Need some help with this one, thanks in advance! I picked these guys up off ebay from seller "whyworkshop" and noticed some issues; some more normal to me than others. They were listed as "100% New Packed in Original Box" and came in two separate bags both attached to one header (is this correct for this set?). The first issue was the smell. They had the typical strange vinyl smell only amplified times 1000 and very sour almost vinegar like smell. I let them air out a few days but it is just as bad and almost unbearable. I can't quite put my finger on it but it's awful and I'm afraid it will stink up any shelf I place them on. Has anyone had similar experiences? Next comes some of the physical issues. Sorry for the bad pics but it was hard to photograph such small details with a phone. I think the bottom of the yellow one's foot looks like kabi which I guess is no one's fault but should have been disclosed since it was visible through the bag. These two pics are me just being picky since I'm not too happy with the smell but I see a lot of black specks throughout that look to be embedded in the vinyl as if they were in there during production. The final pic shows a weird bubble on the pink one that looks like pretty dark like the black specks or kabi. Again me being more critical than normal. Sooo these are my first emupaiya figures so I have no frame of reference for quality of their production, so if anyone has any insight into that it would be much appreciated. As for the smell, I know it's difficult to tell without smelling it yourself, but does anyone have any experience with a truly putrid and offensive sour vinyl smell? I was thinking smoke but it's not that overt smokey smell so i don't know. My final worry is the fact that the seller says these were limited to 25 each (who knows/cares if thats true) but he currently has the same set listed again. I paid $56 for the pair which I thought was reasonable. The seller is listed in Hong Kong, is it possible these are bootlegs? Maybe it's just the fumes getting to me. I'm going to try to find the header I misplaced.
I got my GID yellow Heater from Grumble NIB and it was single-packed. Not sure if there was ever a double-packed one. As for the "mold" under the feet... I don't know, is it really a big deal? I probably wouldn't have mentioned it either (not sure I would have noticed, actually).
Thats a downer, man. I'd be tempted to contact the seller and get my money back if i was that annoyed by something. As far as the smell goes, if its the vinyl itself . . . i'd guess it would be very difficult to get rid of. If it was something covering the figure you could at least try soap and water. $56 for the pair sounds really cheap to me, maybe they adjusted the price because of the smell. I wouldn't of thought bootleggers would copy such a niche figure but i suppose you never know!
I have a GID blank I got directly from the maker and noticed a few black specks and irregularities in the vinyl right when I got it. I 've always assumed these are just imperfections that sometimes come with the process of hand-casting and -pulling vinyl, so I wouldn't be to worried about kabi. Dunno about the smell, but I've had great results in getting stinky figures rid of their stench by using the ol' baking-soda-&-freezer-trick...
As mentioned above sticky toys or ones that have an odor.. can be washed and it usually gets rid of the problem. There's a few threads on sub about whether it's kabi or just air bubbles. Might want to check those out. Regardless definetly wash them.
If he got them from the original seller (and I took a look at the auction it was HK so maybe) he might of packaged them together. Both of these Heaters were exclusive to Old Balance in HK back in 2006? 2007? 25 per color (supposedly) with 10 blank GID's as a secret toy. As far as the smell, don't know what that could be. I have both, but got them a long time ago and they don't smell- nor have spots on them. I would wager though it has to do with a reaction of the vinyl in a plastic bag for all those years which is causing the smell. I know I've bought vintage toys sealed and I've had crazy weird discoloration on just an arm: viewtopic.php?f=30&t=44912&hilit=fireman In the end these toys are just a bunch of man made chemical compounds packed into another bunch of man made chemical compounds. Over time in a controlled sealed environment weird reactions can take place. I know when I open my detolfs I'm always hit with a weird smell. It's from the off gassing of the vinyl. I wouldn't worry about the spots, probably just dirt trapped in air bubbles not mold.
Thanks for all the thoughts, suggestions, and info guys. I will try soaking them in some soapy water and see where it goes. I do really like these guys and the spots, etc aren't really a bother so I hope the cleansing will kill the stench. Again, thanks for all the info!!
The other thing the spots might be is odd particles of different colored vinyl that wasnt cleaned out of the vat that is used to cycle the material while the toys are being pulled. Material will get stuck in the pour spigot and its hard to get it all out and perfectly clean so it will sometimes get into the other colors when they are being poured out into the mold. The smell, I have no idea. Ive only ever had tobacco trouble and usually you can get rid of that smell and hopefully any stains.
You said these were GID, right? Are they regular GID or a different color glow? Some glow pigments have a sulfurous component that stinks like hell, particularly red pigments.
