Spotting scrappers and training Disneyland cast members how to spot them is actually a part of my job, so I'd be happy to share my knowledge on the topic. Give me a couple of days and I'll publish something. Cm speeder 03 04. Easiest ways are weight and shine, actually. Authentic pins are 2mm thick and made out of a nickel alloy with a synthetic porcelain cloisonne enamel (which is a very hard enamel) and then hand polished. Scrappers are made of tin and a soft enamel, are usually thinner than 2mm, and are polished.

By some other method that causes dull streaking. I don't remember where I first read these, but the common tips I've seen (and experienced) are edges and backs. Particularly rough edges are a scrapper sign, as are backs where the Mickey pattern is slightly offset, i.e. It doesn't go all the way to the edge. I think I read that that occurs because legit pins are cut out of metal stock that's already got the Mickey pattern printed, and fakes are usually stamped with the pattern after being cut. Maybe ask for decent-resolution photos of the backs if it's a design that Pinpics has a warning on.

Also, I don't know if this is fact or just what I've seen, but it seems like the Hidden Mickeys are the most scrapped/faked, probably because they're usually pretty simple and don't have a lot of complicated elements that would be more costly to make/fake. I have one pin that actually never even had a legit version -- the only ones that exist are fakes. But it was so cute (a Halloween Mickey head) that I had to keep it. I just won't trade it. I also keep a fake stars-and-stripes Mickey on my ID lanyard at work, since I won't care if it falls off somewhere. I definitely know how to spot them. I'm hoping other traders in here will learn as well.

What has been your experience with traded scrapers? I don't feel like I should call people out because they most likely wouldn't have traded if they knew it was a scrapper. Do you send it back or ask for your trade back? What's good etiquette? I mostly trade on here just for fun so I'm not too worried about it unless I paid for it.

I've purchased a fake on eBay before and the seller returned my money. This actually hasn't been a problem before, but it is something that should be addressed. There really isn't a good repository for how to spot scrappers, since the information is unauthenticated by Disney, much of it isn't accurate and there are no hard and fast rules for spotting them. For example: The 'magnet' trick absolutely does not work, even though some people swear by it. The only pins I have that are attracted to a magnet date back to the late 80s/early 90s and all came from the park, purchased by me. I've tried it on every obvious scrapper I've come across and it doesn't work. Paint dips and bad coloring are the easiest way to spot it.

Rough edges are unreliable because of the drop in quality over the past couple years (a CM member of this sub told me the former exec in charge of pins let quality slide for a few years). Even waffling isn't reliable because it's fairly recent with many people assuming, incorrectly, that pins without waffling are automatically scrappers.