can this be repaired with a heatgun?

[Speedflyer77]

Hi all,
I've looked at the other repair threads here, and also the video with the heatgun that repaired tears.
But I haven't seen anyone specifically address the issue of "scuffed" up TPE. Not sure if "Scuffed" is the right term.

some background info:
I keep the doll on the bed, and cuddle with it to sleep. It's hard for me to fall asleep alone
She sleeps on her side, and the spots that are the high points such and on the thigh and shoulder area. Which are exposed to rubbing against the sheets has caused some wear spots on the TPE skin.
There's also wear on the nose as well. The tpe here seems to be getting really soft. [Maybe it wes already like this originally and I just didn't notice]
I didn't realize the TPE wears down so quickly.

When the doll was new, there was barely any seam line on the shoulder, but the wear on the surface has made it very apparent.

Would it be better to try using TPE glue, or using the heatgun to repair?

TPE glue/paste method here:
viewtopic.php?p=2168589&hilit=nose+repair#p2168589
Unfortunately the video in the thread no longer available.
Aside from the original post by the vendor, I haven't seen any posts by members here on using the paste method for fixing the skin.
If anyone has tried it, please let me know your results - Thanks!

There's also an old post that describes the problem as "abrasions"
with a repair video, but the links are also no longer working.
viewtopic.php?t=89670


My guess if to try the glue/paste first, and failing that try the heatgun. As using the heatgun has a bigger danger of making things worse.

If anyone has had any success on repair the skin or nose, please let me know.
Thanks all

[Arthur1960]

Hi there, coincidentally I was just doing a repair with heat to one of my oldest gals head just the other day. Her head was made in 2016 and over the last couple of years her nose had also got that roughened appearance and there were also some patches on her chin. For me this seems to have been an issue with a handful of my oldest tpe heads so it will be interesting to see how the newer ones do. To be honest working with heat on a head is tricky and should only be attempted with a variable heat hot air rework station that has a selection of nozzles. You would need the smallest nozzle to tackle the nose but before you even attempt it I would recommend practicing on some spare tpe first as there is definitely a knack to doing a decent job. I would suggest searching for Mishka's repair videos on here, specifically the ones where he uses an oily cloth to smooth tpe with heat. Basically that's what I did with my Keiko's face and while I'm never going to get her looking like new I was able to get her good enough to photograph again, to be honest she looks better than I was expecting! (See pic). I carefully picked off any loose bits of tpe and then with the area cleaned and oiled I applied heat for several seconds till I could see the rough bits begin to melt, then applied the oiled cloth. It's slow work which requires patience plus you need to know when to stop otherwise the tpe will become too stressed and go mushy. Once it had cooled I dabbed the area with tissue to soak up some of the oil then left it for several hours before re powdering. Then after reapplying her makeup she certainly looked a lot better. Now the larger scuffed areas in your pics are actually easier to work on, especially as the tpe isn't somewhere that gets stretched so you would need a larger nozzle on the hot air station and again ensure the area is well oiled before applying heat. As I recall Mishka recommended setting the hot air to around 100c which is probably best when you are a beginner but I have mine set to 180c now so the tpe heats up much quicker although it's easier to make a mistake! Again on those rough areas it's a bit of heat then an application of an oiled piece of cloth (lint free without any creases), several times till the area looks smooth again. Once it's cooled leave it for a bit then re-powder, ok hope that's of some help. As to the cause of the rough bits on the nose I suspect it's a combination of things, also direct sunlight can hasten it, tpe liked to be in cool, dark places! Good luck.

[ondsdoll]

How long do you got her?

[Speedflyer77]

Good luck.

Thanks

[Speedflyer77]

How long do you got her?

About 18 months, so a little bit of wear every day during that time

[Siliconeman]

I would not use heat gun. I would just heat a spoon with a butane burner and very gently smooth her skin. If there is excessive smoke, your spoon is way too hot.

Cheers!

Sili

[ondsdoll]

What brand is it?