17 replies to this topic

[Sniper33]

I had a some crystal figures for my set, and still do. Some of them are still transparent like normal, but there are others that have gotten a little smokey looking...meaning they aren't clear clear. Is that normal for it to happen to the figures? Not sure if you can tell by the picture of what I mean.

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[SpectreSuperSix5]

Interesting. How do you have them stored?

[Sniper33]

had them in a bag, and had that put away. no uncommon temps in the spot either.

[jkaris]

Can you take a pic of two crystals side by side? One still perfect and the other "smokey".

[Sniper33]

Can you take a pic of two crystals side by side? One still perfect and the other "smokey".

Kinda forgot, don't have my normal camera anymore so I ended up using my phone. You can kinda see the difference.

[lazzy lizard]

I have seen this occur with a batch of figs i just got and it included 2 crystal stench's and one looks opaque and the other is crystal clear. i'll post the pics when i get home. seems to be the case w/ some of the shadows too.

=)

[seekingxar]

Just going through the guys I have, seems like most of my crystals now have a frosted look

[ironmask]

I experienced the same thing with some of my regular old shadow variations. They almost have a frosted film on them.

[seekingxar]

I experienced the same thing with some of my regular old shadow variations. They almost have a frosted film on them.

Do you think it cleans off somehow?

[imperfecz]

Has anyone tried anything like a plastic polish? Would be worth a shot... maybe hit 'em with a plastic cleaner then polish?

If you want me to test this theory send me the offending figures... well at least a sample.

[Aikola]

If no-one else does I think ive got some that I can send to you.

[imperfecz]

Was just wondering if it could work... or help. Just checked though and I can only find the fine scratch polish. Well you would still see if there are results using just that. Must've been separated during the last move. But for sure I'm willing to try a cleaning method... tried everything from Simple Green to a zit cream trying to fix dirt, stains, all kinds of stuff.

[BaltanII]

This looks like the result of aging clear plastic. I've seen clear vinyl figures that over time turn out like this, even without exposure to sunlight. It is part of the eventual deterioration of plastic anything, although it will take far longer for them to end up as piles of shapeless goo. It's not going to be something you can clean off them; you might be able to restore them the way I've seen people do it for white toys that have yellowed, but I honestly don't know, and it could impact the painted details.

[imperfecz]

Aaahhh I was thinking these were completely clear ones...

Basically what I'm talking about is the kind of stuff you se to restore plastic headlights that fog up due to tiny scratches over time, or polishing CDs so they play again. The cleaning part just gets rid of unseen dirt so you don't work in more scratches as you're trying to buff out existing ones.

Just wondering if it's worth trying... heck I did the zit cream/indirect sunlight thing to get ink out of a figure... worked great till I got distracted... now my pink figure has a nice white spot instead of a blue ink stain.

[lord]

I have just received my FOP collection. The figures have been all stored together in the same box for the last 4 years. I have the same problem on some of the shadow and some crystal but not all of them. I even have this problem on one of my crystal secret

Edited by lord, 06 May 2012 - 01:34 PM.

[James]

I wonder if you kept them in a refrigerator if this would still happen to them. Inside a refrigerator, submerged in a container full of desiccant like silica gel to keep them dry and suck away any off-gas chemicals.

[BaltanII]

I wonder if you kept them in a refrigerator if this would still happen to them. Inside a refrigerator, submerged in a container full of desiccant like silica gel to keep them dry and suck away any off-gas chemicals.

Probably not, that should keep them as pristine as you can without perfect environmentally-controlled storage. It might also be worth looking into Pledge with Future Floor Shine, as a sealant all over the figure but like the white-restoring stuff, I don't know if that will work to protect it or not. Pledge with Future definitely won't affect painted details, but it might prevent the figure from being as flexible as it was previously.

[PlasticSoul]

I've seen this hundreds of times with certain pairs of shoes that have clear plastic soles. The clear fogs up or yellows over time. People looked for a way to reverse it for years and years before someone actually figured it out. There is a product called seaglow made for using on boats that somehow converts the UV in sunlight into a plastic/rubber defogging agent. I used it a few times and it worked perfectly. All you need to do is coat the plastic and let it sit in the sun for awhile. I bet it would work on these.