FROM: Vinylmation 360 Published Mondays

The Perils of Vinylmation Trading

People have traded since the dawn of time. You have what I want, I have what you want. Simple, right? Not always. Dishonest traders abound, even when it comes to something as simple, as innocent, as Vinylmation. Heed Kelly's cautionary tale.

- by Kelly Firth, June 19, 2011

Readers who have hung in there with me through the past few weeks know that I have been experiencing computer problems. Unfortunately, my Internet access is down, and I am writing to you from a library. So, again this week, I'm unable to bring you the picture-filled column I had planned.

Next week will be our June Q&A.; If you have any questons for me, please leave them in the comments section by late Friday, June 24th. Look for regular columns and the WDW picture-heavy columns to debut the first week of July. Please accept my humble apologies for the delays.

While at WDW last month, I traded many Vinylmations in hopes of getting chasers or variants, or even just regular vinyls I liked but didn't have. For the most part, my fellow vacationers and I were the only ones trading at any given time at any given location.

One day in the Animal Kingdom, however, a couple of young children were waiting in a very long and very slow line. I was in line with them, and what happened raises some important questions that all theme park traders should ask themselves before they start trading.

Trading for Value, Fun, or Friendship?

For me, the answer to that question is a mix of the three, though I hadn't thought about the 'helping others' part of the equation until that day in the Animal Kingdom.

Generally, if you aren't at a trading event, you're trading with Cast Members, and since vinyls aren't as visible as pins, people won't ask to trade unless they see that you're actually holding a vinyl.

So, I came into my WDW vacation with the intention of trading some older (and yes, cheaper!) vinyls that I had gotten on eBay for vinyls which I did not have. I figured I'd save some money, have some fun, and maybe stumble upon a chaser or a variant.

(In July, I'll talk about how trading works and exactly what luck, or lack thereof, I had at each location. For now, I want to share what happened that day at the Animal Kingdom.)

Scamming or Helping?

The elder of the two children in line with me saw that I was waiting to trade some vinyls, and he approached me to talk about trading. He told me about the bad luck he had had on his vacation with trading, and that so far he had only found a few vinyls that he liked.

Then he brought up a very good point.

He mentioned that you used to be able to find more valuable vinyls in the clear boxes, but now almost everyone knows what they are, so they don't trade. Or, as he said, the adults spot a child with a valuable vinyl and offer them a common vinyl in exchange, hoping the child doesn't know the difference.

I wasn't sure if the boy had had this happen to him, but I did ask him what series he was looking for in particular. He told me, and it was a series for which I happened to have a few vinyls in my trading bag. They ended up not being any that he still needed, but I was hoping to help him out. I was trading mine off anyway, so I didn't particularly care if I got one from him that I didn't want or need. I could simply trade it away later in the day.

Two different scenarios amount to two different ways of trading and, really, living.

I had heard about some adults trying to trick children out of their more valuable vinyls, but this was the first time I had ever had a child tell me about it. I perfectly understand collectors wanting to get a variant or chaser at cost, and not have to spend an obscene amount of money on eBay buying one outright. But does saving some money worth selling your morals? No way.

Unfortunately, some people in this world have very self-centered values, if they have any at all. Scamming and tricking anyone is wrong, and it sets a bad example for others. But in my mind, there is something even more vile about scamming a child out of a 'good' vinyl.

Do you have to help children or other traders? No, of course not.

However, if it doesn't involve a vinyl of value, or if it's not a vinyl to which you're particularly attached, why not do a good deed? Better yet, maybe try to make a child's day, even if it means exchanging a slightly more valuable vinyl for a common one?

Remember to ask the child's parent or supervising adult before offering such a trade. You know your intentions are good, but the parents and the child do not. You're the stranger!

Perspective

At the end of the day, Vinylmations are just vinyl and paint, not worth more than the happiness and memories they create. If you can make someone's day, why not do so?

If you are in the hobby just for the value of it, that's okay. But if you find yourself at the point where you are willing to scam a child (or an adult) to make or save some money, you really need to take a step back and reevaluate what you are doing with your life. Money, as they say, can buy a lot of things, but it cannot buy a good reputation.

Kudos to all those traders who try and help others when they can, whether through trades, picking up things at cost for others, etc. You help make this hobby fun for all.

On the last Sunday of every month, I'll devote this column to your questions and my answers. You can leave questions here as comments or else send them directly to me.

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