I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it.
Author
Message
Suebeedo
Country/State : Spokane, Washington, USA Age : 64 Joined : 2010-06-27 Posts : 953
Subject: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Fri Jan 13, 2012 5:16 am
This Papo horse arrived with a terribly bent leg...
Obviously would never be able to stand up...
(missing pictue)
So I held it under a stream of extremely hot water from the faucet...keep your fingers out of it - ouch! Within 4 minutes the leg was soft and pliable. I moved it very carefully and positioned it with the folded cardboard between the legs. This is the cardboard that sometimes comes with your figures and I had to use 2 of them to straighten the leg.
(missing pictues)
I left the cardboard for at least one hour to make sure it had plenty of time to cool down.
Tah Dah!
(missing pictures)
I had tried this once before with the old Schleich Appaloosa, but the leg was thicker and it didn't hold. I need to rework that horse's leg. If this doesn't hold I will repost... :-) I hope you find this helpful.
~ Sue
dlfrogman
Country/State : Idaho USA Age : 44 Joined : 2011-10-09 Posts : 948
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Fri Jan 13, 2012 5:31 am
That works great I always run cold water over it after I get the leg straightened out and that seems to set it back in place
HKHollinstone Moderator
Country/State : England, CUMBRIA Age : 26 Joined : 2010-03-30 Posts : 11288
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Fri Jan 13, 2012 8:52 am
Super I hate it when figurines arrive bent, my schleich Akhal-Teke horse stands wonky, I'll have to see if I can fix the problem with your method.
What a great idea! I have niver had a figure with a bent leg, but I keep this in my head!
It happens if they are stored in a too warm place, - or stand in the sun I only left schleich horses in the window sill ONCE
Roger Admin
Country/State : Portugal Age : 44 Joined : 2010-08-20 Posts : 23604
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Fri Jan 13, 2012 9:08 pm
Thanks for posting Sue! My old Safari fox needs a bath! :) That's an interesting and useful topic. I think it is the first time we see a little of you, isn't it?
pipi6
Country/State : Canada Age : 19 Joined : 2011-11-27 Posts : 283
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Fri Jan 13, 2012 10:16 pm
you could also remodel animals like this
ken yeo
Country/State : Singapore Age : 49 Joined : 2010-04-05 Posts : 5429
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sat Jan 14, 2012 9:31 am
Country/State : Spain Age : 32 Joined : 2010-12-13 Posts : 2896
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sat Feb 25, 2012 12:55 am
I had to do this with one of my collecta Hannover stallions. I applied hot with a candle, in this way you only put hot in the area of your interest instead of all the leg. And I think the result is much better if you put the piece in cold water with ice inmediately after having put the leg in the correct position. You just have to wait a pair of minutes to see the result, and the sudden cold makes the blending more durable I think :) I also used this technique to repositionate a bit a leg of one of the horses who are waiting for a new coat ^^
I had to do this with one of my collecta Hannover stallions. I applied hot with a candle, in this way you only put hot in the area of your interest instead of all the leg. And I think the result is much better if you put the piece in cold water with ice inmediately after having put the leg in the correct position. You just have to wait a pair of minutes to see the result, and the sudden cold makes the blending more durable I think :) I also used this technique to repositionate a bit a leg of one of the horses who are waiting for a new coat ^^
So am I. Using candle is the best and fastest way to resume a part in right position or to remodel.
But keep a distance of 6 inches while applying hot otherwise the plastic may melted down.
baltimore zoo
Joined : 2010-06-30 Posts : 1650
Subject: Baltimore zoo Sun Feb 26, 2012 10:00 am
Thanks for this helpful info! One thing really cool about this forum, is getting some helpful tips from other collectors. Now, what technique is best used for changing animal figure positions(I have one Britain's Standing Gorilla, with arms(Hands) Krazy Glued to the chest(Instead of both arms right angled, for those familiar with the figure). I just used my own hands to push figures arms to chest and held for a four or five minutes til glue set. Say I wanted to make an elephant figures' trunk hanging down, instead of the curled up position. Would sticking the trunk in boiling water make it more pliable for re-shaping?
SyLoBe
Country/State : Spain Age : 32 Joined : 2010-12-13 Posts : 2896
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Feb 26, 2012 4:55 pm
Country/State : Germany Age : 39 Joined : 2011-05-29 Posts : 1587
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Feb 26, 2012 10:47 pm
Thank you! I'll have a try
baltimore zoo
Joined : 2010-06-30 Posts : 1650
Subject: Baltimore zoo Mon Feb 27, 2012 1:41 am
I think Safari WW Asian is a good candidate! Bigger trunk to work with.
LorenzoItaly
Country/State : Italy Age : 20 Joined : 2013-11-17 Posts : 79
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sat Dec 07, 2013 6:20 pm
Thank you, I'm going to try this on my Science and Nature Lorikeet :)
_________________ Lorenzo
bjarki12
Country/State : USA/Texas Age : 30 Joined : 2012-12-11 Posts : 315
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Dec 08, 2013 6:42 am
Thanks for showing us how to fix the bent legs! This will be a good resource to have in the future.
elephas_maximus
Joined : 2011-11-24 Posts : 484
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sat Dec 06, 2014 9:08 pm
Does anyone have any additional tips to fix bent legs? I have some 1:32 scale water bucks which have bent legs and won't stand properly. I tried the hot water technique (60°C), heating/adjusting the legs then putting the figure in ice water, it works fine but after a short while the legs slowly go back to the warped position.
I believe my figures are made of PVC and I've read online where people recommend the hot water technique and they say its permanent but it isn't working for me after a few tries.
Has anyone experienced this where the plastic temporarily looks fine but then goes back to how it was? Any other techniques?
LeeAnn Moderator
Country/State : United States Joined : 2013-01-20 Posts : 10337
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Dec 07, 2014 1:38 am
I've had luck with using a hairdryer on both Schleich-like plastic as well as cellulose acetate (Breyers). Just hold the hairdryer on the warped leg until it's warm (but not hot to the touch - just warm enough that it doesn't hurt your hand), bend and hold in place while running under cold water in the faucet. I like to run the water before I heat up the leg so I know it will be cold. Sometimes it will take several times until it stays in place, but eventually it should stay. I've had to do it many times with some CollectA horses but now they stand just fine.
COG Ltd. (aka Tedco Toys) Aysheaia Play Visions Prehistoric Mammals (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Play Visions Prehistoric Amphibians (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Joy City Ltd. Prehistoric Tube
QuollMate
Country/State : Colorado & Arizona Age : 18 Joined : 2013-05-21 Posts : 1320
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Dec 07, 2014 4:54 am
COG Ltd. (aka Tedco Toys) Aysheaia Play Visions Prehistoric Mammals (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Play Visions Prehistoric Amphibians (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Joy City Ltd. Prehistoric Tube
elephas_maximus
Joined : 2011-11-24 Posts : 484
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Dec 07, 2014 5:00 am
I've had luck with using a hairdryer on both Schleich-like plastic as well as cellulose acetate (Breyers). Just hold the hairdryer on the warped leg until it's warm (but not hot to the touch - just warm enough that it doesn't hurt your hand), bend and hold in place while running under cold water in the faucet. I like to run the water before I heat up the leg so I know it will be cold. Sometimes it will take several times until it stays in place, but eventually it should stay. I've had to do it many times with some CollectA horses but now they stand just fine.
Hi LeeAnn, you are probably right, I did notice that the legs were not as warped after the first few treatments so as you suggested I might have to do it a few more times for it to lock into the desired position each time getting closer to what I want. Thanks for the tips!
QuollMate
Country/State : Colorado & Arizona Age : 18 Joined : 2013-05-21 Posts : 1320
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Dec 07, 2014 5:03 am
I've had luck with using a hairdryer on both Schleich-like plastic as well as cellulose acetate (Breyers). Just hold the hairdryer on the warped leg until it's warm (but not hot to the touch - just warm enough that it doesn't hurt your hand), bend and hold in place while running under cold water in the faucet. I like to run the water before I heat up the leg so I know it will be cold. Sometimes it will take several times until it stays in place, but eventually it should stay. I've had to do it many times with some CollectA horses but now they stand just fine.
Hi LeeAnn, you are probably right, I did notice that the legs were not as warped after the first few treatments so as you suggested I might have to do it a few more times for it to lock into the desired position each time getting closer to what I want. Thanks for the tips!
It all depends on the material. If your figures are rubber, you're out of luck.
COG Ltd. (aka Tedco Toys) Aysheaia Play Visions Prehistoric Mammals (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Play Visions Prehistoric Amphibians (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Joy City Ltd. Prehistoric Tube
LeeAnn Moderator
Country/State : United States Joined : 2013-01-20 Posts : 10337
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Dec 07, 2014 2:34 pm
Hi LeeAnn, you are probably right, I did notice that the legs were not as warped after the first few treatments so as you suggested I might have to do it a few more times for it to lock into the desired position each time getting closer to what I want. Thanks for the tips!
Happy to help! I hope the hairdryer works for you.
COG Ltd. (aka Tedco Toys) Aysheaia Play Visions Prehistoric Mammals (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Play Visions Prehistoric Amphibians (I wouldn’t mind a bootleg version!) Joy City Ltd. Prehistoric Tube
LeeAnn Moderator
Country/State : United States Joined : 2013-01-20 Posts : 10337
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Sun Dec 07, 2014 10:36 pm
Either would be fine, I prefer the hairdryer just because I'm less likely to hurt myself. You're probably better off with the hairdryer as well so you have the faucet handy for the cold water. I haven't experienced this with the PVC models, but I've noticed the plastic going cloudy on cellulose acetate when not cooled off right away
Country/State : Portugal Age : 44 Joined : 2010-08-20 Posts : 23604
Subject: Re: I Fixed a bent leg - for those who wonder how to do it. Tue Aug 04, 2015 1:28 am
I wanted to add this video in this very useful topic from our kind Sue! Ikessauro, a dino collector that makes lots of great walk around videos, made this simple video tutorial about how to fix a bent part in a plastic figure. It is in Portuguese language but it is quite simple, he is using a cup of hot water and then, a cup of cold water, preferrably with ice if possible. Link is here!