Cracks in Head

The head of my doll has little cracks that start where the head and face cap meet. They look like scratches and are not very deep, but I'm afraid they might get longer and be visible on her face. Right now they are still hidden under the wig.

Is there a way to fix them or at least a way to seal the cracks so they won't get bigger?

I tried to take pictures but you can't see them on photos :/

need some pictures

Well.. I tried to get them but you can only see them very faint.

 

 

When you squeeze the head a little you can see that they have a little depth. There are 2 scratches on the head and 1 on the cap.

is it really in the vinyl? or do you think it can be a face up/finishing crack?

also try to not squeeze it so much

It's surely in the vinyl, not the face up. And I only squeezed it once or twice, I won't do it again

Hm, that's tough. The only thing I could think to do would be to fill in the gap with some kind of glue or epoxy or putty. Something like Tamiya two part epoxy sculpt, milliput, Tamiya putty in white, clear casting resin; it really just depends what you can afford or easily get your hands on. Whatever filler you choose, use a credit card to squeegee the excess off while filling in the gap. Just be VERY careful to not ruin your head more by using too much filler or getting it on your face up.

Hm, that's tough. The only thing I could think to do would be to fill in the gap with some kind of glue or epoxy or putty. Something like Tamiya two part epoxy sculpt, milliput, Tamiya putty in white, clear casting resin; it really just depends what you can afford or easily get your hands on. Whatever filler you choose, use a credit card to squeegee the excess off while filling in the gap. Just be VERY careful to not ruin your head more by using too much filler or getting it on your face up.

 

Thank you for your advice!

I've never used epoxy before >.< I'm a little scared that it may expand after a while and widen the crack. What kind of glue could I use, I don't know any brands for vinyl dolls?

You may want to trim/notch inside the headcap, so that you could pry it off without squeezing the head so much. I haven't seen this issue before, so it's hard to say how to fix it. Epoxy wouldn't work for the new soft-cap heads- if you squeeze the head to remove the cap, it's going to dislodge the epoxy because once set it's not flexible. I suspect a stretchy glue would work better, but can't recommend one specifically.

Just wondering... considering all the dolls you list in your signature would have soft head caps, which of them is having this issue?

Just wondering... considering all the dolls you list in your signature would have soft head caps, which of them is having this issue?

 

It's a DDH-07, the one I named Kainé.

 

 

You may want to trim/notch inside the headcap, so that you could pry it off without squeezing the head so much. I haven't seen this issue before, so it's hard to say how to fix it. Epoxy wouldn't work for the new soft-cap heads- if you squeeze the head to remove the cap, it's going to dislodge the epoxy because once set it's not flexible. I suspect a stretchy glue would work better, but can't recommend one specifically.

I'm thinking about getting a flexible glue to fix it, but I have no idea where to look >.<' And how should I notch the headcap? I don't think I've seen before how that looks or how it's done.

O_o

 

At least it's not Rise who has that, but the 07 doing it is bad enough. You shouldn't have to notch a soft cap though since it can be squeezed open. Do you think it happened from gripping the head to put it on or off? Was the box for that head damaged when you received it?

 

I admit I'd almost be tempted to use a vinyl tear repair kit.

I can't remember that there were any scratches when I received the head after that she has been mostly stored in my drawer, because I don't have a body for her yet. So it's a mistery to me how it happened T.T'

 

How do you use a vinyl tear repair kit? Ö3Ö

I wish I could see it better in the picture. Maybe I am kind of blind, but I just can't really see a crack... >__< I've looked at it a few times, but for some reason it seems like a stain to me. I mean, I know it must not be a stain since you described it, but I wish I could see it better so that maybe I could try to help you as well. @__@

 

I'm sorry this happened to your girl, and I hope that it does not get worse or you find a way to fix it~

I wish I could see it better in the picture. Maybe I am kind of blind, but I just can't really see a crack... >__< I've looked at it a few times, but for some reason it seems like a stain to me. I mean, I know it must not be a stain since you described it, but I wish I could see it better so that maybe I could try to help you as well. @__@

 

I'm sorry this happened to your girl, and I hope that it does not get worse or you find a way to fix it~

 

It's really the best picture I could take of the cracks as they're so small and thin. I wish it could be more visible x.x'

 

I hope it doesn't get worse if I leave it alone until I can find a way to fix it >.<'

Maybe you can take a better picture of the "crack"? It'd be easier for us to identity the problem and find ways to fix it. Better lighting, correct focusing, and maybe a little bit of zooming out will all help.

Yeah, I think maybe a little bit brighter lighting might help. Maybe an outside photo could be able to show better. Like, I think I can see where they are? It's just that I do not see any depth or dimension to them. I mostly just see lines that look like blurred stains. My mom she sells luxury purses/shoes as her job, and sometimes she has fixed them... She's kind of crafty when it comes to fixing things. We were looking at the picture trying to help you but it is just very hard to see. >__< Also, I'm sure a lot of people on the forums might have good advice too, but maybe can't see well enough to determine best method of resolution. @__@ I understand if you cannot get a better photo though. I just really wanted to help you.

Hmm >.< I'll try taking outside pictures on the weekend as it's already pretty dark when I come home from work. Maybe it's more visible then with a better light.

 

Thank you Arienette for trying to help me, I really appreciate it T.T

Hmm >.< I'll try taking outside pictures on the weekend as it's already pretty dark when I come home from work. Maybe it's more visible then with a better light.

 

Thank you Arienette for trying to help me, I really appreciate it T.T

 

Hopefully so! No problem, I know that whenever something is wrong with my dolls, or any other item I own that means a lot to me, it is really stressful... So I always try to help people if I can figure out how to.

Finally I got the scratches on the head >.<' sunlight really helps!

 

 

Like this I even saw that there are 4 scratches and not only 3 T-T'

Edited September 29, 2013 by Guest

omg that looks like it has been done with a sharp knife

This picture scares me to death!! As a relative newbie, if something like this ever happened to one of my girls I would totally and completely freak out!!! I don't know anything about anything, but somebody PLEASE offer a way to help fix this!!!

omg that looks like it has been done with a sharp knife

I agree, they line up too well. I am skeptical that both the soft cap and the head would "crack" in exactly the same places like that. Are you the first owner of that head?

omg that looks like it has been done with a sharp knife

I agree, they line up too well. I am skeptical that both the soft cap and the head would "crack" in exactly the same places like that. Are you the first owner of that head?

 

No I bought the head from yahoo auctions, but when it arrived there weren't any cracks >.< And after that I only had her in my drawer, so I have no idea how that happened x.x

Does your drawer have little rails on the inside that allow it to slide in and out?

 

>_<

omg that looks like it has been done with a sharp knife

I agree, they line up too well. I am skeptical that both the soft cap and the head would "crack" in exactly the same places like that. Are you the first owner of that head?

This.

 

Also, it could be from the drawer rails (as someone else suggested). That could explain the straight lines.

 

Unless you are repairing it, I would not prod it too much. If it's not too much of a problem and can be covered by the wig, then it might be best to just leave it as is. Puting stress on the crack can make it spread.

 

I don't think this is something you can simply sand down without slightly distorting the head shape; you'd probably have to fill the crack in for a less-obtrusive repair job. I don't know much about repairs, but someone else here might.

 

At least it is covered by the wig; so the appearance of the doll won't be affected too much.