separate joints or connected ones?

for me it depends on which joint it is
for elbows, knees and shoulders I like the ball to be attached but for ankle and wrists I prefer the ball to be separate
for hip joints I don't think it would bother me either way but I've only experienced the attached ball-joint

 

I like wrist and ankle balls to be connected. I have too much trouble with free ones popping out. I like double jointed elbows and knees because I can't stand when string shows. Joints like BlueBlood Doll or RingDoll are my favorites because they look most natural. It's not a ball or peanut, it's more of a shealth that hides strings and helps poseability without twisting or popping out. I hate hip balls, they seem to pop out and twist more than they are ever useful.

 

Well I have a kid delf and i couldn't imagine switching to a single jointed (or fused) boys. He poses so well and i have no problems with hims standing or twisting his arms inappropriately. I think it's fine as long as the doll is well strung.

 

Joints don't always lock. A lot of times they rely on tension to hold a position.

 

This topic is really interesting and hasn't been replied to in a while. Now that more doll companies have or are coming out with double-jointed dolls, has general opinion on here changed?

I have a couple of double-jointed dolls, but they are the older DollShe and DIM bodies and I find them to be quite horrible at posing. Joints are always turning every which way, and I find the thigh mobility joint to be completely useless. Batchix mentioned earlier in the thread about some double-jointed dolls with locking joints to prevent twisting - is this feature being utilized more commonly now?

Unless or until I handle some non-floppy double-jointed dollies, I would very strongly have to state my preference for single joints!

 

I pose my dolls and friends' dolls frequently and I have to say that I prefer separated joints such as the locking 'peanut' style you see in a lot of knees and elbows, not single-joints and NOT the loose floating ball-joint that my Bobobie 60cm male has. Gawsh. Those things are always flipping around backward and getting stuck, so the string cannot enter the channel in the ball in order for him to sit down properly. (His old hot-glue sueding needs to be replaced, too, so the balls frequently get completely stuck in his thighs and I have to strain to pull them loose at all!)

I have friends who like their dolls to be sort of floppy-cuddly slump-into-your-arms, and I suppose for that purpose, simple, single fused-ball joints are ideal, but I like firm tension, with as many interesting locking pieces as are useful without detracting too much from the art of the body sculpt. I'm not a great fan of wired joints, so I prefer those stopping-points to be engineered into the doll itself. I also find myself tearing my hair out during certain photoshoots over the lack of mobility joints on my Bobobie's arms, and at times on my Dollshe Pure's arms though the shape of his shoulder and elbow helps to make up for that somewhat. Taking into account some of his other limitations, if my Resinsoul guy didn't have mobility joints, he wouldn't be here. I find that the 'shell' or 'floating cup' style double-joint without a mobility joint in the arms -cough RS MSD girl cough- tends to dislocate the most. (Dang, girl, that just looks painful.)

I love seeing companies experiment with different jointing designs, and I am impressed when they are able to achieve good balance and poseability while still keeping with the spirit of the ball-jointed doll. Joints shouldn't look like an afterthought hastily cut into the finished body sculpt, they should be given as much artistic thought as any other aspect of the doll in order to create a harmonious piece.

 

I preffer double jointed dolls and single jointed over double jointed torsos (with few exceptions, doll leaves and loongsoul being the most noteable ones). However I much preffer torsos with over two joints like the new ones some companies have come up with! Whereas the regular underbust and panty joints of the double jointed torso are annoying and limited, these new beauties make for excellent poseability!) I absolutely cannot stand torsos with no joints at all except for the really tiny dolls (16cm and under).

Peanuts are my absolute favorite joints ever invented, Doll Leaves, Doll Chateau and Dollzone having my absolute favorite ones. And Doll Leaves' thigh joint is an absolute dream as well! My boy holds poses I never thought possible because of it!!

Double joints all the way for me!!

 

Aesthetically, sometimes I prefer single-joints. But it's the engineering AND the aesthetics that really make a joint good or not. If the joint is useless or looks ugly when out of the base position, or pops or just isn't good--then it doesn't matter if it's single or double or even there or not!

The joints I love best are those that are engineered well and look natural and pay attention to the aesthetics!