Modding Smart Dolls? (esp. height difference)

I was going to ask this in the Facebook group but I wanted to try here first, since I figure more people here might have experience modifying vinyl dolls.

 

Has anyone tried modifying Smart Doll bodies? I'm pretty sure I've seen modded/carved heads around but it may have been DDs. Does anyone have experience with, say, changing a Smart Doll's height? I've seen people do it with Obitsus but the bodies in that case are much cheaper, as far as I know.

 

I have 2 Smart Dolls at the moment but I keep coming up with characters for the new ones that are released, so perhaps (depending on whenever/if ever I have the funds + how I feel about Danny Choo at the time) I might be adding more to my family. However, since the bodies are exactly the same between sculpts (aside from skin color and bust size) and heads are not being sold separately as far as I know, I don't have any particular interest in having a lot of clones around. Felicity in particular seems like she would be pretty awesome as a "tall girl" next to other Smart Doll girls... but they're all the same. I know it's a lot harder to make dolls taller than smaller so I might keep that in mind for any future companions for future-Felicity(I know, I know, I'm probably getting carried away, and all this is incredibly hypothetical anyway since I told myself I'll stop buying dolls for a while D: ).

 

Anyway, to the point. I've seen someone modify an Obitsu 60cm to be a couple cm shorter, but can something similar be done with Smart Dolls? I'd ask the person who made the original mod but I can't remember if they have a username on here. I remember seeing a post about it on their blog/webcomic "Acrylic Eyes" but that is inactive as far as I know. But back to Smart Dolls! Is it even reasonable to modify such an expensive and popular item? I'm not sure how likely I could get just a replacement body if I screw up. I guess what I'm saying is, if anyone has experience modifying vinyl dolls, and knows how such techniques would apply to Smart Dolls, I would love to know the details. And I'd definitely love to see pictures!

 

I apologize for the long, ramble-y post, btw!

I'm gonna preface this by saying that I am pretty new to the hobby, so my knowledge is decidedly limited, and I really only have experience with doing eye-opening mods on Monster High dolls.

 

That said, I think you do have options, although being based in North America makes things more difficult. The first thing would be how comfortable are you with failure? Smart Dolls are not cheap, and if you can't fit a failed experiment in your budget, then it's probably best not to try any extreme mods (even with guidance from someone experienced).

 

Another thing to keep in mind is that there have been "vinyl sales" before at the Mirai store in Japan. They don't seem to really follow a schedule, but if you have a contact in Japan, it might be something to look into to purchase separate heads. The Smart Doll "Milk" tone is a pretty close match to Volks "Normal Skin", and I believe it would be possible to put the head on a Volks body with minimal modification (I think the neckhole may need to be widened slightly, which could probably done with a sharp exacto knife). While there isn't exactly a tall body type, this would them open your options up to a DDy, DDS, or possibly a DDP body for height/body type varieties.

 

However, please please please take all this with a heaping pile of salt, as I am super duper not an expert and all of this is simply speculation - If someone else with more experience suggests something else, please listen to them instead!

Has anyone tried modifying Smart Doll bodies?

Yes but the mod I'm working on is a parts-swap mod for the hands and don't involve any irreversible changes.

 

Is it even reasonable to modify such an expensive and popular item?

Short answer: NO. DON'T TRY.

 

Long answer: When shortening the height of a large scale vinyl doll, you have three realistic places you can try to shorten. (Four, if you think you can shorten the neck without the doll looking stupid.) The three locations are the spine, the thighs, and the shins.

 

You can't shorten the spine without causing permanent damage. There are "Toy Skeleton" pliers sold by Parabox which can be used to remove a piece from a Smart Doll's spinal column. The problem with trying this is you can't reach the spine with the tool. Unless you're willing to break off the piece of the spine permanently attached to the torso skin, you're not removing anything from the spine.

 

You can't shorten the thighs without causing permanent damage. You can use a hobby hacksaw and shorten the frame easily. Once you do that, the thigh skins also need to be cut to adjust for the shorter inner frame pegs. This could work with the old style Obitsu 60cm dolls' double jointed knees and thigh skin. If you'll look at your Smart Doll's thighs, you'll quickly understand why hacking away at the thigh skin is a very bad idea.

 

You can't shorten the shins without causing permanent damage. You can hack away a few millimeters of the shins' inner frame. You'll then need to hack away at the bottom of the shin skin. This is the easiest among the three to do but I still wouldn't recommend it.

 

Now here's something you already know which should be the most discouraging factor. If you mess up at any point, YOU CAN'T BUY REPLACEMENT PARTS. Mess up a Dollfie Dream body mod? You can buy replacement parts. Mess up an Obitsu body mod? You can buy replacement parts. Mess up a Smart Doll mod? You're SOL. If you happen to be in Japan and can buy outlet parts directly from the Mirai store, you're not going to find skeleton/frame parts or skin parts other than boobs.

 

My recommendation is to not modify your Smart Dolls.

 

 

I guess what I'm saying is, if anyone has experience modifying vinyl dolls, and knows how such techniques would apply to Smart Dolls, I would love to know the details. And I'd definitely love to see pictures!

It's not a Smart Doll mod but you can start here (potential NSFW link due to nude doll body): http://blog.doll.cafe/2018/01/frankendollfie-version-4.html

That's disappointing but not surprising... thanks for the info growcian_dc! I'll probably just end up sticking to having a smaller "family" then, or try a hybrid like RainbowNanaki suggested. It's a shame Danny Choo apparently has no intention of making different bodies (aside from completely different scale like Pocket or Plus).

I am super tempted to try it, but I would only do it with replacement parts.

 

I did the old 60 to 48 cm mod on a 60cm Obitsu before they came out with the smaller sizes, and it wasn't bad.

 

I think you could easily cut down the shin on a Smart Doll by a couple of centimeters and get away with it, especially if you made sure she was wearing tights, socks or pants. The tricky part would be the internal skeleton, because that fits together differently than the way Obitsu skeletons work. If I could buy a pair of internal shin bones and a pair of shin skins (outsides), I would definitely try it. You would have to cut that shin bone somewhere between the top and the bottom (because of how it fits with the feet) and glue it back together without that piece you took out to shorten it. But it would be hard to find a glue that would hold- so you would have to reinforce that place somehow, with some type of sheath. Still- I think it could be done.

 

I have always thought it would be really easy for Danny to shorten a doll by making that shin adjustment. That way he wouldn't have to redesign the entire doll, just those two sets of pieces (the shin bone and the shin skin).

 

So I guess it depends on how brave and adventuresome you are, and if you can get ahold of those extra pieces because I sure would not want to attempt it on a whole doll and possibly ruin it.

 

I have seen a Chitose head on a MDD body and it actually looked pretty cute. So there's always that option- Smart Doll head on DDS or MDD body. But since you can't just buy a head (unless you get one in Japan when he does the outlet), pretty expensive proposition.

Sorry, I know this is an old thread, but I'd like to add to the discussion.

I saw a video (from MyLadyDisdain) where they modify a Smartdoll to be a lot shorter for a child character.

I don't really know much about mods like these but I feel like you could probably use the video's techniques to make Smartdolls of different heights if you are willing to take the risk and are ok with the gapping.

 

Edited December 5, 2022 by chantelle

Yup, I was about to point you towards that video too. The idea seems very risky.