got offended, again, I was talking over all and to people who are making a prophet out of people who can't go to disney often enough and get these pins. Hope u having a wonderful day. And hope everybody else is also having a great day.
Smiles for miles.

It is alright. As I said, I get emotional (for lack of a better word) about things something and just roll with it. I should not have made such an issue out of it, just wanted to explain the other side to your point of view. I was not upset with you at all. I know everyone has a different viewpoint and I do respect that. Believe me I am not a confrontational person in the least and like you do not like conflict so I hope my post did not come across in that way. Again, was just explaining (in too much detail) the reasons people may do the things they do.