Author Topic: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way  (Read 18189 times)

Offline cheng

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #40 on: January 30, 2018, 02:10:45 »
very nice custom, Hadoque!
...you've even lighten the dark brown long coat with the rubber  :lol:(just kidding....sometimes I buy parts relying on photos and when I receive them, black can be ark blue etc :P)

Offline tahra

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #41 on: January 30, 2018, 08:51:46 »
He is gorgeous, Hadoque!

Can't go wrong with browns! :love:

Offline bml87

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #42 on: January 30, 2018, 17:30:39 »
Really nice! I didn’t reach that level of customising yet, but you’re a great example for sure!
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Offline The_Mad_Hadder

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #43 on: January 30, 2018, 21:40:44 »
Fantastic, I really like that figure Hadoque, he himself should be a mystery f?gure. Also Tahra I would like to thank you for taking the time out to show us how to do this. I too am going to try this on some breast plats that have a red bird on them.
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Offline Hadoque

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #44 on: January 31, 2018, 09:55:41 »
Many thanks for the comments about the custom-klicky  :)
I like him a lot myself :lol:
Haven´t made many the last year (lack of time), and the ones I did do I haven´t shown anywhere yet. I haven´t even updated anything on my Playmo-profile on Fakebook since end of summer...

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Offline PMatt

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #45 on: April 15, 2020, 17:47:28 »
Though I have not nearly as much experience as the fellow users who contributed to the discussion, I would like to put my two cents in.

When I first resolved to erase the print off some parts, I went with the pen eraser method, following a suggestion I’d read on some blog. To my dismay, the results left me deeply unsatisfied. Not only did the pieces end up looking significantly duller, scratch marks were also very much visible. Coating the pieces in hair spray restored their shine, but the scratches stayed, and to my eyes they looked very much unpleasant.

I could not ascertain what went wrong: the eraser was precisely like those I would later find shown in this thread, a blue/red one. I hardly think I applied too much pressure – I endeavoured to rub as gently as I could – though I cannot entirely rule out this possibility. At any rate, disheartened by such an outcome, I abandoned the idea of removing prints altogether, lest I ruin other perfectly fine pieces.

At the end of January, I purchased some klickies which were – let’s say, not so clean. In particular, on an old janitor torso there was a blue mark which would not go away with soap; so I decided to resort to alcohol. I grabbed the alcohol bottle, poured some on a cotton pad and rubbed the torso with it. To my utmost surprise, the mark was not the only thing to disappear – the print was beginning to fade too. I kept it up and succeeded in completely removing the torso print without the slightest semblance of damage to the part.

In the following weeks, I continued to employ this method on a variety of parts: as of now, I have successfully cleaned torsos, arms, legs, headwear, and vests. I have not yet had the need to remove facial hair, but I presume it wouldn’t be any different.

The only somewhat significant issue I’ve found might arise from the fact that parts which undergo this treatment end up being somewhat shinier. I’m not positive I could manage to capture it in a photo, so I’ll try to describe it in words. One of the parts I used as a testbed was a misprinted bulletproof vest. I only erased the bottom silver part, leaving the “POLICE” writing intact. Upon close inspection, the middle and top portion (which I did not erase) has somewhat of a grainier texture and is slightly more opaque than the part I erased; the latter looks smooth and even somewhat more intense in colour. This effect is only noticeable on parts which have the grainier texture I’m striving to describe; some torsos (old and new alike) do, but this is mostly the case (from my limited experience with the parts I tend to handle most) with the blue and grey bulletproof vests.

For the sake of full disclosure, I feel the need to say that, depending on the print, it might take a while to erase it – especially if there are multiple overlapping colours. Some appear to be harder to remove than others (silver, for instance). In spite of that, at the time of writing, the method I described is the only one I feel comfortable with, and wanted to share in case anyone fancied to try something different.

Offline tahra

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #46 on: April 15, 2020, 19:04:30 »
Thank you, PlaymoCollector... I tried alcohool long ago, but with little result (common one) - which kind did you use? 

Maybe mine was "old", or I didn't take long enough?  It would be a MUCH better solution than the eraser.

These days I use also WET sandpaper and then the magic cotton to restore the shine somewhat..

Still no solution for uneven surfaces - the jackets from HTTYD, and more important, the SHEEP.


Offline PMatt

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #47 on: April 17, 2020, 16:20:37 »
To me it seems run-of-the-mill denatured alcohol, but maybe someone better versed in chemistry can make out more from the label?



I am afraid I have no uneven surfaces to test on; but after looking at pictures of HTTYD sheep, I think that with cotton swabs and some elbow grease one might succeed...

Offline Indianna

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #48 on: April 18, 2020, 15:44:51 »
Possibly the difference in effectiveness is due to the type of alcohol used.  Playmocollector's photo shows denatured alcohol (which contains methanol) which is the type one would find at a hardware store in contrast to isopropyl alcohol which is the kind you would buy at the drugstore. 

Here's an explanation I found on the web at: sciencing.com

Methanol Structure
Methanol consists of a methyl group (a carbon with three hydrogens attached) connected to a hydroxyl group. The formula is CH3OH.

Methanol Properties
Methanol functions as a solvent in laboratories. Manufacturers add it to ethanol to create denatured alcohol, undrinkable by design, for use as a fuel or cleanser. Ingesting even a tiny amount of methanol can cause permanent blindness or death, according to NIH Medline.

Isopropyl Alcohol Structure

Isopropyl alcohol, also known as isopropanol, consists of an isopropyl group–this can be described as two methyl groups attached to a carbon–bonded to a hydroxyl (OH) group. The formula for isopropyl alcohol is C3H7OH.

Isopropyl Alcohol Properties
Isopropyl alcohol, frequently used as a solvent and a disinfectant, has less severe toxicity than methanol, but can also cause poisoning. It catches fire very easily.
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Offline PMatt

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Re: Cleaning torsos the Tahra-way
« Reply #49 on: April 18, 2020, 19:01:08 »
Possibly the difference in effectiveness is due to the type of alcohol used.  Playmocollector's photo shows denatured alcohol (which contains methanol) which is the type one would find at a hardware store in contrast to isopropyl alcohol which is the kind you would buy at the drugstore. 

You sure live up to your Playmo Detective title, Indianna!  :clap: