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Tradables


larkspeed

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I'm just curious what types of things you guys carry for tradables

 

I took my 6 year old daughter out with me today and together we found 5 caches.

 

One of these was my first cache bigger than a micro, in it other than the log book was a sticker for kids, since I had nothing with me to put in it's place much to my daughters dismay I left the sticker there.

 

This got me to thinking just what types of things people carry with them in case they find a cache with tradables in it

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I only trade for personal signature items left by other geocachers, so that probably affects the trade items I carry with me. Mostly, I carry foreign coins (given to me by friends who travel abroad, or bought in bulk from a local coin shop), for the occasional urban/suburban geocache. But when I go on a "geocaching hike", I also take a few other things, including new AA batteries, decorative pencils, and a few other random things given to me by friends who know I can put them to good use.

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We trade for signature items for the most part, but will trade for other stuff. Generally we leave random clean items that appear without my input, children's toys, pathtags, and other bits and pieces I pick up. Once I get a handle on my coin collection I'll probably start leaving coins, after all how many farthings does one need.

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Having abandoned "toys"... we usually drop in foreign coins, not taking much of anything out.

Buy them online by the bagful. Never know what you'll get, mostly aluminum coins from third-world -- but some very interesting and old coins mixed in.

 

Our last purchase included many WWI era European coins seemingly from the estate of a "doughboy". They are usually unsorted, so you are liable to come up with some true collectibles. That last batch contained a '43 U.S. (steel) cent and three U.S. 90%-silver coins.

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ok thanks although I don't know what a signature item is :)
From http://www.geocaching.com/about/glossary.aspx

 

"Signature Item - An item unique to a specific geocacher that is left behind in caches to signify that they visited that cache. These often include personal geocoins, tokens, pins, craft items or calling cards."

 

The forums include a few threads where people discuss signature items, including this one:

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=320051

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I have looked at business cards, i'll probably get some card stock and print my own since my printer can take it :)

 

I was also thinking of getting my daughter to make up a few loom band bracelets that she can put in as tradables

 

If you do the business cards, get a laminator and laminate them. In most caches a business card unprotected soon turns to mush.

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I have looked at business cards, i'll probably get some card stock and print my own since my printer can take it :)

 

I was also thinking of getting my daughter to make up a few loom band bracelets that she can put in as tradables

 

I really like it when the swag includes an info card or a label that says it was made by the cache owner or someone on the team. Example:

 

hemp-bracelet.jpg?w=487

 

 

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I have looked at business cards, i'll probably get some card stock and print my own since my printer can take it :)

 

I was also thinking of getting my daughter to make up a few loom band bracelets that she can put in as tradables

 

If you do the business cards, get a laminator and laminate them. In most caches a business card unprotected soon turns to mush.

 

+1

If you use an ink-jet printer to print your own, inkjet may smear if it gets wet. And laminating it looks cool. :)

I got a Scotch laminator at a department store for about $35 a few years ago.

41fkT8bHuYL._SX300_.jpg

 

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I am a "rockhead" and so I bag small mineral specimens or fossils along with a label ID as to species and location. Much better than 3/4 of a Pokemon card and one broken earring like I found in one of my caches this past weekend. <_< (I don't understand how someone can leave something like that.) I've also put Civil War bullets with info on the location found in caches and they get taken pretty quickly.

 

I just refilled 2 of my caches with Magic Towels, mosquito wipes, vintage laundry pins, old milk bottle caps, and a hackey sack ball. I try to leave items that would appeal to an adult, not just kids. While SWAG isn't my objective, I'd trade for something interesting. I once got a keychain with a little brass dolphin on it. I LOVED that dolphin. Then I lost my keys and with it went the dolphin. I'm still sad.

 

I do have a personal card with pictures of something from Nature and a description of what it is on the back (but most of the time I forget to leave it). I'm all for eddicatin' people on our great and powerful Earth. :-)

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I'm just curious what types of things you guys carry for tradables

 

I took my 6 year old daughter out with me today and together we found 5 caches.

 

One of these was my first cache bigger than a micro, in it other than the log book was a sticker for kids, since I had nothing with me to put in it's place much to my daughters dismay I left the sticker there.

 

This got me to thinking just what types of things people carry with them in case they find a cache with tradables in it

You did it the right way and showed your daughter a great rule in caching! If it was one of the caches we owned I would have wanted your daughter to have the sticker. Who else would value it more then a new kid learning caching. Just don't make a habit of it and then take something to the next cache to drop off to show her the trade value. We traded a little when we first started out but now it is rare I would ever want anything I found in a cache. I usually take stuff to stock up caches as we have collected way to much swagg over the years. Once in a while I will find something I might want, like a butterfly or alien or something and I haven't taken a trade item with me. (this is rare less then once every 500 caches or something!) I might take it. To make up for the one random item we might take we load up other caches and our own for others to find. Here is a couple of pic from not to long ago I posted to a cache with some stuff we left and there are many more we don't take pic of and we never took anything from these caches. I would never take multiple items or anything but if the rare case came up that I actually wanted something and didn't have something to trade we more then make up for it in the long run. Even then I usually drop a $1 or change or something in the cache or go back to the car and grab my swagg bag.

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Since I am new to geocaching, I have only traded two times

 

1) the first time, I left an Irish Channel St. Patrick's Day Club doubloon.

 

2) the second time, I left an Irish Channel Marching Club koozie.

 

I most likely will continue using the throws for my Irish clubs as trades. I am also thinking about buying some golf balls from the Angola Museum (museum for The Louisiana State Penitentiary) and the National World War 2 Museum to trade.

Edited by Justin Of Terrytown
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I bought a golf ball and five golf tees that say "Louisiana State Penitentiary" from the Angola Museum. I also bought three golf balls from the National World War 2 Museum.

 

I am thinking about using at least one of the National World War 2 Museum golf balls when I go geocaching in Mississippi. My parents own a fishing camp in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi so I will be geocaching in Mississippi (I already found one in Mississippi).

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We recently picked up some fun, trinkety items from the local thrift store to use as SWAG... a small engraved copper platter, two small brass candle holders, a cute cream pitcher, for around $1.99 each. The kids are getting older and moving beyond plastic toys, we're hoping these inexpensive items go over well. :) We once found a real, metal-and-rhinestone tiara in an ammo can in the woods... that joyous find prompted an internet search where we bought 5 more to put out for others to find.

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I used to work at Disney World, so I have a collection of Disney trading pins that I have started leaving in the caches since I rarely make it to Disney. It's become a signature item for me, I suppose.

 

Disney pins are fun finds. I have a really nice Disney pin that I found in a cache years ago:

 

8b69a59f-63d9-45a1-a78b-c977a0015a58.jpg

 

 

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Well, what I leave behind changes from cache to cache. My favorite thing to leave is a book(wrapped in a thick Ziploc freezer bag, of course) with a customized bookmark. You can get books cheap from thrift stores and Target sells classics in their Dollar Spot - they're not the best quality, but they're probably good for a few reads. If a cache is too small to leave a book, I leave an author magnet with a small laminated card that includes a little bio and a link/QR code leading to public domain audiobooks by the author.

 

If I run out of the more personalized stuff above, I leave behind some paracord trinkets I've made such as zipper pulls (my favorites look like dragonflies), monkey fists, lanyards, etc. I also carry around bags of goodies for when I find a designated kids cache. They include things like novelty sunglasses, gel pens, erasers, stickers, etc.

 

No matter what, I try to vary what's in the cache. If it's full of swag geared towards children, I leave something geared towards adults. If it's full of swag geared towards adults, I leave something geared towards children.

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