Buying Hong Kong and Shanghai Disney pins on eBay? Should I be worried of fake pins?

[TornadoTitan]

So I am interested in getting some pins that have been released at the Shanghai and Hong Kong Disney resorts since they have really been the only ones to have Zootopia pins. However as most of the counterfeits and scrapper pins come from mainland China, a bit worried about some of the pins I have my eye on also being faked. Being around $20-40 each, would be a big amount of money to loose for a fake. Being Chinese myself I wish I knew if I had family near those resorts so it would be easier to get these pins, but all the family I know are in the US. So what has your experience been getting pins from these Disney Resorts? They release a lot of nice pins I would love to get, but fear of fake pins is big.

 

[Piglet]

There are indeed some beautiful pins out there! I haven't really heard of any scrapped HKDL pins yet (not sure about Shanghai), but there's indeed a chance that there might be some out there. You can always check out some traders on Instagram that also do pick-ups. You can check out the hashtag #hkdlpins to find HKDL traders. You can check the tagged posts on their profile to see feedback, or if you're still in doubt feel free to pop me a message here. I've traded with quite a few HKDL profiles already since I collect Duffy, Shelliemay & Gelatoni pins

 

[timeerkat]

I mostly worry about pins coming from Hong Kong/China for pins that were released here in the US (places like the Soda Fountain or DLR/WDW). For pins that are released at Hong Kong Disneyland or Shanghai Disneyland, I worry less, since they were sold there. I EXPECT Hong Kong sellers to have HKDL pins and Chinese sellers to have SDL pins.

I have purchased Zootopia pins and the new SDL zodiac Allan-A-Dale pins over Facebook/Instagram/ebay from sellers based over there who specifically do park pickups, and haven't had a problem yet. Are you buying over ebay? Can you look at their sold listings and listings for sale and see if most/all of their pins are SDL/HKDL? If so, you're probably good.

 

[pinnochiolover]

There are some good FB pages where you can trade with people in Hong Kong, ..... pins also come up for sale there

 

[hopemax]

Look at the feedback and other items the sellers have for sale. If they have a lot of US pins, especially ones that are known to be counterfeited, I'd shy away. If all their auctions are "Private" stay away. Are pins sold mostly new on card, or are brand new pins missing their cards? Are they selling other park merchandise, not just pins. Look for stuff like that.