Mold release or some other slimy residue?

[Powered Convoy]

I had purchased a Yamato Miria 639 figure set when they were first released. In the 20 or so years since it first came out and moving out of my parents' place to my own home, I have since misplaced my original. 

In trying to rebuild some of my collection, I started rebuying and buying for the first time some of the PVC figures, including rebuying this Miria set. 

So I purchased a brand new sealed set from Yahoo Japan, and upon opening it, there was a slimy residue over all three figures. I don't recall this happening with the ones I had 20 or so years ago, but knowing how things can age and potential residue. Has anyone else had a similar experience or know what it is and how to deal with it?

I have her soaking in some warm soapy water currently hoping it helps...

[jenius]

Curious if that will help. My 639 set is also 'tacky' and I assumed it was the paint breaking down.

[Big s]

3 hours ago, Powered Convoy said:

I had purchased a Yamato Miria 639 figure set when they were first released. In the 20 or so years since it first came out and moving out of my parents' place to my own home, I have since misplaced my original. 

In trying to rebuild some of my collection, I started rebuying and buying for the first time some of the PVC figures, including rebuying this Miria set. 

So I purchased a brand new sealed set from Yahoo Japan, and upon opening it, there was a slimy residue over all three figures. I don't recall this happening with the ones I had 20 or so years ago, but knowing how things can age and potential residue. Has anyone else had a similar experience or know what it is and how to deal with it?

I have her soaking in some warm soapy water currently hoping it helps...

PVC type figures and toys just get gross over time. I remember the early revoltech figures only lasted a month or two before the sticky ickies happened. Most toys usually take a few years. Good ones can last a few decades. It also depends sometimes on heat. I’ve known people up in the northern states that haven’t had as many issues as collectors closer to the southern border. I haven’t really found any real solutions to the problem, I just tend to avoid as many pvc or rubbery figures these days 

[Graham]

I ended up throwing out my Milia figures years ago as they got really sticky.

I think the heat and humidity here in HK, especially during the summer months definitely doesn't help with the lifespan of PVC figures.

[pengbuzz]

I found this on YBW forum; it may explain a few things:

Quote

The stickiness is caused by plasticiser migration ( PVC without a plasticiser is quite rigid). The rate of migration is directly proportional to temperature (so affected by exposure to sunlight, as well as ambient temperature). Talcum powder stops the sticky layer picking up dirt.

Source:https://forums.ybw.com/threads/sticky-inflatable.406275/

It seems this is endemic to PVC items as a rule; don't know if this info helps or not, but temperature and UV does seem to play a role in it from what the posts there said.

[MKT]

Over the past few years, I've been retroactively picking up older Macross & non-Macross PVC figures - oldest being stuff made in the early 2000s. I noticed PVC figures made in that decade have the highest incidence of what is sometimes termed as 'PVC weep'. It could perhaps be due to the age of the figures themselves, but it is most likely due to the plasticiser mix as @pengbuzz mentioned above, going by the smattering of user reports that I could still find on back when those figures were still relatively new.

CM's Macross Figures are also susceptible to this, but as waves (parts) get released over that decade, they appear to have improved in plastic stability. Miria 639 is also made by CM's, but unfortunately they are not only by far the worst weepers in their Macross line up, but the most prolific weeper of all figures I own.

So far, soaking in mild soap and brushing with toothbrush work to get rid of the stickiness, but with Miria 639 I would have to do it semi-regularly, maybe twice a year, to prevent a noticeable puddle of goo under her feet. The good thing is, the paint doesn't appear to be affected with the weeping & subsequent cleanings, but I think one day the whole figure will just melt away into nothing. 

[Big s]

26 minutes ago, MKT said:

Over the past few years, I've been retroactively picking up older Macross & non-Macross PVC figures - oldest being stuff made in the early 2000s. I noticed PVC figures made in that decade have the highest incidence of what is sometimes termed as 'PVC weep'. It could perhaps be due to the age of the figures themselves, but it is most likely due to the plasticiser mix as @pengbuzz mentioned above, going by the smattering of user reports that I could still find on back when those figures were still relatively new.

CM's Macross Figures are also susceptible to this, but as waves (parts) get released over that decade, they appear to have improved in plastic stability. Miria 639 is also made by CM's, but unfortunately they are not only by far the worst weepers in their Macross line up, but the most prolific weeper of all figures I own.

So far, soaking in mild soap and brushing with toothbrush work to get rid of the stickiness, but with Miria 639 I would have to do it semi-regularly, maybe twice a year, to prevent a noticeable puddle of goo under her feet. The good thing is, the paint doesn't appear to be affected with the weeping & subsequent cleanings, but I think one day the whole figure will just melt away into nothing. 

Might be a good idea to try and make a mold to do a copy of the figure. Then you could use resin or epoxy or even plastic to make more. Sure painting can be a bit of a pain, but at least it would give an option 

[Powered Convoy]

Does anyone think a coating of mat finish spray may help?

Glad to hear I'm not the only one to have this problem and that Miria 639 is the worst of the bunch.

[Big s]

39 minutes ago, Powered Convoy said:

Does anyone think a coating of mat finish spray may help?

Glad to hear I'm not the only one to have this problem and that Miria 639 is the worst of the bunch.

I’d try cleaning it first, otherwise the top coat might not stick. Also a lot of standard paints and top coats don’t really stick to pvc. Maybe have a test figure to try it on first. Stay far away from enamels, because they can turn to goo on the surface of softer plastics 

[Powered Convoy]

26 minutes ago, Big s said:

I’d try cleaning it first, otherwise the top coat might not stick. Also a lot of standard paints and top coats don’t really stick to pvc. Maybe have a test figure to try it on first. Stay far away from enamels, because they can turn to goo on the surface of softer plastics 

Good advice, thank you.

[Paco Grande]

3 hours ago, Powered Convoy said:

Good advice, thank you.

Good to see you on here! I have a Darth Vader lightsaber that has black rubber strips on the hilt. They have gotten incredibly sticky and gross. I was doing some research and some people were saying to clean it using Goo Gone which will cause the sticky layer to peel off and leave normal rubber underneath. I'm wondering if that would work on your figure. No idea if it's the same material or not. Huge warning that I have not tried that yet myself so I have no idea what it will do to your figure. You might want to try doing some more searches about the Goo Gone method to see if you can get more info.

Edit: Wait, I just realized that this figure is painted. I don't think Goo Gone is a good idea on a painted surface at all. Sorry about that!

 

Edited 15 hours ago by Paco Grande

[Model-Junkie]

On a similar note, rubber coated surfaces get sticky / tacky over time.  I had a figure that had a thin rubber coating on some parts that started getting sticky so I used Goo Gone to remove the stickiness, but it removed the entire coating to reveal the bare plastic underneath.  Be warned the plastic may get discolored, on one of my figures the black plastic turned into a grey-ish color after I removed the rubber coating and I'm not sure if it was a reaction to the Goo Gone or the coating itself.  The plastic was fine on another figure and had no reaction.