Are you bothered by seams????

I HATE seams- they are my nemesis! But I do work on table-top miniatures (think Warhammer 40k) and they have seams that will ruin a paint job if you don't take care of them the first time around. My doll is blessedly seamless, and I would feel really brought down if I paid a lot for a doll and didn't get something smooth- these aren't barbies, seams shouldn't be there for these prices!

 

That would be because a lot of the larger companies have never offered it included. Seam sanding has always been an extra from Volks from the very beginning because they feel it's something an individual owner should decide if they want or not. They established the hobby as they created it and have always treated their dolls like more advanced versions of their garage kits.

The budget companies started offering seam sanding as a way of enticing new buyers by seemingly offering an added service. I've always suspected that by sanding by default they can cut back on the number of junk cast pieces by salvaging through sanding. Hiring workers to sand is much cheaper than hiring more skilled workers to cast resin, and thus, it helps keeps costs down. It's a win/win situation for them.

 

Most of my dolls didn't come with seams; Angel of Dream, Angel Fantasy, and even my dinky little Obitsu were all seamless. My Customhouse girl had seams though- but that was because they were doing a deal for something like 75% off of the price to do all of the assembling and fixings of the doll yourself (ended up paying like 78 dollars for a doll that normally is 350 something directly from the company so I'm definitely not complaining there, and none of her was broken compared to some of the other horror stories I heard about those sale batches). Sanding down seams is really not difficult. Time consuming? Yes. Difficult? No. You just need a fine grade sanding paper, a mask and a few hours free time.

 

No, I think it's because dolls with seams aren't considered unfinished. Seams are a natural byproduct that comes with casting. Think about the seams on toys or barbies, or whatever is cast in plastic.
Because removing seams is time consuming, because the production of these dolls already is very expensive AND because some customers do not want their dolls to be sanded, most companies don't offer this service for free.

From what I know, some companies who want to stand out in a way do offer it for free. Sometimes they even have to, if the seams from their dolls are so bad that they can't ship the doll out like that. Not everyone is an experienced or skilled caster and not every method will result in a clean endproduct.

 

Generally I'm not bothered at all by seams, I think they are normal and my dolls are not so realistic to require a total sanding.
I was really surprised when I bought my Dollzone Mo to not see the marks and then I found out DZ sanded dolls as basic service; pretty good indeed, so I was pleased.
Luckily I've always bought dolls with light signs, or light enough to not be a bother to me, but I've also seen some dolls ruined by sanding, expecially if in tan skin and sometimes by the same company... I think sanding can be good, but we are talking about dolls, until seams are not ugly to see I don't think we should be bothered by them so much =/

 

If leaving the imperfections that result from casting on the doll doesn't mean it's unfinished, why aren't they shipped with the sprues on, as well?

As I said, I wouldn't care about this at all if the dolls were sold as kits, but they're not. Most companies market their dolls as art or luxury products, not garage kits. They're already charging the customers for finishing and assembling the doll; why not finish the job?

This is just my opinion, however.

 

So essentially the answer is tradition and suspicion? Huh, I suppose that's fairly typical.

I somehow doubt the junk pieces would have enough material left after sanding if that were truly the case, if the casting process were that bad there would be an awful lot of plastic to remove resulting in pretty uneven parts. (After experimenting with various types of casting (including Aluminium that was bad...) - I've personally found that junk pieces are usually too far gone for rescue in this manner, especially items where precision, such as joints, or a high quality initial surface finish is required.)

Finishing on the other hand is often a necessity in most manufacturing processes, one that I feel shouldn't be looked down upon because it's simply not the done thing. PU isn't a wonder material that needs special treatment - I'm still not sure why aromatic and not aliphatic PU is preferred for this application, but I don't really know enough about the chemistry to speculate.

As for the casting process - whilst producing a decent mold is key to the process, I'm not convinced that the person employed to line up the (likely pre-made) sections correctly and reduce the air bubbles is any more skilled than the seam remover - I suspect that the generic finishing process itself, drilling, removal of sprues, checking the articulating surfaces aren't warped etc are likely include the seam removal process in many companies

 

In this hobby, junk pieces are are those that show a visible bubble, or a small difference in colour etc. They don't have to be as dramatically warped as you say. They just have to be different from the rest.
Also, when your mold isn't good enough, you will get really ugly seams that HAVE to be removed, because they interfere with the movement of the joints and look awful to say the least. Small seams aren't a problem; big seams are.

It isn't looked down upon, we just have a different idea about what 'finishing' is. Aside from the fact that not everyone wants their dolls' seams to be removed (because doing it wrong will cause scratches and some believe that the sanded lines are more prone to yellowing), small seams do not hinder the overall functionality of the joints. Companies look for bubbles, difference in colour, scratches, cracks, and anything that looks bad and will cause the resin to become fragile. Seams aren't part of that.

Removing seams is time consuming. Some Chinese companies might be able to offer this service for free, because the overall cost of producing a doll in this country is stlll low, other companies don't have that luxury. Offering seam sanding for free, will result in more expensive dolls.

Not offering to sand seams for free helps keep the cost down, and don't forget about the waiting times. It's beneficial for all of us.

EDITED TO ADD:
Just to avoid confusion, my dolls (FreakStyleBJD's) do come with their seams sanded. I'm writing this, not because I feel personally adressed, but because I'm a doll collector. I admire the works of Volks, Dollstown and Iplehouse (all of those dolls show seams) and respect the choices they make. I don't believe it's my place to tell them how to run their business; they don't owe me.

 

I was bothered by the idea, so I always paid the extra $ for my dolls to be sanded, coated, & sueding so they could have a little help with their poses.

I find it annoying that after paying through the nose for a doll that was super hard to get... only to find out that the original owner bought it only for the purpose of reselling it, & did not have any extra services done like removing the seams & so on.

However if you can't afford to pay extra, or you just can't wait for your doll to arrive.. clothes & a good angle of your camera can keep them hidden.

 

I personally don't like seams, they distract me when I see them in pictures and I'm going to sand them if I ever get dolls with them.

 

I'd LOVE them to do this as a matter of course because then this endless, IMMORTAL bloody debate would go away and EVERYONE would have to deal with seams and assembly themselves like the Unoa kits. Problem solved. We all get resin that little bit quicker and that little bit cheaper, those who are MASSIVELY bothered by those tiny, tiny lines on their dolls can get in there and mirror shine the little buggers all they like and those who couldn't give less of a toss get to give them a quick once over and carry on enjoying their doll. Everyone's happy, job done.

Mount the campaign right now, no sanding whatsoever on any doll from the factory for every order. Lesse how many people are still fussed by the "unfinished" state of what leaves the companies at the moment after about 6 months dealing with untouched castings, PERFECT idea.

 

I have a souldoll and he has seams but I haven't sanded him yet cuz I always forgot to buy soft sand paper.
I need to do that before body brushing anyway.
I've bought AOD before and it came without seams. It was so easy to give the body brushing. But I didn't fall in love with that doll that much...

 

Most of my dolls came un-sanded, but you don't notice the seams. They don't show up in photos, and they don't snag on the clothing, and I just don't notice them. I don't bother removing seams unless they're noticeably big, and if it's a resin-color that can be sanded. I've only had to do it twice (or, rather, I've only ever felt like doing it twice) (and once was just because I was taking a Volks class on body maintenance ^^).

I don't know what Iplehouse's secret is to moldmaking, but their tan dolls always come to me looking fabulous, with very minimal seams. No need to worry about sanding & thus making a pale spot in the beautifully finished resin. My Iplehouse men pose nude a lot, and to this day, nobody has ever even mentioned their seams. Viewers seem to have their priorities firmly in order.

I also wonder about Volks's SD Graffiti Boys-- maybe they started sanding them secretly without telling us, or maybe the seams are just that small?-- I dunno, but I've got 2 of those guys & I have yet to feel any seams on those smooth gorgeous bods. Ditto the SD16 & 17 boys, either those guys get special processing or else there's some seamless-looking casting going on.

 

The only doll I bought with visible seams is my Volks MSD. I wasn't bothered by the seams at first,but then I noticed they made my photos look weird so I sanded the seams. I didn't do a very good job either,so if I got another doll with seams I would pay to have the company remove them.

 

Well, the look defiantly gets under my skin a little. But I don't really mind paying a little extra to get rid of them.

 

@Lulu:

 

They did not really bother me until I heard so many complaints about seam lines and it made me about the ones on my doll. So now all I do is think about them and it does bug me only on the fact that sometimes the seam lines are not even where one side may have no seam lines versus the other. But would I complain? Probably not If they were really such a bother I could fix them myself. I've used sandpaper on stuff before and unless you're going super crazy and not being careful you cannot really mess anything up. They have made me a little uneasy of it when I think about it, but otherwise I forget they're there

 

Im new to the hobby and my first dolly do have a seam in her neck and on her leg, but its not deep ones that make it looked cracked, but i would of liked it smooth xD paid alot of money for the doll and now I noob that I am have to try and fix it or hide it =/

 

Signed.

 

I personally do not prefer the presence of seams, but oddly, I very much love receiving dolls with seams, precisely so that I can work on them!. I love to customize and work on my dolls; separating fingers, toes, sanding seams, painting, you name it!

It isn't a scary process to sand seams unless you're working with tan, and there is a feeling of attachment and pride in one's work that comes with removing them if you don't want them! ^^ That being said, seams are indeed a natural byproduct of the very nature of casting sculpts. I heartily love the process and very nature of the work going into making and casting a doll, so I have never viewed seams as evil. They represent a history of what that doll came from, to me.