Serious Armpit Repair..

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 2:16 am

It's such a shame that after only 2 1/2 weeks of having Silviana (WM), she has this massive tear in her armpit. Well, it wasn't so massive until I took my heat gun to it (WHICH I SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE...), and now it's almost as deep as the skeleton joint.

Armpit tears are nothing I've had to deal with, and I have owned another WM for 2 years before Silviana. Seems like they changed the TPE blend, so it's ridiculously soft, and nowhere near as resilient as my first.

I should have known that the heat gun was a terrible idea to use on one of the potentially highest stressed areas, but I'm not going to give up on it.

Here's what I have on hand:

1. Heat Gun (w/ infrared thermometer gun)
2. Cheap soldering iron set w/ a few attachments
3. Available credit

I'm not a total newbie, but this accident makes me feel like one for sure.. What is the best course for me here?

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 2:19 am

By the way, I'm going to store her in my guest room, arm all the way down (for obvious reasons) until we can reach a solution. I don't want to be one of those guys who sounds desperate, but I really want to see this through, even if the process takes me weeks to finish.

Arthur1960 · Post by **Arthur1960** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 3:38 am

Hi there, I understand exactly how you feel as I did much the same thing about a year ago although the damage I caused was much worse as I compounded it by using tpe filler after mistakenly using heat to try and smooth some small tears in the groin area of one of my dolls. The good news is that I do believe that damage like this can be repaired using the method detailed in Mishka's tpe repair thread. To achieve best results I would recommend that you get a variable heat soldering station (got mine for about £20 from eBay) and then practice the technique that Mishka uses, which is working with small pieces of tpe that you gradually work into the damaged area, building up a layer of tpe. If you check out this link it's to my own experience doing this. I didn't think I could fix the awful damage I had done as it was so deep (the tpe filler melted the groin) but over the course of about 3 days repair it I did and several weeks on it's still in place!

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=106371&hilit=my+att ... e&start=75

Don't forget to ensure you do any such work in a well ventilated area and you will need a proper face mask that's rated for toxic fumes, (3m make an affordable one, available from many eBay sellers). Hope this helps, good luck!

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 4:11 pm

Arthur1960 wrote:Hi there, I understand exactly how you feel as I did much the same thing about a year ago although the damage I caused was much worse as I compounded it by using tpe filler after mistakenly using heat to try and smooth some small tears in the groin area of one of my dolls. The good news is that I do believe that damage like this can be repaired using the method detailed in Mishka's tpe repair thread. To achieve best results I would recommend that you get a variable heat soldering station (got mine for about £20 from eBay) and then practice the technique that Mishka uses, which is working with small pieces of tpe that you gradually work into the damaged area, building up a layer of tpe. If you check out this link it's to my own experience doing this. I didn't think I could fix the awful damage I had done as it was so deep (the tpe filler melted the groin) but over the course of about 3 days repair it I did and several weeks on it's still in place!

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=106371&hilit=my+att ... e&start=75

Don't forget to ensure you do any such work in a well ventilated area and you will need a proper face mask that's rated for toxic fumes, (3m make an affordable one, available from many eBay sellers). Hope this helps, good luck!

Thank you for your reply. I've seen your thread a few times, and the repairs you've done aren't short of noteworthy; it gives me hope.

Ever since the tear happened, I've been scouring the forums and Google for armpit repairs, but the lack of detailed/completed armpit repairs has me slightly nervous.

Right now I'm considering these couple options:

1. Buying a test piece from the vendor I went through, cutting into small pieces, then reworking with my soldering iron. (Mishka's Method)
2. Buying TPE filler from Lovedoll UK

The TPE filler seems like it would be the easier route, but I want to have this done as true to her skin tone as possible, which is why I'm getting in touch with my vendor first.

Also, I do have the proper respirator, but not a highly-ventilated work area. I live in an apartment, and to go out into the parking lot to do this would attract a lot of attention

My work area is my very small bathroom, and any time I do heat work on my girls, I run the shower on the highest temperature possible to hopefully bind the steam to the toxic particles. I am not the sharpest tool in the shed, but it has always seemed to make a significant difference when I run a hot shower while I do the work; I know what it feels like to breathe in the toxic vapor, and the aftermath is really uncomfortable.

I'll come back here and let you know what my vendor says about ordering a test piece.

Wish me luck

Arthur1960 · Post by **Arthur1960** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 4:27 pm

Hi again, personally I would avoid the tpe filler. Don't get me wrong as it's handy stuff and I did use it successfully once before but I think it's best suited to an area that is not subjected to frequent stretching. Also it actively melts the surrounding tpe so requires a degree of dexterity to use it successfully. How I would tackle it is to get her into an optimum position so the armpit is facing upwards then close the arm as much as possible but still allowing access to the arm pit and then gradually layer in small pieces of tpe using a variable soldering station. You could always cut off some pieces from the neck area which is what I did with some of the groin repair I did. Whatever you decide I wish you luck!

Mishka1965 · Post by **Mishka1965** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 5:01 pm

Yes, the soldering station is a good solution. The heat gun will open her more/worse depending on factors, but I would start with cutting small chunks of TPE and gradually fill it in with larger pieces with the soldering method.
Yours is repairable, but will take a large chunk of spare TPE, which I would take from the insert or her neck, or just order some spare. I recon a repair like this would be done over several days, so you should take your time - just do a bit each time, and take a break and continue. The final blending would be done with a soldering gun, and I would avoid a heat gun as I am not confident that will work even in the final smoothing. A larger flat tool like a heated spoon may help smooth the area down, but in the end its not about looks, but functionality and repairing this is essential so it does not get worse..

I too have a doll I need to fix - and is like yours under the arm, but a smaller rip to a degree, and I am going to fix mine this way, and will get a videos of the repair.

Mishka

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 5:05 pm

Arthur1960 wrote:Hi again, personally I would avoid the tpe filler. Don't get me wrong as it's handy stuff and I did use it successfully once before but I think it's best suited to an area that is not subjected to frequent stretching. Also it actively melts the surrounding tpe so requires a degree of dexterity to use it successfully. How I would tackle it is to get her into an optimum position so the armpit is facing upwards then close the arm as much as possible but still allowing access to the arm pit and then gradually layer in small pieces of tpe using a variable soldering station. You could always cut off some pieces from the neck area which is what I did with some of the groin repair I did. Whatever you decide I wish you luck!

Now when you are talking about slicing off from her neck, do you mean the area which is concealed by the head after you screw it on? Slicing from the back of the neck, or anywhere visible seems kind of rash

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 5:14 pm

Mishka1965 wrote:Yes, the soldering station is a good solution. The heat gun will open her more/worse depending on factors, but I would start with cutting small chunks of TPE and gradually fill it in with larger pieces with the soldering method.
Yours is repairable, but will take a large chunk of spare TPE, which I would take from the insert or her neck, or just order some spare. I recon a repair like this would be done over several days, so you should take your time - just do a bit each time, and take a break and continue. The final blending would be done with a soldering gun, and I would avoid a heat gun as I am not confident that will work even in the final smoothing. A larger flat tool like a heated spoon may help smooth the area down, but in the end its not about looks, but functionality and repairing this is essential so it does not get worse..

I too have a doll I need to fix - and is like yours under the arm, but a smaller rip to a degree, and I am going to fix mine this way, and will get a videos of the repair.

Mishka

Can't believe this attracted your attention as well as Arthur's!! I am starting to feel a resurgence of confidence here

I do have a test piece from my Tan WM, and I've been practicing on the test piece in my "well-ventilated workspace". I'm using the knife tip, and it is taking some time to smooth it all out, so I know this is going to take a lot of time. If the attachment was 3x bigger, maybe it'd be better for such a big area, but I'm in this for the long haul.

Taking another look at the armpit tear, I may be able to source enough TPE from the neck, but I need to be careful about how much I take lest I ruin the neck too.

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 5:22 pm

Here is my practice work on the TPE test piece for my Tan WM.

I know that it'll be easy to smooth this out with my heat gun, but since you all said the heat gun would be a bad idea, smoothing it out will be a much bigger task. Doesn't seem impossible though, just tedious.

Arthur1960 · Post by **Arthur1960** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 5:24 pm

When I salvaged spare tpe from my dolls neck I cut slithers off the very top close to the neck tube thus not touching the outer area.

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 5:38 pm

Here are a few more angles of the damage

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 6:01 pm

Alright, I decided to just source some TPE from the neck. Pictures incoming.

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 6:07 pm

Okay, I figured I might as well just go for it.

Here is where I sourced the TPE (neck):

I wish I could give you all a better idea of exactly how much I took, but here's how much I was able to source:

I made sure I trimmed off any dark spots. I also used baby oil to coat the pieces and scissors for when I made them into smaller, more manageable pieces.

ClusterFunk · Post by **ClusterFunk** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 6:09 pm

The challenge now will be getting her into a good position to start working the pieces of TPE, since I don't have any good, flat elevated surface for my doll to lay on. Maybe I can throw something together...

Arthur1960 · Post by **Arthur1960** » Mon Jun 10, 2019 6:11 pm

That all looks good so far, remember what Mishka said about going slow and doing it over a few days. The first time I tried it I was tempted to keep going as I could see it was working but it's better to do a bit then leave it for a while, this seems to be the way to go.