Post a before and after shot. Would like to see how light a name on a foot bottom can get with this cleaning meathod.

worked like a charm for me.

does anybody know if isopropyl alcohol is okay to use on vinyl toys? I use it from time to time to give a quick wipe down of a really dirty, dusty or sticky toy and it works great and doesnt appear to do anything but shine up the toy. I've noticed some little streaking before but it seems to come off with alittle wiping (just residue from the evaporated alcohol??) It has never lifted any color from any toys Ive used it on so I'm certain it does not remove paint but lately I've been wondering.. is there any unseen damage I could be doing? could it react with metallic paints making them less reflective.. could it dry the paint/vinyl out? etc. I'm assuming not, because I havent really seen any sort of changes using it, but I can't help but wonder. It seems like the best thing for a quick wipedown but I dont want to use it anymore if its going to cause any damage later on.. figured I'd see if any of you guys have ever heard/seen anything. did I mention I'm OCD as shit when it comes to stuff like this??!

Would probably not use it myself. I really don't like to bring any kind of solvents near plastic, even if they don't damage the paint directly. They can definitely dry out the vinyl, and this could be some of the 'streaks' you are seeing. A light brush over might be fine, and it is going to be effective, but yeah, I avoid any organics. The most I recommend is a mild soap, as it is a surfactant that can remove residue and grit, but generally won't penetrate the plastic.

Spot testing is a good idea before any serious cleaning - just use a section on the underside of the foot - that way if something does go wrong, and you can't wipe it off immediately, the damage is minimised. This won't necessarily apply to areas where there is paint of course, but is a good start.

thanks for the input Steve. I'll probably just stick with dish soap and use 911 for scuffs.
If anyone else has any more input on the alcohol I'd love to hear.

I use a motorized tooth brush to clean old lego, was wondering if it would be too abrasive for old vinyl/paint?

Also for those that have had success removing sharpie marks, can you post pics of the removed marks? I want to see how much residue is left over.

Warm water, splash of vinegar, drop of soap - and a little squeeze of lemon if you're feeling fancy!

Great thread - lots of useful information here for my Matango problem, (Mods feel free to delete my rushed Matango thread in Whatever)

I picked up a little grail piece earlier today from the post office.. A Hawaiian M1 Matango - got it home to see a cloudy bag. No big deal.. Opened the guy up and noticed that he was covered in dust maybe? It looked like fluffy dust bunnies - I'm colourblind so I couldn't tell you what colour it was - could have been grey or a cool green? I checked out the header and there was no funny business with the staples and then I realized it was mould.. This was after sniffing the vinyl so this could possibly be my last post here if I inhaled something!

I'm definitely throwing out the bag, should I throw out the header and paper poster as well or are there ways of treating them?

I guess if any toy I shouldn't be surprised it happened with Matango

Sorry to hear about that man...
You wont be able to get mold out of paper.
I would personally throw that stuff away unless you wanna keep moldy paper around.
I wouldnt recommend it since mold can get on other things.

The toy, i dunno. Cleaning it and maybe keep the toy away from your other toys... You can find plenty of tips and info about cleaning toys here on sb. Mold is a rough one though.
Try searching "kabi" on here. Although its never been confirmed to be real or not.

I would have the worst anxiety if that came into my possession and would probably throw it all out.

Rakiko explains her process on page 4 of this topic, and I must say, her toys come out looking really spiffy

If you google "how to remove mold from vinyl dolls" there are a lot of interesting discussions and remedies as well....
https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=ho ... inyl+dolls

Brian mentioned alka-selzer, but he hasn't tried it and he's apprehensive about it (I do wonder about it's oxidation powers, sort of like oxiclean laundry powder--does wonders on clothes!). I worry that the peroxide might be too strong for the vinyl, but then hydrogen peroxide is sold in plastic bottles, and peroxide will eat away anything organic based. Might be worth a try on a test spot. Yeppers, throw away the paper so the yucky stuff doesn't spread else where.

As far as my "Kabi" Tiger 7 is concerned, Brian was right, and it really wasn't mold, but dirt that gets trapped in the vinyl air pockets. I do have a couple of recent Tiger 7's I adopted with sharpie marks, and I will DEFINITELY have to try out Michael's suggestion using toothpaste to see if I can gently ease off the markings (on a test spot first, of course). Thanks for pooting this topic up, I'd forgotten all about Michael's post...

Can you please post a photo of the poor Mushroom guy, so we can see what you're describing?

P.S. Michael, if you are reading this, can you please tell me what brand and type of toothpaste you were using? Where you using a whitening toothpaste (with bleach?)? Gel or paste? Inquiring minds want to know

Yeah I've spent a lot of time and money building my collection.. I don't want to put any toys at risk.. I was very much a "keep it in the blister pack" type of action figure collector before I got into these. Even though they are far more expensive I feel no problem at all opening my vinyl toys - whereas I'm still keeping the cheap ass $10 TMNT reissues from last year MOC haha

I should have looked closer before opening this guy this morning - I was in a rush before work and got the delivery with a spare ten minutes before the bus left. I threw the figure in a ziplock bag after realizing what I was dealing with but I'm pretty sure I left the header bag and poster on the couch.. starting to feel a bit anxious about that more than anything as I won't be home for another 10 hours!

The mold should clean off alright.. there is only a particular mold that breaks down vinyl which is not cool. I always give my oldies a clean with a toothbrush, detergent and warm soapy water.

Many bagged vintage toys sat in or outside mom and pop stores for years before disappearing into attics and boxes so it is fairly common to get vintage bagged toys with dirty bags and dirty insides, and yeah many vintage toys also have air bubbles from production that get encrusted with dirt or food that is often confused with the kabi mold

The mold should be killed at a temp over 60 celsius so if I get something that looks really dirty I will put in hot soapy water and even pull it apart once its a bit pliable to get at the insides with my toothbrush too !

Scan the header and throw it or spray it with Glen 20.

Hawaii Matango - Good score --- pics?

Thanks for the great comments - after reading through the thread I think my plan of attack will be to boil some water and pour it over the toy, then give it a bath in soapy warm water and use some Q-tips to get into the many nooks on the Matango.

I'm thinking of even spraying it with 2 part Monster Kolor clear coat as a sealant so I can display it next to my other toys.. I'm pretty sure that could work?

I've used it on various toys. I only use a tiny amount at a time and i'm very careful to try a test patch whenever possible. I've found it very good for removing paint scrapes . . . the kind of marks you get when one toy has been bashed against another and some paint was left behind. I cleaned up my tiger mask figures with a combination of a good scrub in a bowl with washing up liquid and afterwards isopropyl alcohol for stubborn marks.

It is a bit risky but worth a go if nothing else has worked but i would never do an overall wipe with it.

Here's the little guy right here, just about to give him a bath.. Definitely stored somewhere shitty, the rubber band with the M1 tag had crusted up and melted onto the shoulder as well.

The rubber band melting is caused by a chemical reaction from the off gassing of the soft vinyl. Since it's trapped in bag the gas has nowhere to go.

Not sure if this was mentioned (and to be honest, I am too impatient (I truly believe I have ADD) and lazy to go back and read through this old thread), but I plan to buy some acne cream to try to remove old marker from some of my "dollies":

http://dolldiaries.com/how-to-remove-sh ... your-doll/

I've read several articles all claiming that it works wonders on magic marker on vinyl!

Poured a jug of boiling hot water over it, then gave him a bath with dishwashing soap scrubbing all over with Q-tips then rinsed once again with boiling hot water. He's looking pretty good right now, there's the sheen that I expect to see on vinyl (before the figure almost looked flocked/covered in fur). Set him aside to dry overnight.. Still hesitant to put this guy anywhere near my other toys, might have to find a case at Daiso or something.

I'm sure the figure is fine to put with others at this point. It's VERY unlikely to be kabi (if that shit even exists). It's probably just everyday mold. But that said, just pouring boiling water over it won't do much to kill the mold: it's temperature AND time. You'd need to dip the figure--preferably disassembled--into extremely hot water (not necessarily boiling) for at least a few minutes to kill *all* the mold...otherwise, it can potentially grow back in the future.

Sanjeev is right ... looking at the photos it looks like dust with maybe a little regular mold to me. It's a few years old so that happens.

That's what I thought as well - the bag was still sealed though with no extra staple marks on the header.. could dust get in there?

A couple of hours ago, I gave him a bath with warm water, soap for dishes and degreaser. But I was afraid to wash his hair and ruin it.
Anyone know what product I use to wash his hair, because it looks a bit mistreated by time and humidity.
Thank you!

You might try just a really light/sensitive shampoo, like baby shampoo or something. Just buy one of those travel size bottles of it, they are very cheap. I wouldn't worry too much about damaging it, it is synthetic and will withstand the treatment, and as for force or breakage/pulling, try to be gentle but also keep in mind that these are toys, so I am sure he has also see his share of 'hair-pulling' and what have you. Just be sure to rinse it off thoroughly as much as you can and come it through, so you aren't left with a sticky tangled mess.

And, if you (or anyone) wants to do a real restoration job to rejuvenate one of these toys with hair, just look up repairing or cleaning old Barbies. People have been collecting those for decades and know all the tips and secrets to get shiny, luxurious manes I am sure.

Thank you Ultrakaiju I really appreciated your advice.
I will try with the baby shampoo, I also think in dose persons who restore old dolls.
Best regards!

For those wondering just how much magic marker seeps into vinyl, here is a shot of a new figure I just got. As I was cleaning it, a lot of water got into it, so I opened it up to dry it out. This shot shows how the marker can be seen on the inside - no hope of removing it. Just thought this might interest some who still had hope. Its pretty pronounced in person. Fortunately, I don't mind writing on my figures.