Polyurethane Resin??

Yeah, they're technically made of plastic too--plastic is an enormous category of...um...synthetic substances--you get things like the resin our dolls are made of, vinyl, hard plastic, the stuff they make food packaging out of, there are types of polyurethane that are used to finish floors with, plastic is used for pipes for plumbing. My model horses are made of plastic, but it has a completely different feel from both my bjds resin, and the plastic other dolls tend to be made out of. It can be soft or hard, thin or thick, rigid or flexible--that's why I just prefer to say 'resin'

 

It's kinda a shame we have to worry about semantics like this hey >_< I blame jerks who try make us feel bad that we play with toys! (and have more fun than they will ever again)
I have a fantastic answer to when people ask why I don't grow up.
1. Turn on the news
2. Say "the world is icky".
3. Go back to giggling at stupid things
4. Profit!

Yes, I'm 24 Never ever growing up. Well, apart from having a job and paying bills and whatnot. But that doesn't count.

 

I use the term polyurethane resin simply because most people haven't experienced what kind of material it is. If they had never seen a BJD, and I described it as plastic, they probably would get the wrong idea of what the material of my doll was like. It's as simple as that~ Even if something is technically accurate, that accuracy is pretty useless if somebody gets an inaccurate representation from the word you used.

That said, I'd never be annoyed about it. Even if someone said "you sure paid a lot for plastic!" I'd probably just say "it's the ones made out of meat that are REALLY expensive!"

 

Haha @ the meat comment.
Personally, when I found out these dolls are generally made of plasticy substances, I was so happy, because as a big kid I love playing with things, but I also love the look of the old fashioned porcelain dolls. The problem with porcelain of course is that it's breakable (well at least easier than sturdier plastic is), so when I did hear they're plastic, I just went "YES, AWESOME!" and wanted one. Never made me think any less of it. To be honest, the first thing I hear about BJD's is that they are vinyl, and to me vinyl = toys too. But meh, they look awesome, so who cares if they were made out of crackers, as long as I could play with them ^_^

Hmm that's probably kinda ranty?

 

I think perhaps a few people get offended because plastic is associated with all things cheap, tacky and kitsch! Resin does sound classier, it's true! Personally I don't give a shit what people say or think about my dolls - I only reply "resin" when asked what they are made of because that's what the manufacturers say they are made from.

 

i'd tell them its plastic,but a more higher quality plastic called resin.

 

I'd answer it differently depending on who I was talking to.
My father-in-law knows what polyurethane resin is, so that's what I'd tell him they were made out of.
My nieces are four and nine, so I'd tell them that the were made of a special plastic that breaks, so please to not be dropping.* I'd also tell their parents that because otherwise their parents probably wouldn't let them touch them.
A stranger on the street, I would tell "hand-cast resin," since that sounds less like "Barbie doll," unless I was feeling particularly tetchy that day, in which case I'd use the phrase "solid Gorilla Glue" which is both technically true and wildly inaccurate.

*My nieces have always taken exceptional care with toys, and I'd trust them with a doll. And if by some strange anti-miracle it broke, I was the one who let them play with it, it's on my head.

 

Has anyone here seen the episode of Spongebob Squarepants where Sandy is introduced?

I do her little speech about the Treedome for people.

This (doll) is made of the finest polyurethane-- that's a fancy word for plastic. Ain't that just the bee's knees? Tell you what, weren't easy getting here neither.

Accent and everything. It's so applicable XD.

 

There is also the simple fact that "Resin" is the accepted term used in the community. There are a lot of phrases and terms out there that may not be 100% accurate or may even be wrong but they are used because they are accepted a certain way in a culture or community. Resin may be a type of plastic but when you go to a place like Den of Angels and say something along the lines of "My plastic doll" people are going to think you are in the wrong place.

Also, there are different types of plastic. When I was little my mom had to inform me that "while all ducks are birds, not all birds are ducks" so while Resin and Cellophane are both plastic (as far as I know) There is no way I'm making a ball jointed doll out of plastic wrap. Really, try it. Not so practical, eh?

And, my third point on the topic before I shut up: How important is it, really? I'd rather call my Yuu resin than plastic and that's pretty much the end of it, right?

 

Resin is a typ of Plastic. Its more spendy then most plastics. (I think. Dont quote me on this).

 

As many others have said, plastic makes something sound cheap, and that is because many cheap items that are seen in the Western World are well, cheap.

Think of the kind of plastic dished you could get at a grocery store. Not the disposable kind, but the sort that are supposed to imitate china. These dishes are supposed to be cheap versions of nice and more expensive pieces of crockery. Or the sort of plastic rings found in vending machines, clearly not metal.

So yes, saying resin does make the item sound different and more expensive. It's like saying that a sapphire is a crystal. It is indeed just that, but crystals define a wide category of specifics, just as the realm of plastics does.

 

I actually already knew that the resin these were made from was plastic, but that's just because I'm the really 'special' kind of stupid. XD I look up dumb crap a lot and I found out about these in high school. Yay science teachers and lots of useless questions.

Since I also work at a SONY plant I'm pretty familiar with the whole 'several kinds of synthetic resins' idea because we actually MAKE the CDs and DVDs that everyone buys at the store. They are polyCARBONATE resin. People at work know about my dolls and I tell them they are made from something similar to the blank disks, but much less breakable. They understand that because we walk past huge, saran-type plastic wrapped chunks of polycarbonate every day to get to our area of the factory.

But for normal people I explain that its a full articulated, hand crafted blahblahblahblah and oh yes, its made of resin, not porcelain, and resin is a type of plastic sort of like what CDs are made from. After all, you don't go around willy-nilly breaking your CDs do you? It works for me.

My mother teases me about my 'plastic kids' (even though I don't call them kids, they're just 'the boys') and has admitted too me that she's thought of taking them places with HER while I'm asleep! XD She's almost fifty so I figure if my mother can deal with the whole 'expensive plastic doll' thing, other people won't be concerned about the plastic part either. Plus here in the section of the mid-west I live in, a lot of people collect dolls, so its not too weird a hobby.

 

It depends on who you're talking to. There are people who would be unnecessarily rough with a doll if I told them it was made of 'plastic', (because of the Barbie/plastic association where Barbies are damn-near indestructible), whereas they would take more care if I told them the doll was made of 'resin'.

My brother and his mates collect action figures, so they know the difference between resin figures and 'normal' plastic ones, and those guys are the only ones I really share my hobby with anyway.

 

i have no idea wat polywat-evewr-it-is means(<stupid). i dont get angry, but i do if they say " its just cheap plastic." no. barbies are cheap pplastic. not bjds. i just tell ppl, well, if u think barbie / plastic bin plastic-then no. its a fansy plastic(i think) that doesnt bend like barbies. so dont bend mah dollie.
if they dont get it then i say, mah doll costed >insert price hear< . u see big difference. so quality is bettuh ten barbies.
if they dont get that than: l do u have brain damage?(unless kid)

 

hello guys. i noticed that some dolls shine while others dont. is that right? by shining i mean that their surface is more mirror-like and in the sun/light it mirrors while some others dont. i also noticed that this is company based, but not value based. aka, some "expensive" company dolls shine while some "less-expensive" company dolls dont shine. could i have any opinions on this? why that is? or maybe im totally wrong and all dolls shine the same?

 

It depends on the resin, some resins take light differently, and it also depends on if they have sprayed with MSC or some alternative. The more matte the doll is the less it will shine, so if its a head, it should only shine a bit where it has been glossed, but torso's will probably be more glossy if they are unsealed. That is about what I figure you're seeing, is the differance between sealed and unsealed resin.

 

ah i see, thank you. how to find out if a body will shine or not? its company based?

edit: also..is there a difference in quality? like..a shiny doll is better?

 

Whether the resin surfaces are glossy or matte has nothing to do with quality. The texture of the resin is directly related to what the master looked like when it was molded. The mold copies those surfaces precisely. Although of course the doll could be completely sanded and polished after casting to make it glossy, or coated to make it matte, it would be much easier to do all that to the master parts so that the pieces come out of the molds with the texture you want them. It is primarily a preference of the artist or the techniques and preferences of those who do the preparation and molding work.

 

Resin is just a much denser form of plastic than vinyl. :shrug: I suppose doll owners get so angsty when people call it "plastic" because plastic has such a negative, almost cheap connotation. And, even though resin is a type of plastic, it's much different than what someone's mind would automatically jump to if called "plastic."

 

Actually, you can get polyurethane with similar qualities to vinyl, ie flexible. The urethane that is typically used for dolls is usually at least a shore D hardness of 70.