Hard Rock Cafe Terms Used In The Hobby
Master this Hard Rock Cafe collector's lingo and you soon will be a wizard at the nextHard Rock Cafe pin traders meeting! Here are some lingo or terms used in this collectibles hobby by the collectors. Some are more common than others, but understanding this information will help you to appreciate the hobby more.
There are common terms used in any pin collecting hobby and these terms have been covered in our How Lapel Pins Are Made web page. Visit that page by clicking the link below.
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Hard Rock Cafe Pins Lingo
Many of the terms will involve talking about the make-up of the Hard Rock Cafe pin. Most of them are concerned with the back of the pin. A collector looking at the back of a pin will be indicating he is looking for a certain version. Variations on what is printed on the back brings about special lingo to the Hard Rock Group. This is primer 1 information here, but you just have to know this information!
You will hear collectors talk about 3LT, 2LC, or 1LC with a grid back. And here is what they mean. 
The "number" along with the L indicates how many lines there are. So a “3L” means three lines, “2L” means 2 lines, etc. The third alphabet refers to where it was made, which generally is either “T” for Taiwan or “C” for China. By the way, there are other countries that do produce these pins, however the majority have come from either Taiwan or China. Taiwan shows up on older pins (when it use to be cheaper to do business there!), and most recent pins are from China. Guess why? If a pin on the back mentions F C Parry, then this pin was produced in England. Most collectors thighs begin to quiver over these gems as some consider them to be the best. As my Asian friends would say though: “Up to you!”
Now the “grid” part mentioned above refers to another factor and that is the back variations. In a nutshell you have these types of back variations:
- Eyeball Back: Like peacock feathers this pin has an eyeball look to
it. - Grid Back: Fine Mesh or Weave Grid with all kinds of talk of small. Medium, Large, Open, Closed, Boxed, and Square! Good luck on this one!
- Hard Rock Logo Back: As it says and common with most newer pins this one sports the Hard Rock Logo. For extra authenticity Hard Rock recently added a pearl drop logo to the back. To the right is an example of the Hard Rock Logo and the pearl drop.
- Pebble Back: Rough surfaced back. Many F C Parry pins will have this back.
- Polished Back: Smooth and generally shiny back.
- Sand Back: Finer grain than the pebble back.
Then there is the lingo or abbreviations used within the hobby:
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Clone: The same pin is produced but just the Cafe names are changed.
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HRC: Hard Rock Cafe
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STP: Save The Planet (Hard Rock Cafe slogan)
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TCB: Taking Care of Business (Hard Rock Cafe Staff slogan)
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GOR: Girls Of Rock (Pin series)
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EOR: Evolution of Rock (Series created for the Millennium)
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TOR: Top of the Rock (Click Here To Learn More)
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GO: Grand Opening
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OS: Opening Staff
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LE: Limited Edition
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GTR: Guitar