PIN & POP A Poll and Discussion: Pin and Pop Inspection Process, What Are Your Thoughts?

[cjgref]

Ive been reading this stream for a few days and I have to say that I agree with the general consensus that the PNP verification system is less than perfect. I won't go into my list of concerns as many of them have already been mentioned. But I think if the system could be updated to operate like other 3rd party sale platforms, where traders can leave a rating so the community knows which trade tables are more reliable than others and at the same time trades could be identified for quality much like used books are it might generate more trust or at least give the TA administration the right to say "Sorry you agreed to take a pin that was identified as used-fair condition." Yes its a more confrontational system but with 10k trades regularly moving during these events, having policies like these in place could make the trade exchanges more efficient and that in turn might result in greater trust.

 

[Pinderella2024]

Same here- I’ll be lurking this thread with a lot of interest. A huge reason I’ve been shying away from the idea of doing PinandPop is because of the number of posts about people declining pins due to factory flaws.

I don’t live near the park so I have a huge understanding of how expensive this hobby can be. But when I am at the park and I pull pins straight from bags (some mystery bags even had the pins in individual infamous red lined plastic bags straight from out of the 5 packer!) , I have to accept I can’t always get the pin exactly how I would have loved to get it because of Disney’s quality control going down.

I never want to knowingly sell or trade fakes, so I respect the idea of a third party service checking on things like that as I’ve even been fooled by what’s a fake and what’s not. Blemishes is where it starts to get fuzzy. Whose to say what a perfect pin should look like these days?

Anyway, I’m definitely interested in trying out PinandPop one day and there is A LOT I still feel shy about knowing beyond the inspection process. But I’m eager to hear and learn from discussions like these from experienced traders 🥰

I really like pin and pop. It does take a while to get your pins and some traders have gotten pickier. The whole point to pin and pop is that they check for fake and make sure you aren’t scammed in a mail trade. I love the trade arcades because I get a trading fix without having to travel and I’m not as comfortable trading in person. I don’t really like to say no. Here’s the thing. PnP is filling a niche and with the explosion is pin trading (and prices) in the last 2 years, they are also dealing with growing pains. I don’t mind not getting my pins within a month because I don’t have a lot of opportunities to trade. I can’t expect them to turn 10k pins around in 3 weeks. In the world we live in today, people tend to vocalize complaints and those complaints get the most attention. Those of us that are happy with the service keep using it and will continue to use it. One other point, and it may be a coincidence. At about the same time the complaints started showing up on the boards and events pages, other pin trading databases were kicking off. Since I come from the corporate world, it would not surprise me if some of the complaints are from those aligned with the newer services. The point to all of this is to say: try it. Know that your traded pins won’t be in your mailbox in 4 weeks and some trades may be declined. And recognize that you don’t have to become a vip to try any of it. Put a few pins in for trade and make some bids at the next trade arcade. You may like it. You may not. At least you will get your own experience and not be influenced by the fact that complaints are always louder than the positives. And I have no affiliation with PNP other than being a VIP member for the last year or two.

 

[hdtv267]

I really like pin and pop. It does take a while to get your pins and some traders have gotten pickier. The whole point to pin and pop is that they check for fake and make sure you aren’t scammed in a mail trade. I love the trade arcades because I get a trading fix without having to travel and I’m not as comfortable trading in person. I don’t really like to say no. Here’s the thing. PnP is filling a niche and with the explosion is pin trading (and prices) in the last 2 years, they are also dealing with growing pains. I don’t mind not getting my pins within a month because I don’t have a lot of opportunities to trade. I can’t expect them to turn 10k pins around in 3 weeks. In the world we live in today, people tend to vocalize complaints and those complaints get the most attention. Those of us that are happy with the service keep using it and will continue to use it. One other point, and it may be a coincidence. At about the same time the complaints started showing up on the boards and events pages, other pin trading databases were kicking off. Since I come from the corporate world, it would not surprise me if some of the complaints are from those aligned with the newer services. The point to all of this is to say: try it. Know that your traded pins won’t be in your mailbox in 4 weeks and some trades may be declined. And recognize that you don’t have to become a vip to try any of it. Put a few pins in for trade and make some bids at the next trade arcade. You may like it. You may not. At least you will get your own experience and not be influenced by the fact that complaints are always louder than the positives. And I have no affiliation with PNP other than being a VIP member for the last year or two.

A month?
Even before the "explosion" the turn around time was 6 weeks.
I just had my last pin from the MAY trade arcade finalized yesterday. It is now September,. Can't speak for others, but that's three months since I've gotten a pin back in my hands. It would seem as though pnp has become a victim of it's own success. The turn around time is incredibly frustrating. There's alot of factors there, staffing , if your trading partner has decided to do a manual inspection (which boggs up the system) , trips, holidays. Was hoping for improvements, but seems to be getting worse than better. Looks like a smaller amount of pins traded in August. Work on those has begun, Im hoping to get those turned around before I go to Disneyland in November.

 

[mjmerly]

Same here- I’ll be lurking this thread with a lot of interest. A huge reason I’ve been shying away from the idea of doing PinandPop is because of the number of posts about people declining pins due to factory flaws.

I don’t live near the park so I have a huge understanding of how expensive this hobby can be. But when I am at the park and I pull pins straight from bags (some mystery bags even had the pins in individual infamous red lined plastic bags straight from out of the 5 packer!) , I have to accept I can’t always get the pin exactly how I would have loved to get it because of Disney’s quality control going down.

I never want to knowingly sell or trade fakes, so I respect the idea of a third party service checking on things like that as I’ve even been fooled by what’s a fake and what’s not. Blemishes is where it starts to get fuzzy. Whose to say what a perfect pin should look like these days?

Anyway, I’m definitely interested in trying out PinandPop one day and there is A LOT I still feel shy about knowing beyond the inspection process. But I’m eager to hear and learn from discussions like these from experienced traders 🥰

I've already made the decision to not renew my VIP when it comes up and burning off the remaining trade tokens I have. This last trade arcade results with the blemish police and pins that I bought in the bleeping Disney Store having their authenticity questioned. ( yeah I know it was bought in New Jersey, but cmon) and the glacial pace of the approval of pins I'm waiting on, especially since I have auto approve on them, and backer cards on . The fun in it is gone. I'll do minimal trading at Disneyland when I visit later this year.

Only a sourpuss could find no fun in PnP. I don’t like it when a trader cancels a trade for a minor blemish either. I’m rather adult about it though. I don’t blame PnP for a traders decision to cancel a trade. It is what it is. I’m sure I’ll find another trader who finds my pin worthy of their collection another time. Ease up on all the backlash and negativity, jeesh! I think PnP provides a fantastic platform from which to trade pins. Their system isn’t perfect, but what system is? Yes, it takes a while to receive one’s pins but they do their best and work hard at it. Their business is young and growing and I’m sure they’ll continue to evolve their business for the benefit of all pin traders. I for one love their website for managing my collection (It’s the best online in my opinion) and the Trade Arcades are exciting and something I look forward to. The costs are reasonable and free shipping when receiving your pins!

 

[mybabykelly]

I think it’s hard to admit sometimes, but there is a very real monetary value to pins. That’s why you don’t see too many people trading their LE300 WDI pins for OE rack pins. My take on this discussion is if a trader does their due diligence and describes the flaw in their log book and notes the condition, at the very least the other trader can approach it with some detailed information and can choose whether they want to make an offer on it. If there is a major flaw and the trader doesn’t note it, it makes me feel like they are misrepresenting their pin by not providing that information beforehand. I’ve had it happen a few times already where even Jenn will send me a video and I could not fully ascertain the extent of the flaw until I had it in-hand (which falls back on me for accepting it in the first place). If it’s going into my collection, it’s a little easier to swallow. But sometimes I just like to refresh my traders and will swap it out for something in the same value range. But now I sent out a pin with no visible flaws and take in a pin that is flawed and will likely be harder to trade down the road.

With Pinpics, you can have a back and fourth conversation about pin flaws and swap pictures if needed. Without a trader posting the condition in the log book on P&P, you have to trade blindly and hope for the best.

It’s important to note that I normally use P&P for higher value pins ($100 and up) so my priority is definitely different than others that use it for bulk trades. But having a neutral third party and not having to send hundreds of dollars worth of pins to a stranger is a real selling point for me.

In the end, I think both traders should be happy and content with their trade. I try to scrutinize my pins I’m trading away because I would hate for someone to be disappointed by my pin. Sometimes this means I miss out on a trade because I shared a flaw that the other trader would not be happy with, but to me that’s more of a relief than having them receive the pin and being disappointed.

I’m glad P&P takes the time that they need to do their due diligence. Yes, waiting 3+ months to receive my pins back is a lot of time, but for me it’s worth it to know that I won’t have my pins stolen and so I have a level of control over the pin I am receiving from a trade.

P&P has had its good and bad moments for me, but I’ll keep using it because Jenn and Co. try their hardest to make it an enjoyable experience for everyone. Yes it’s disappointing when I have to cancel a trade, but pins cost a lot of money these days and I like to know I’m getting an even shake.

 

[mjmerly]

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