Doug Chambers is famous locally as the “Pin Guy” among Boy Scout memorabilia collectors. While we have covered vintage OA pins in another episode of Thread Heads – what Doug focuses on is colorful Boy Scout hat pins.
In the hobby hat pins really broke onto the scene in the mid-1980s and it was at the 1985 National Scout Jamboree that they reached their zenith of popularity. Doug caught on to them much later as he was attending the SR5 Conclave known as the Dixie Fellowship. Not only does the Dixie issue a hat pin every year but also a participation pin. Once he started picking up older issues he just got rolling and before long found a niche in the hobby that he loves.
The best thing about collecting pins is that it’s not expensive. He estimates the most he has ever paid for a pin is $30 and most of the time people are happy to trade him pins. Today his collection is very diverse with several groupings such as lodge totems, Jamboree pins, arrowhead shaped pins etc.
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