Important vintage box restoration info

[Valkfan]

Hello all. I know that from time to time we see members post miracle solutions that are claimed to reverse yellowing on valkyries. I have tried all of them and have been disappointed with the results. First of all, I know that yellowing is a chemical change in the plastic that can't be washed off. However, I can always hope. That is the reason that I continue to try new methods that claim to work.

Unlike these plastic miracles that I have mentioned, I have discovered a way to remove that old yellow unsightly tape from vintage Bandai DYRL boxes. To do this, I used Goo Gone and a Q-Tip on my vintage Bandai VF-1A Hikaru box. I just dipped the end of the Q-Tip in the Goo Gone (don't soak the whole tip)and used a back and forth as well as a circular motion with medium to light pressure until the tape had disappeared! The strange thing is that the tape almost looks like it has fossilized into part of the box itself. Other than the yellow discoloration that you see, you need to look at the taped section from an angle to see that it has a more reflective surface than the area around it. After I had used the damp Q-Tip on the taped part for a while, I looked at the area and saw that the yellowing and reflectiveness had almost completely vanished. However, I was a little worried at first because the treated area became slightly discolored due to the fact that the area was wet. Fortunately, when the area dried, it wasn't discolored or distorted at all. I was also a little concerned that I would rub off the top layer of the box and expose the bare cardboard, but with the medium to light pressure nothing like that happened. I then tried this method on my Bandai Elintseeker box and had the same excellent results. I'm sure that this method would work the same on a Takatoku box. I know that it takes a lot of courage to try this out on vintage items so I suggest that if you do decided to try this method, make sure to try it on a small and somewhat inconspicuous area. Let it dry to see that there is no discoloration. The results definitely made my boxes look better.

Rick

[Eternal_D]

thats good to know. but I don't think I'd try this on my taka box. the taka box is not as smooth as my bandai vf-1s box. while my bandai box has a shiny waxy smooth surface to it, my taka boxes have a very fine surface that is not completely smooth.

if anybody wants to try it on a taka box and let us know the results...that'd be great.

[Bmaximum]

Maaan, that is good to know, where can I get some of this product!?! I too was looking into doing some experiments on yellowed valks using crest whitening strips but alas I have no yellowed valks to experiment on...nevermind I think I know where I can get one. As we all know the yellowing (as before mentioned) is a chemical reaction that leaves a dinjy yellow color, the crest strips (designed to remove butter from teeth) just may have the opposite effect. I'll keep you posted.

[Valkfan]

Bmaximum, you can get Goo Gone from Wal-Mart. This stuff is great for removing old stickers or the sticky residue that they leave behind. The yellowed tape is just another example of this amazing product.

Rick