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What does your pin budget go to?

What does your pin budget go to?
Gelatoni

Gelatoni

Well-Known DPF Member
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I'm curious how much people spend in the following categories:
1. pure traders
2. personal collection + keepers
3. pins that you would like to trade for something nicer but don't mind owning forever
4. pins for resale (exclude at-cost pickups because that's someone else's budget)

I feel like I went through a phase of buying a lot of traders (ex. 100 OEs and 2 of each LE on release day) but once I filled a couple books of traders, I stopped buying traders unless I see an exceptionally good deal. Now, most of my budget goes to my personal collection and a bit goes into category 3.
 
The majority of my purchases are for my collections/keepers. I will buy traders from DSF/DSSH, because I can go in person and get them at retail.

I don't usually purchase pins from the parks unless they are for my collection. The exception being mystery packs/boxes, where I'll buy them if something I need is in it and use whatever I don't need as traders.

I'll trade for traders if the other person doesn't have anything for my collections, but I won't usually buy pins from other pin traders to use just as trading pins (unless it's an auction with a low bid or they're selling it for much cheaper than the value).

I usually avoid buying pins for resale, except for my pick ups at DSF/DSSH for other DPF members.
 
When I first started all my purchases were cheap authentic traders for my trip. Now that the trip's over and I won't be back in the forseeable future, I mainly buy pins for under 30 bucks(every now and then) if it's a pin I really want for my collection or if it's a pin I like but would be willing to trade away if there was a good trade offer. I don't have the location or capacity to resell pins so that's not really applicable for me lol. My collections and budget are pretty small though, nowhere near being able to buy a ton of OEs or to fill a book.

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Mine is a little complicated. When I'm in the parks, I buy mostly for my own collection, but usually pick up a couple of extras for traders/zaps. My husband and I are addicted to mystery packs/boxes, so we end up with even more traders that way. When we pick up the connection mystery boxes, he'll put a couple of the duplicates up for auction (usually at cost, unless it's a chaser). Other than that, we don't buy for resale. (I should also add that if someone else does pick-ups for the mystery boxes for us, those do not go into auctions even if there are duplicates. Those go directly into the traders.)

I do have an extensive trader "collection" because I buy lots/collections that have some pins for my personal collection and the others become traders.

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1. Pure traders: depends on what kind of deal I can get? If it's a fantastic deal and I can get a good trade for it, sure.
2. personal collection/keepers: at least 80% of my pin budget goes there
3. See #1
4. unlikely anymore. I used to do pin pick-ups when I had an AP and could go to the parks, but not anymore.
 
My pin budget is pretty divided and varies from month to month.

It's probably like a 70/30 split for collection pin versus traders. I tend to buy traders when I can get them below trade value; through buying mystery bags on IG live sales, random deals, or by buying collections in bulk. I don't have any of the third category and I don't resell period.
 
These days, about 95% of my pin budget goes towards acquiring keepers, either for my personal collections or gifts for family/friends. I went through a phase of shopping live IG sales, during which I'd buy a combination of keepers and traders, but eventually realized I could find almost everything cheaper if I looked elsewhere. And, while I am always willing to trade or sell my traders, I don't ever buy pins for the express purpose of reselling them (not a knock on those who do, I just don't have the time/desire!).
 
I've never had great luck buying for traders, so I learned quickly to primarily buy for my collection.

My traders mostly come from buying mystery sets and getting duplicates, or buying lots that have things I want and things I don't want. I occasionally will buy a few extras from the Outlet Stores, and lately I have been buying extras of popular movies that have been released as part of the CM Movie Anniversary Series. I expect these to "percolate" for awhile before I actually trade them (unless the right deal comes along). But an extra trader every couple of months, is an okay investment for me.

Of course, I say this as a person who doesn't have a lot of access. If I lived down the road from DSSH, I would probably buy more "as traders." But most everything *I* can get, 100 other people can get too.
 
Pretty much all of my “budget” goes to keepers. If I see a really good deal on something I know would trade well I might buy it, but not usually.
 
1. pure traders - Don't buy pins to strictly trade, only when trying to complete mystery box sets or if I accidentally buy a duplicate pin.
2. personal collection + keepers - 95%
3. pins that you would like to trade for something nicer but don't mind owning forever - 0%
4. pins for resale (exclude at-cost pickups because that's someone else's budget) - 0%
 
1. 5%-10% usually a deal on shopdisney (I miss the semiannual pin sale)
2. 75%-85% personal collection + keepers
3. ? I feel most of my pins are in this category. If the right pin comes along most of my pins could become traders. That being said many of my traders were originally in my collection or from mystery sets.
4. 0%
5. (I know there is not a five but I needed to include it). 10%-15% presents/zaps.
 
1. I only buy traders when I am going to the parks and it is a very small amount that I currently have of traders (maybe 10 at most and I will be trying to pick up some more before I head back to Orlando in December)
2. 99% of my budget goes towards getting something for my collections. I may pick up a mystery box/bag but that is only if I like all the pins in the series. If I end up getting something I don't like then it goes to my very small bag of traders.
3. Seeing as the exchange rate from CAD to USD is garbage right now I'm not going to spend my money on something that isn't a sure thing
4. I'm no where close to a park and get limited stock of pins so I'm not in the resale game. I have funded most of my sister's collection however
 
1. pure traders - 5% - Should be more since my traders are completely gone. My traders are now collections that I'm slimming down because the only collection that I needed to be a completist for was Mr. Toad.

2. personal collection + keepers - 60% - this amount might actually be lower since there aren't that many pins that I really need these days. The bulk of this percentage is really for my daughter's Ariel collection

3. pins that you would like to trade for something nicer but don't mind owning forever - 10% - I have gotten stuck with so many "traders" in the past because either I couldn't gain the right value in the trade for it or because I thought it would be a better trader than it actually was. And now they have become keepers...for now.

4. pins for resale - 25% - see #1 and #3. With my traders depleted and not having the "right" traders, which these days are the profiles, I have started to purchase pins for resale and then to simply buy what I want. The original trade, after all, was, and still is, cash for pins. These days, that has become a lot easier than trying to reach a meeting of the minds with folks who value their pins, even their OEs, substantially more than anyone else's.
 
It's a mix of traders for Disney and my own collection. I'm kinda still trying to equal it out some and teach my dad the importance of traders aka ones you could give up so he's not trading mine in the parks. I put a stop to that right away.
 
I just buy what I want. Technically my budget is 100% keepers since all my traders are duplicates when trying to complete mystery sets. I then use those for trading with cast members for whatever new HM wave is available. I would only dabble in the high end trade scene if I lived closer to the parks and had access to the high demand LE pins.
 
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