My sweethearts knee joint broke HELP!!!!!

[DarkOne]

I'm curious. I would like to see what actually broke. seeing the photos of the skeleton above, Those welds look as they should be able to stand some pretty decent force even against the yoke. Tho the weld could break if weak, if there was a lot of force used then the break should have torn thru the leg. I'd be interested to know the construction specs.

Yea, that is why I have so much confidence in DS. As long as the welds are made right, the skeleton should not fail before the silicone is damaged from the forces applied. IMO a skeleton failure is the most tragic thing to happen to a doll. Cuts, dents, scrapes and stains are just a minor annoyance compared to a broken limb/neck.

[haremlover]

I think it's going to be interesting and important to see pics of the break to know what it is. If it's a problem of manufacture or of usage. If the latter, you need to know so that your next lady survives and if the former it will help DS in their strive for the best possible quality control.

It will certainly be worth asking for spare parts in any event.

There's speculation above that the problem is a broken weld. I'd be very very surprised if it was. I'd think it might be metal fatigue with a twist of the yoke plates if the hinge was much too tight, which possibly it might have been from your description, or a sideways fracture if the hinge has had pressure at 90 degrees to its direction of motion.

So please . . . there are many of us hanging on the coat-tails of this thread for your photos of the investigation!

The brilliant news is, as always, that DS love their dolls and their customers get looked after in the process . . .

Best wishes

Harem

[DarkOne]

Agreed. Bad to speculate, better to (wait for the repair parts to arrive and then) cut her open and see what the problem was. (I suggest waiting for parts first because it will make moving her without damage that much harder if you open her up. Unless you have a place she can lay on for the next few weeks without being disturbed)

Also, before you do any cutting, make sure to clean her as best you can (sponge bath) and CLEAN YOUR HANDS to the nth degree. You don't want to get dirt into the area your trying to glue.

Read about how to cut silicone. I believe most recommend using dish soap as a blade lubricant and a super sharp blade? Double check as I am not 100% sure. the more you read first, the better it will turn out!

I just can't imagine those yokes failing however. They look like something I would have designed while proudly declaring I had over built it, it would take serious abuse to damage it, like a fall where the joint ended up taking all the doll weight while locked into position somehow (doable for the arm maybe, but I can't imagine it happening with a knee unless the leg was caught between 2 objects as the doll fell). Its also very rare to hear of any joint failing in a DS. I would have thought knee failures would be much more common if it was the yoke not being strong enough to survive 3 months.

There is also the fact that the last unexpected DS joint failure was a weld failure. It does not take much for a weld to go bad, just skipping one step of weld prep, using the wrong current, oil or other contamination on the metal from machining (cutting lube) not properly cleaned off, or even just a drop of sweat falling onto the metal. These welds can look perfect but under the surface they don't bind properly and are brittle, often they can fail early from repeated fatigue. Sometimes your welding wire or welding gas is contaminated when you buy it from totally reputable suppliers, these things happen even in North America and the UK and have been reported on many machining/welding forums.

The standard test of a welders skill is to take two pieces of metal, weld them together, put one piece of metal in a vise and beat on the other with the biggest hammer you have. The parent metal should bend then rip if the welder did it right, as in the weld does not fail, the metal its welded to rips in half leaving a large chunk of it still connected to the weld. Proper welds are STRONGER then what they weld together. that is why they are used so much in fabrication of everything you trust your life to every day, Done right there is no stronger way to join weldable alloys.

DS may be training welders (No doubt they have many welders and are hiring more to expand production to meet our ravenous demand of DS dolls), something I commend as welders where not born as good welders, they had to learn somewhere through experience and lets face it, dolls are not 'life critical', they don't need a (very expensive!!) certified life critical welder with (expensive) x-ray testing of every weld, what they need is customer support to replace any failures and they have that. All companies have the odd manufacturing defect, But thus far DS seems far ahead of the rest how they correct any issues. They may also be hiring new welders because those that learned to become very skilled, went on to acquire certifications and moved on to better paying (but likely much harder) work. Again, all speculation on my part.

Also, the picture posted previously is of a hip joint, not the knee joint. The knee joint wouldn't have that rotational joint that was claimed to be 'welded weakly' and that joint may be welded very well on the inside of the yoke where we can't see it. It does not appear to be welded at all on the top so it very likely is welded inside.

[haremlover]

Agreed. Bad to speculate, better to (wait for the repair parts to arrive and then) cut her open and see what the problem was. . . .
. . . .
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. . . . .
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. . . .They may also be . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Again, all speculation on my part.

Best wishes

Harem

[DarkOne]

Yea, I thought I might be called out for that but I thought it best to add that line anyway as it was just speculation about their employment. However it was speculation based on my brother being a professional welder who has moved through a number of jobs as he became more skilled and certified. Hes now the guy they fly out to fix and install modifications on huge mining equipment and charge the mining company hundreds of dollars an hour for his labor (He makes considerably less then that mind you, but still is very well paid)

Welding is a huge trade and is somewhat of an art, I really respect the visual quality in the welds on DS dolls show. they look MUCH better then the welds I can do that is for sure! Better then I see on a lot of cars and some motorbikes and those ARE life critical welds. Of course, being hidden inside a doll, maybe they could make the welds a little thicker and hotter and there would be slightly less chance for failure.

[SmittyT]

If I get a doll and it happens to me.. the darn doll better have health insurance cause I'm breaking out the meat cleaver and JB weld. All jokes aside. Happy that you got this issue resolved. Please keep us updated on what the actual damage is

[DarkOne]

If I get a doll and it happens to me.. the darn doll better have health insurance cause I'm breaking out the meat cleaver and JB weld. All jokes aside. Happy that you got this issue resolved. Please keep us updated on what the actual damage is

Yea, Wrong way to go at it. Look at it more as a chance to finally play doctor with a hot girl. Except your actually playing doctor so its not nearly as much fun as it sounds.

[deadpringle]

Thanks again to all of you, and thank you to John and DS Doll for allowing me to get sleep again!

No one else has said it yet, so I'm going to... "told you so!"



Seriously, I'm glad you and DS were able to come to an amicable settlement. Like I said, stellar customer support.

[haremlover]

Like I said, stellar customer support.

Well this is why I get teased for having the confidence to recommend DS ladies to people for whom there's no room for error in their lives and the decision needs to be right first time.

People who haven't experienced DS find it difficult to understand . . . or perhaps are jealous that the manufacturer of the doll they might have chosen can't be relied upon time after time to be quite as good . . .

I hope in due course that all dolls and manufacturers of dolls will be as good . . .



Best wishes

Harem

[Vanima]

Well this is why I get teased for having the confidence to recommend DS ladies to people for whom there's no room for error in their lives and the decision needs to be right first time.

People who haven't experienced DS find it difficult to understand . . . or perhaps are jealous that the manufacturer of the doll they might have chosen can't be relied upon time after time to be quite as good . . .

I hope in due course that all dolls and manufacturers of dolls will be as good . . .

No dear Harem, what you get teased for is your mistaken assumption that only DS has this level of customer support. DS does have stellar customer support, that is a given. However, it was a standard for the industry set long before DS even existed as a company by the American company that started it all. Now granted we don't know about the standards for Asian and European manufacturers as well as we do the American ones, but it is the standard for how American doll makers treat their customers and their dolls. That is not to take anything away from what DS does and it is appropriate to praise them for this level of support. What is inappropriate is misleading people to believe that only DS offers this level of support as that would be a violation of rule 10.

Now back on topic:
I am so happy for you Brian. I know my K would crumble without me there to support him. I am really happy that DS has treated you right and has made things better for you. That is one of the many good things about DS, their excellent support for their girls. I am looking forward to your sweetie being made whole again. Just remember that even though her knee is broken the rest of her is still whole and willing to support you. You could try using a knee immobilizer to hold her leg in place while you wait for a replacement. If that isn't available for you could splint it with two poles tied together like a splint for a broken leg. Just some ideas to try and help you in the meantime.

Big Hugs,
-Vani

[haremlover]

it is the standard for how American doll makers treat their customers and their dolls.

That's heartening to hear.

Best wishes

Harem

[SmittyT]

If I get a doll and it happens to me.. the darn doll better have health insurance cause I'm breaking out the meat cleaver and JB weld. All jokes aside. Happy that you got this issue resolved. Please keep us updated on what the actual damage is

Yea, Wrong way to go at it. Look at it more as a chance to finally play doctor with a hot girl. Except your actually playing doctor so its not nearly as much fun as it sounds.

I know it was a corny joke wasn't it

[DarkOne]

Well this is why I get teased for having the confidence to recommend DS ladies to people for whom there's no room for error in their lives and the decision needs to be right first time.

People who haven't experienced DS find it difficult to understand . . . or perhaps are jealous that the manufacturer of the doll they might have chosen can't be relied upon time after time to be quite as good . . .

I hope in due course that all dolls and manufacturers of dolls will be as good . . .

No dear Harem, what you get teased for is your mistaken assumption that only DS has this level of customer support. DS does have stellar customer support, that is a given. However, it was a standard for the industry set long before DS even existed as a company by the American company that started it all. Now granted we don't know about the standards for Asian and European manufacturers as well as we do the American ones, but it is the standard for how American doll makers treat their customers and their dolls. That is not to take anything away from what DS does and it is appropriate to praise them for this level of support. What is inappropriate is misleading people to believe that only DS offers this level of support as that would be a violation of rule 10.

Now back on topic:
I am so happy for you Brian. I know my K would crumble without me there to support him. I am really happy that DS has treated you right and has made things better for you. That is one of the many good things about DS, their excellent support for their girls. I am looking forward to your sweetie being made whole again. Just remember that even though her knee is broken the rest of her is still whole and willing to support you. You could try using a knee immobilizer to hold her leg in place while you wait for a replacement. If that isn't available for you could splint it with two poles tied together like a splint for a broken leg. Just some ideas to try and help you in the meantime.

Big Hugs,
-Vani

I won't name names, but I have heard rumors of some American manufacturers having very poor customer service, especially when it comes to manufacturer defects, Both in the doll world (Cough company with TDF warning banner cough) and for lots of other American products (Cough, Ford Pinto for a famous example, cough).

Its also one thing to do your customers right in your own country where you can expect legal backlash, its another to extend that to customers from other countries who really have no legal recourse due to difficulties in bringing legal action against someone in another country.

I also just don't hear any other stories on TDF about people getting free (Or even 70% off) replacement bodies for defects from other manufacturers. Iv heard of some partial refunds for the defects, but IMO when it comes to a doll, you don't want a discounted damaged doll, you want a women who is perfection embodied and you paid good money expecting to receive one. DS seems to realize this and makes its customers happy. Having some OCD myself, I admire my dolls skin as something much more perfect* then any human could achieve.

*Perfect as in free of blemishes, dents, pimples, warts, freckles, spots, etc. Things that all humans have and they cover up with piles of makeup for movies.


Also, I would highly recommend AGAINST leaving a splint on a doll. Anything hard wrapped up tight against the doll is likely to leave dents. It might be a very good idea to put a split on her if you have to carry her, so the weight of the leg is not hanging on the silicone, but don't leave it on her. Best to find her a good resting spot that you can snuggle up to her without moving her leg.

[haremlover]

I know it was a corny joke wasn't it

I hope that DS will send their resident nurse to assist administration of the anasthetic


Best wishes

Harem

[Obin]

DSDoll rocks!

...but it is the standard for how American doll makers treat their customers and their dolls.

This may be the case for the ones you've dealt with, but it's not the case for me. I'm not going to derail this thread, but I do have a story.