Blog / floats, patterns, trades
Blog
How floats, patterns and phases change a price, and how a skin actually gets from checkout to your inventory. Written for buyers.
Pattern index: blue gems, Fade percentages and why the seed matters
The pattern index decides how a skin's texture sits on the gun. On Case Hardened, Fade, Marble Fade, Crimson Web and Slaughter it can decide the price too.
Doppler and Gamma Doppler phases: a buyer’s guide
Phases 1 to 4, Ruby, Sapphire, Black Pearl and Emerald: how to tell them apart from the inspect image, how they price, and where buyers get burned.
Steam trade holds and trade offers: how delivery works
How a skin gets from us to your Steam inventory: trade URLs, Steam Guard, the 7-day hold, what pending means and what to do when an offer fails.
Float value explained: what wear ratings really mean
What a float value is, how the five wear ratings map onto it, why two Minimal Wear skins can look nothing alike, and how the number moves the price.