Easy Fixes

Although we are always happy to carry out repairs for you, there are a few things that you can easily do yourself

RE-STRINGING & RE-ATTACHING HEADS

Re-Attaching the Head on a Blue Pants Eagle Eyed Action Man isn’t all that difficult to do…

BACK TO BLACK

CLEANING UP WHEELS ON VEHICLES

So you have just spent half an hour scrubbing the wheels in the kitchen sink only to find that they still look as grubby as they did when you first started.

We have all been there, so what’s our next step?

You could leave them as they are and use the vehicle in a diorama.

You could paint them and hope it doesn’t flake and peel off.

Or you could do what we do and give them a polish up with some of our specially formulated plastic restoration spray.

You can also use it to give them tired looking boots and shoes that “Parade Ground” finish.

CLEANING HEADS

To clean up those grubby faces we use isopropyl (rubbing alcohol) and a cotton bud

CLEANING STICKY PLASTIC

A sticky residue or tacky feel is pretty common on old plastic toys and is known as plasticizer migration, this happens more often in plastic toys when rubber-like polymers are used as modifiers to improve flexibility in otherwise rigid plastics, and is usually caused by heat and humidity. However, this can often be fixed without causing too much damage to the toys surface.

The fix is simpler than you might think, because if you leave them out of the box for a few days in the fresh air then the plastic should fix itself, if they are still tacky after two or three days and you want to risk cleaning them, then use only warm soapy water or isopropyl alcohol which will break down oil-like sweat.

Types of Plastic…

PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) is a widely used, versatile, durable, and affordable thermoplastic polymer known for its chemical resistance, strength, and electrical insulation, found in many toys and action figures. As well as PVC, Hard PVC is used for injection moulding)

The following materials are also commonly used in the toy industry: 

ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene): A hard, rigid plastic widely used for items like LEGO-style bricks and parts of action figures that require durability and structural support.

EVA (Ethylene-vinyl acetate): A naturally soft and flexible material that does not require plasticizers, used in some flexible toys as a safer alternative to soft PVC.

PU (Polyurethane) Resin: Often used for high-end designer or artist toys produced in small batches, known for its ability to capture fine details. 

REPAIRING A BROKEN LEG ON A BPEE ACTION MAN

RE-ATTACHING THE ARMS ON A BLUE PANTS EAGLE EYED ACTION MAN

Fixing the arms back onto a blue pants Action Man doesn’t have to be a difficult job and you certainly don’t have to break open the torso to do this.

CLEANING GRUBBY CLOTHES

Sometimes putting your Action Man clothes in the washing machine doesn’t always have the desired effect, not all marks and stains will wash out easily, whites can turn pink, and clothes can fade and shrink depending on the temperature of the wash.

I use a mix of two scoops of “Tesco Oxy Power Stain Remover Whites” and a quarter cup of “thick bleach citrus” in a litre of warm water to clean our toys clothing.

Two hours will clean most items (especially colour runs), you have to give it a stir every forty minutes to make sure they are clean. Once they are clean rinse them out in warm water then hang to dry.

Fixing up your collection? then check out our stock of replacement parts
All Prices Include UK Postage

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