I completely whitened mine with 40 volume developer cream from Sally Beauty. The trick with whitening is a lot of patience. Sometimes it can take almost a month of daily sunning it to eradicate all of the yellowing completely and restore it to its original pure white finish. Just keep repeating it until it's totally white again.
You're really good at the chemical part. I never thought that vinegar would be a good de-ruster. It was a tense moment when you separated the body and un-screwed it because some of those old plastics can get really brittle
Would love to see more restoration of 12" vintage 'Star Wars' figures, and particularly those that aren't 'white'. The Stormtrooper makes for a great example for the bleaching, but the 12" Boba Fett, although not white, also can suffer from yellowing on the light grey arms and legs (I know you already did a cape for 12" Fett, Mr. Polloi).
I’m relatively new to your channel and just saw this video. I was able to find a decent complete one online and will give a restoration a shot. I can confirm, the Torso was quite hard to pry apart.
I’m in the process of doing one now, it’s in worse condition than this one in your video, to separate the torso I ran it under the hot water tap and it came apart easily, the screws needed to be soaked in white vinegar twice for 48 hours and a ridiculous amount of rust came off, I’m currently into the second day of whitening the torso and arms and just need a do the legs once the rest is finished!
Would hydrogen peroxide work on soft goods? I just procured a vintage Mego Star Trek Keeper alien, and his white robe is a little yellow in the chest/back area. (I obviously don't want to mess up the orange trim on the collar and cuffs, in the process.)
I've noticed a lot of these figures suffer from the hands coming off due to the glue they used. What would you recommend to reattach a hand on these vintage figures?
I've recently restored a vintage large sized (15") Boba Fett. The hardest part to find complete was the jet-pack, but still missing the gun, just as you are for your Stormtrooper. They pop up every now and again, I had one for the Stormtrooper some months back, but unfortunately traded it, otherwise I would have sent it to you.
@@toypolloi thanks for the reply . There is a few on ebay at the moment they seem quite badly sun bleached but I may do as you suggest and have a go . Love you're stuff thanks again
I’m looking to restore my 12” vintage Stormtrooper. He’s not as yellow as yours was, in fact his color is very nice but his hands are coming unglued from his arms. How would you fix the hands on these vintage Stormtroopers? Any help would be appreciated 👍🏼
+Stephen Lozano The hands fall off on a lot of these as the plastic of the arms reacts with the rubber in the hands and melts over time. I would re-attach them using the same method i used to fix the broken biker scout head. Check that video out.
I recently acquired a 12" stormtrooper and I'm all excited about using peroxide to whiten it... but man is that sucker hard to pry open. I've got it opened just a bit using the small flathead screwdriver method... but I'm too worried about damaging it. So I ordered some nylon pry tools from Amazon. Arrrgh. I want to open it up so bad.
@@toypolloi I just got it!!! I was doing more pulling than wiggling. Wiggling works better... although it's still hard and now my fingers hurt. Now I'm fully stoked to clean/whiten this thing. And I have a nice original gun. I'm missing the string, but I was going to use Lego string as a replacement.
It's easier when it's in pieces as some parts are more yellow that others. So I can put each part in for different times. Also, my pot is not big enough 😀
Also other semi related thing :D I notice you using metal screwdrivers as prying tools, a cheep and safer alternative would be guitar pics wedge em in and then put something between them perhaps. Or Ifixit do good repair kits for electonics that include a variety of plastic spudgers which also work quite well :D
Cool video and well done! I just found your channel and liked it so much that you inspired me to be more active with my ridiculous collection! I just started a UA-cam channel and I hope to do good by learning from you!! Thank you so much!! I subscribed!!!
Think you should switch to a indoor setup you could buy two uv nail dryers that would cover the a polished baking tray and use peroxide cream instead. It comes in higher volumes 20%,30% and 40%. You paste on a barrier, wrap in cling film then put under the uv lights. Think you could get them a lot whiter and would only take a few hours. The uv lamps are around £12 and the cream 250ml £4 or can buy In 1ltr at alot cheaper price all on ebay.
I want to show people you can do it very cheaply and easily. If I can fix a toy without spending lots of money, then that's the way I try to go about it. If I spent an extra £20 on fixing this toy, I could have just bought a much nicer toy in the first place. So I try to show people that you can do most fixes with stuff you already have in the house. But as you say there are quicker ways to do it. Cheers
That looks a lot better, great restoration, have any of your previously yellowed figures that you have restored gone yellow again, I wonder if its only a temporary fix, just wondering
Does this process bleach the black or other colors ? I am also looking at doing this to the large R2D2 from this set as well, but am worried it may bleach the blue or chrome top ? any idea if it would ? great video!
I see ,,so you use the whole bottle or two,,. How many times can we use it before it loses its strength? In the video you are talking about nicotine discoloration,what about discoloration because of the(uv) sunlight. I have a special collectors room and a lot of my collection is sitting there on and in display cases. There is no or minimal sunlicht comming through ,,still some of the toys,,specially made bij Hasbro have this discoloration like on your video. Some i have painted over,for me it is no problem but other toys i don t like paint them all over again. is peroxide also the solution for this problem?
HI mate. great find, great restoration. What do you think causes the yellowing, there are lots of opinions on line about this but i would like your take on it.
+Roger Taylor It's sun damage from what I see. The way you get figures like this with only one side yellowed is the clue. I would say this was left on a childs windowsill for a good while.
04:30 - At least it wasn't fixed in the most annoying way possible, by being sonically welded shut. In my experience, anything fixed that way, is going to be almost certainly ruined by one trying to dismantle it. Sonically welded cassette tapes were the bane of my life in the 1980's. If the tape snapped, it was 'Game Over'.
Hi toy polloi i wanted to restore a similar white figure with very much the same nicotine type staining. I went in my local boots and the only hydrogen peroxide they had was a 9% will this cause a problem. cheers keep up the videos.
Thanks for tip on restoring the rusted screws. I was contemplating if this is possible for a couple of weeks and watching your vids I found this solution. Gonna try it soon. I realise its a long time since you did it, but how much time do you advice on average to keep the plastics inside the hyperdioxide and the screws on the vinegar? EDIT: I missed it it seems you answer it on your vid. Sorry.
Dear Toy Polloi, I have a unique situation that I am wondering if you have had any experience with or might be able to direct to someone who has. I have collected Star Trek and Star Wars lenticular trading cards. I have kept them in a cool area in a shoe box and do not look at them very often. However, the last time I did, a good many of them have acquired a thin milky looking film on their surfaces. I have gently tried soap and water on a damp towel to remove it as well as rubbing alcohol. Neither worked. I wrote to the card manufacturer and they claimed to have never heard of this. Then I just saw your video here and the past where you talk about the fuzz on MOC action figure. I saw that you suggested lighting and heating the figure would make this go away. I am considering trying this with my trading cards. Any advice or experience you could share with me would be much apprecaited.
Hi, I have never seen this as I don't have that many lenticular cards. I doubt this will work as if the figures were not carded the frosting could just be washed off. You only need to heat them as they are carded and you can't touch the figures. Cheers
I must say that the yellowing was accidentally so tasteful that the figure could pass as a Remnant Stormtrooper. So if you hadn't been able to clean it up, there wouldn't be that big of a problem.
Hey so Uh you may know this maybe not. But I notice you keep calling these Nicotine stains but actually its caused by the UV rays breaking down the plastic. I think its a fire retardant chemical called bromine that reacts with the air when sunlight breaks down the plastic. 8 Bit guy solved some pretty nasty staining on some old commodore using some salon care hydrogen peroxide ua-cam.com/video/wLp6bzG9exk/v-deo.html Apparently when you do this you should also re-seal the plastic afterward with a matt spray or so to prevent it from reyellowing later :)
Just recently my sister in law told me she threw away her now adult son original 12" Stormtrooper because it was all yellow from being in the sun for many years, my nephew couldn't believe it. Luckily Darth Vader is still in good condition.
I have no problem with Repro weapons/parts as long as they are marked REPRO or RP somewhere on the replacement. The issue today is that to date none of the repro weapons & parts being sold are clearly marked Replacement. They are only getting closer to the originals. Some of the creators may be purposely trying to pass them off as originals. I expressed before that I get the need for a repro market because of vintage prices, however they need to be marked as such. If a collector dies and there family/friends go to sell the collection off, many of these reproduction items are passed off as vintage and therefore deceive (by accident) the new purchaser. I leave this to the Repro fans that don't want these items marked as replacements. How would you feel if someone remolded all the original figures and sold them as vintage replacements? Would that not take away the nostalgia and the greatness of the toys? Kids of the 70's, 80's and early 90's grew up with theses items and that's part of what many of us are after. These are pieces of art that were original hand sculpted and produced for the enjoyment of millions of kids across the world!!! That's what makes toy's GREAT!!! People who buy these Repro's need to be responsible and mark these items in someway if the makers will not!
That underwater shot was actually wonderful. It sets you apart from others
I completely whitened mine with 40 volume developer cream from Sally Beauty. The trick with whitening is a lot of patience. Sometimes it can take almost a month of daily sunning it to eradicate all of the yellowing completely and restore it to its original pure white finish. Just keep repeating it until it's totally white again.
definitely a trooper from the entrance to mos eisley cantina. They stand with their backs to the entrance
Great job, it’s so nice to see you rescue these toys and make them look good again.
I really want to get into restoring old toys looks vary satisfying.
It is. I find it very relaxing, and also makes you feel more like you know all about the toys.
Wow has it been three years since I last saw this video? I still love it. I went out and bought some peroxide right after.
I bought one and will follow your instructions
I was hoping he'd re paint it. Great work none the less. We do enjoy the videos. Thanks!
You're really good at the chemical part. I never thought that vinegar would be a good de-ruster. It was a tense moment when you separated the body and un-screwed it because some of those old plastics can get really brittle
looks like the sand trooper
GARY BINGHAM
It's pronounced stain trooper
Hey, you make a valid point; turning lemons into lemonade!
Awesome restoration! Great job!
Would love to see more restoration of 12" vintage 'Star Wars' figures, and particularly those that aren't 'white'. The Stormtrooper makes for a great example for the bleaching, but the 12" Boba Fett, although not white, also can suffer from yellowing on the light grey arms and legs (I know you already did a cape for 12" Fett, Mr. Polloi).
I’m relatively new to your channel and just saw this video. I was able to find a decent complete one online and will give a restoration a shot. I can confirm, the Torso was quite hard to pry apart.
I absolutely love this. Stormtroopers are my favourite!!
great restoration vid toy polloi.
I finally got one a couple of weeks ago. Kinda disappointed it doesn't need a restoration. Because of this video I wanted to do one.
David, have you tried using UV black light instead of leaving the figure in the sun? You could let it sit there for the whole day or days.
+allluckyseven I haven't as I don't have one. Could be worth trying if you already have one to hand.
I’m in the process of doing one now, it’s in worse condition than this one in your video, to separate the torso I ran it under the hot water tap and it came apart easily, the screws needed to be soaked in white vinegar twice for 48 hours and a ridiculous amount of rust came off, I’m currently into the second day of whitening the torso and arms and just need a do the legs once the rest is finished!
In conclusion to this my results were as good as I had hoped although the black paint is slightly faded now!
I have to say that storm trooper is an amazing figure despite there not being much to him, but then again that makes it easier.
Have you ever tried using a whitening toothpaste and using a buffing attachment on your Dremel tool to reduce the yellowing even more?
Would hydrogen peroxide work on soft goods? I just procured a vintage Mego Star Trek Keeper alien, and his white robe is a little yellow in the chest/back area. (I obviously don't want to mess up the orange trim on the collar and cuffs, in the process.)
It doesn't. That's a different problem. I use denture tablets for that. Check out some of my mego videos, specifically space 1999 to see that.
Can u soak the cockpit windows of tie fighters in peroxide as well to de yellow the plastic? Thx in advance.
+Jason W You can, but it doesn't always work. Check out my videos on snowspeeders and falcons to see it in action.
Toy Polloi ok thanks again. 👍🏻
I've noticed a lot of these figures suffer from the hands coming off due to the glue they used. What would you recommend to reattach a hand on these vintage figures?
Lego. Similar to the fix I did on the vintage snow trooper head.
Gorilla Glue ( I don't actually know, but that stuff is pretty strong, so be careful.
Nicely done.
I've recently restored a vintage large sized (15") Boba Fett. The hardest part to find complete was the jet-pack, but still missing the gun, just as you are for your Stormtrooper. They pop up every now and again, I had one for the Stormtrooper some months back, but unfortunately traded it, otherwise I would have sent it to you.
Any idea if this would work to restore the colour on one of my 1980's tomy wind up doozers being a green plastic would it bleach it white?
It may affect the colour, all I can say is do a test and see what happens.
I am on the hunter for a doozer myself. Had them as a kid and loved them!
@@toypolloi thanks for the reply .
There is a few on ebay at the moment they seem quite badly sun bleached but I may do as you suggest and have a go .
Love you're stuff thanks again
I’m looking to restore my 12” vintage Stormtrooper. He’s not as yellow as yours was, in fact his color is very nice but his hands are coming unglued from his arms. How would you fix the hands on these vintage Stormtroopers? Any help would be appreciated 👍🏼
+Stephen Lozano The hands fall off on a lot of these as the plastic of the arms reacts with the rubber in the hands and melts over time. I would re-attach them using the same method i used to fix the broken biker scout head. Check that video out.
what cause these to yellow? and is there away to prevent it on new figures? I wonder if the hot toys stormtrooper will yellow?
Sun damage. Keep them out of the sun and they should be fine.
I recently acquired a 12" stormtrooper and I'm all excited about using peroxide to whiten it... but man is that sucker hard to pry open. I've got it opened just a bit using the small flathead screwdriver method... but I'm too worried about damaging it. So I ordered some nylon pry tools from Amazon. Arrrgh. I want to open it up so bad.
It does take some wiggling for sure.
@@toypolloi I just got it!!! I was doing more pulling than wiggling. Wiggling works better... although it's still hard and now my fingers hurt. Now I'm fully stoked to clean/whiten this thing. And I have a nice original gun. I'm missing the string, but I was going to use Lego string as a replacement.
Hello what did you do when you place the toy on the case? you add vinegrate?
Curious, why did you put the front half face-down in the container?
+TreadwellJay It floated the other way around.
Question ..do you ever bleach white item's in the sunlight ??? I tried it and the results were great .Thxs
I know this is an old video but do you have any ideas or resources whereby one can diy or purchase Star Wars weapons for 12" figures?
reproparts.net used to sell some. Cheers
@@toypolloi Thanks M8 ;)
How in the heck did the yellowing from smoking stain the back and not the front?
That thing must've been is really weird position for years.
It'll have been UV light reacting with the bromide in the plastic, not smoking. Was probably displayed in front of a window so the back got more sun.
Also, could you just not put the whole unit in the peroxide 6% instead of taking it apart ? would it soak like that efficiently enough ?
It's easier when it's in pieces as some parts are more yellow that others. So I can put each part in for different times. Also, my pot is not big enough 😀
What website did you find the reproduction blaster at?
Repro parts . net has some.
thank you
Also other semi related thing :D I notice you using metal screwdrivers as prying tools, a cheep and safer alternative would be guitar pics wedge em in and then put something between them perhaps. Or Ifixit do good repair kits for electonics that include a variety of plastic spudgers which also work quite well :D
Cool video and well done! I just found your channel and liked it so much that you inspired me to be more active with my ridiculous collection! I just started a UA-cam channel and I hope to do good by learning from you!! Thank you so much!! I subscribed!!!
Brilliant job but did the deep nicotine brown eventually return after your initial peroxiding?
It does after a couple of years. Nothing will stop that as the plastic continues to degrade. Cheers
Think you should switch to a indoor setup you could buy two uv nail dryers that would cover the a polished baking tray and use peroxide cream instead. It comes in higher volumes 20%,30% and 40%. You paste on a barrier, wrap in cling film then put under the uv lights. Think you could get them a lot whiter and would only take a few hours. The uv lamps are around £12 and the cream 250ml £4 or can buy In 1ltr at alot cheaper price all on ebay.
I want to show people you can do it very cheaply and easily. If I can fix a toy without spending lots of money, then that's the way I try to go about it. If I spent an extra £20 on fixing this toy, I could have just bought a much nicer toy in the first place. So I try to show people that you can do most fixes with stuff you already have in the house. But as you say there are quicker ways to do it. Cheers
That looks a lot better, great restoration, have any of your previously yellowed figures that you have restored gone yellow again, I wonder if its only a temporary fix, just wondering
Hi, just wondering where you can get a repro gun for the 12” stormtrooper? Thanks in advance.
reproparts.net sells them.
Does this process bleach the black or other colors ? I am also looking at doing this to the large R2D2 from this set as well, but am worried it may bleach the blue or chrome top ? any idea if it would ? great video!
It can affect the paint and printed parts. I would expect it to make a change to the blue printed parts on r2. I've not tried it on chrome.
Do you use hydrogen peroxide pure or mix it with water and what is the ratio?
Does it have negative affect on the paint that sits on the plastic?
As it comes out of the bottle. So this is %6 in the bottle.
I see ,,so you use the whole bottle or two,,.
How many times can we use it before it loses its strength?
In the video you are talking about nicotine discoloration,what about discoloration because of the(uv) sunlight.
I have a special collectors room and a lot of my collection is sitting there on and in display cases.
There is no or minimal sunlicht comming through ,,still some of the toys,,specially made bij Hasbro have this discoloration like on your video.
Some i have painted over,for me it is no problem but other toys i don t like paint them all over again.
is peroxide also the solution for this problem?
You can use it loads of times. I'm still re-using the same stuff now. This is UV damage, I mention nicotine as the colour, not the cause. Cheers
hey toy polloi can you make a reproduction of vintage star wars kenner packaging
+Minegem Plays There is a guy who already does that. He's on Facebook. Just search for. Reproduction boxes.
Does the hydrogen peroxide work with 3.75" vintage figures?
ua-cam.com/video/HvGdlGMrkTI/v-deo.html
Toy Polloi Oops, sorry for my laziness and the the link.
Hi Dave. Just out interest, has anyone ever produced a Star Wars stormtrooper outfit for Action Man ?
I don't think so. But there was a potf2 12 inch Luke and Han pack that might be a good starting point.
Question...Is using a "Micro-paint gun" and painting it white frowned upon?
It's up to you. I prefer to keep it bare plastic as paint doesn't look right to me when the toy was never painted in the first place.
Spary a bit of WD40 on the rusted screws, let it sit a bit, that should help break them free much easier.
HI mate. great find, great restoration. What do you think causes the yellowing, there are lots of opinions on line about this but i would like your take on it.
+Roger Taylor It's sun damage from what I see. The way you get figures like this with only one side yellowed is the clue. I would say this was left on a childs windowsill for a good while.
04:30 - At least it wasn't fixed in the most annoying way possible, by being sonically welded shut. In my experience, anything fixed that way, is going to be almost certainly ruined by one trying to dismantle it. Sonically welded cassette tapes were the bane of my life in the 1980's. If the tape snapped, it was 'Game Over'.
Is 12% more more effective than the 6% peroxide?
It works faster.
Hi toy polloi i wanted to restore a similar white figure with very much the same nicotine type staining. I went in my local boots and the only hydrogen peroxide they had was a 9% will this cause a problem. cheers keep up the videos.
+Boom Lan Gaming That will work just as well. It will work a little bit quicker. Cheers
Thank you
You rock sir
Thanks for tip on restoring the rusted screws. I was contemplating if this is possible for a couple of weeks and watching your vids I found this solution. Gonna try it soon. I realise its a long time since you did it, but how much time do you advice on average to keep the plastics inside the hyperdioxide and the screws on the vinegar? EDIT: I missed it it seems you answer it on your vid. Sorry.
good luck on that gun, TP!
Got one 😀
Can you reuse the hydrogen peroxide? Also, will 3% work?
Yes it can be reused. 3% will work, but slower.
Can you please teach how to fix fully fall off vintage han solo taun taun legs and head? Thank youuuuuuuu
Not something I own. A bit too modern for me. Cheers
I think if had a yellow storm trooper figure like that I would use him as a sand trooper
I can't tell by the video, are you completely submerging the parts in hydrogen-peroxide?
+Douglas Pasz They do float, so you need to turn them over a fee times during the process.
awesome video again buddy
Brilliant!
Dear Toy Polloi, I have a unique situation that I am wondering if you have had any experience with or might be able to direct to someone who has. I have collected Star Trek and Star Wars lenticular trading cards. I have kept them in a cool area in a shoe box and do not look at them very often. However, the last time I did, a good many of them have acquired a thin milky looking film on their surfaces. I have gently tried soap and water on a damp towel to remove it as well as rubbing alcohol. Neither worked. I wrote to the card manufacturer and they claimed to have never heard of this. Then I just saw your video here and the past where you talk about the fuzz on MOC action figure. I saw that you suggested lighting and heating the figure would make this go away. I am considering trying this with my trading cards. Any advice or experience you could share with me would be much apprecaited.
Hi, I have never seen this as I don't have that many lenticular cards. I doubt this will work as if the figures were not carded the frosting could just be washed off. You only need to heat them as they are carded and you can't touch the figures. Cheers
As soon as I saw you stick that screwdriver into the seam I cringed. Nylon pry tool my good man!
The screwdriver has damaged the edges of the plastic sadly. Maybe use some plastic tools like a guitar pick or car interior tool remover.
great job I wonder if you could try a very very fine sandpaper?
I must say that the yellowing was accidentally so tasteful that the figure could pass as a Remnant Stormtrooper. So if you hadn't been able to clean it up, there wouldn't be that big of a problem.
wow a tan
Hey so Uh you may know this maybe not. But I notice you keep calling these Nicotine stains but actually its caused by the UV rays breaking down the plastic. I think its a fire retardant chemical called bromine that reacts with the air when sunlight breaks down the plastic.
8 Bit guy solved some pretty nasty staining on some old commodore using some salon care hydrogen peroxide ua-cam.com/video/wLp6bzG9exk/v-deo.html
Apparently when you do this you should also re-seal the plastic afterward with a matt spray or so to prevent it from reyellowing later :)
Who knew stormtroopers could tan?
Hey toy polloi can you please please make a 12 inch boba fett restoration because I'm cleaning my own up
+bill elson If I owned one I would. I'll keep my eyes out for a cheap one.
Toy Polloi I got mine for $112
+bill elson was that complete?
Toy Polloi he has his jet pack and his belt
😎
40% hydrogen peroxide and florescent uv light would make that yellow all but vanish. i have had some amazing results.
Costs 10 quid for 300 ml of 3% HP in Sweden.
That seems a lot.
Looks like a Sandtrooper because of the yellowing
Reproparts.net sells rifles for the 12 in trooper
+jack goff (Nexus) yeah, that's were I was going to get it from.
Cool. I bought my lightsaber ball and arm and the snowspeeder harpoon and block from there.
Looks like that storm trooper got some sun burn at tattooine
They must have displayed him on a window.
Just recently my sister in law told me she threw away her now adult son original 12" Stormtrooper because it was all yellow from being in the sun for many years, my nephew couldn't believe it. Luckily Darth Vader is still in good condition.
I'm sure this has happened to many a toy :(
this desert warn stormtrooper is dying for some battle damage stickers :D
I have no problem with Repro weapons/parts as long as they are marked REPRO or RP somewhere on the replacement. The issue today is that to date none of the repro weapons & parts being sold are clearly marked Replacement. They are only getting closer to the originals. Some of the creators may be purposely trying to pass them off as originals.
I expressed before that I get the need for a repro market because of vintage prices, however they need to be marked as such.
If a collector dies and there family/friends go to sell the collection off, many of these reproduction items are passed off as vintage and therefore deceive (by accident) the new purchaser.
I leave this to the Repro fans that don't want these items marked as replacements. How would you feel if someone remolded all the original figures and sold them as vintage replacements?
Would that not take away the nostalgia and the greatness of the toys? Kids of the 70's, 80's and early 90's grew up with theses items and that's part of what many of us are after.
These are pieces of art that were original hand sculpted and produced for the enjoyment of millions of kids across the world!!! That's what makes toy's GREAT!!!
People who buy these Repro's need to be responsible and mark these items in someway if the makers will not!
Toy polloi have you ever tried putting rusty stuff in Coca Cola?
The front of the first one looked like a sand trooper 😂
he's showing all his parts
Jesus must have been sitting in a window for years!
The Restoration of Dr Who I'm guessing he was left outside. Due to the rusting of the screws.
My friend is selling an original for £5. I can message him before he sells it
Should've cleaned the back up a little bit and said it's a sand trooper
poor little guy getting probed and brushed the wrong way
Just paint it White
For all that work you would have been better off respraying it. . . . .
+Michael Lupo They never look good painted as originally they were bare plastic.
Princess Leia is dead
Is it possible to spray paint the white parts of figure?
You could. But I never like the look of a painted figure when it's supposed to be white plastic.