Should dolls come with sanded seams?

Colored resin, when sanded, fades, I think, from what I read. It discolors. Because the color isn't in the resin but added later.

 

Actually, even in cases where it's in the resin, a 'scratch' can show up as lighter. It's more to do with the smoothness of the surface, I suspect, than it is with the pigmentation going all the way through.

Polymer clay can have similar issues. When baked, the natural surface is exactly that, really. Scratch or sand it, and you can get a slightly different color beneath until you sand it with absurdly fine stuff to even out the level of tooth from the original surface and the sanded one -- and even then, you usually have to buff the area. Or you can sand the whole surface, evening it out, which removes the whole of the 'natural surface'. I can't say if this translates 100% to resin, and different resins with different pigmentations are likely to react differently -- not to mention, dyed resin is going to behave differently from that, too.

 

It bothers me when my dolls have big seams. I personally would be happy if all companies atleast partially sanded their dolls, but everyone has their reasons for wanting or not wanting it.

If it weren't for the all of the users who have given so many reasons to not want their dolls sanded- I would say that companies SHOULD automatically do it, because sanding or not sanding is not a matter of customization (like eyes, wigs and make-up), but rather (imo) whether they're willing to put in the extra time and work to finish off their product.
I wonder what companies would say if we ask them why they don't sand their dolls.

On the flip side my two most recent dolls didn't come with sanding... I have to admit that I'm kind of excited to try doing it for the first time.
After that blows over though I'd probably still prefer partial sanding by companies. My Soom Sabik's arms look like he has deep scars. D:

 

That is so odd... Resin should be the same colour all the way through if it was cast in coloured resin :/ I mean, all our resins are coloured, so the greys should act the same way as the NS's.
I think they must only give that warning just in case anything goes wrong, rather than they expect it to screw up. I mean, I know sanding makes things discolour... if you don't wipe away the sanded resin, or if you don't sand it fine enough, but resin that is cast as a specific tint really shouldn't get any lighter sanded.
Anyhoo, OT. Thanks though.

I agree that sanding is not a form of customisation.. it's a leftover from resin casting, and should be finished off as part of it.

 

It'll change slightly when sanded later because the outer layer has oxidized and the under layers haven't. That ignores the fact that there are some companies already finishing all their dolls of all colors in such a way that no seamlines are visible anywhere, of course. The whole body is finished so the seamlines disappear. Sanding later, or just the seam lines, will cause discoloration.

 

Some companies don't color their tanned resins all the way through.

They spray the mould where the resin is poured with the desired color and once the resin sets there is an outer shell of color. When Luts made tan dolls this was the method they used, I think dollstown does something similar. Casting resin the same colour, especially as you get darker is very difficult. Marbling can occur, and the material tends to be more sensitive while setting, which means more bubbles and potentially weaker resin. I think iplehouse once said that for every successful dark tan doll they make there are like 10 'junk' ones.

~Gio

 

Except that it's an optional thing you do that changes the appearance of the doll--same as other things we do to customize our dolls. Whether you personally lump it in under customization or not (people have different definitions of what that entails), if that's the way it's typically been considered than that will effect how companies handle it. Since owners are supposed to do the finishing on the dolls, then it makes sense that it would be left alone in most cases.

 

The discoloration from most tan/gray resin sanding usually isn't a different resin color underneath. It's the fine dust from the sanding filling up the tiny scratches you're making, giving it a lighter appearance. If you can buff it out or gently remove that dust, the color that shows beneath is usually the same (if the doll is a newer doll). It's not as noticeable on white-skin dolls or normal-skin, because the resin is naturally paler, so white dust doesn't show up as much. If that makes sense.

That's only the case on dolls that are pigmented throughout the resin, though.

There was a great post about that in a Customization thread on modding tan resin: http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showpost.php?p=4172745&postcount=15

 

The obvious has already been pointed out, so I'm not going there.

For those wondering why certain companies, bobobie/resinsoul, dollzone, etc, send their dolls sanded you might want to note that these are generally companies with their own casting service. They have a much wider profit margin as they control the whole production process, and they have more time to play with as they don't have to wait to recieve the doll from another country. Many Korean companies outsource to Chinese casting services, so it takes them longer and costs them more to produce a doll.

Edit to add, levels of oxidization and change to the finish will alter the aging of any doll that's sanded. I've done this multiple times.

 

I don't see what the big deal is. Sanding seams isn't exactly hard, you can do it while watching tv. I would hate it if dolls were sanded by default mostly because I wouldn't want to wait all that extra time for all the dolls ahead of me plus my doll to be sanded. If you want someone else to sand your doll's seams, just pay the company or a customizer to do it.

 

This is exactly how I feel about it. I already wait long enough for my dolls to be delivered to me, I don't want to have the wait even longer because of a service I don't really want. And seams are really NOT that bad. So they're lines. Whatever. As long as they aren't raised or cutting me or snagging on clothing, I don't care.

My Puki has two or three seam lines and I hardly ever notice them. When I got Theron he was coming to me unsanded from the company - and I can't find a SINGLE seam on him. They aren't there. I was baffled! Then Anne came to me and she has rather prominent seams, but they aren't hurting me. Seams aren't going across your doll's face. They aren't making them any less beautiful. I don't understand the idea that seams are some horrible, APALLING thing.

It's like looking at a painting and complaining about being able to see the brush strokes.

 

I agree with the above.

Also, I think sanding is customizing your doll. Not everyone wants their doll to be a mini human that never looks like a doll. I like ball joints showing and I don't mind seams. I sanded one of my dolls and it didn't change how I felt about the doll or the quality of my photos etc... I do think that if a doll had really awful seems I would take the time to sand. However, my latest doll's seams were really not noticeable so I left him as is It certainly would never influence my decision when purchasing a doll either. I don't judge quality service on seam visibility.

To summarize, I don't want this service to be wrapped in the price and I do want the option to leave my new doll with seams.

 

I would rather companies keep the option of unsanded dolls. I'm not afraid to do it myself, and I love the option to get (essentially) a $100+ discount on larger dolls. With coloured dolls, I'd be happy to sand and blush them myself (to cover any discolouring), rather than paying more for them to be 'perfect' from the company.

 

I have always felt that the companies should do the sanding as part of finishing the doll. These dolls, to me anyway, are like art. They are beautifully sculpted and molded and they are very expensive. I think sanding the seams should be part of finishing a doll to be sold. Would you make a mold of something and send it out unfinished? I can see paying extra for a face up, suading, blushing, etc....but sanding should be a part of the original mold making process. Especially for the price of these dolls!

 

Actually, think about it this way: the price these dolls are sold for right now is enough for the company to pay for the materials, the time spent casting, the overhead space, the price of sculpting the original doll (which takes many, many hours to do), maintaining the website (and english-speaking staff for most companies) and other such necessities, and then make some profit. It does NOT pay for the hours and the staff needed to sand these dolls, they are essentially giving us a $50-100 discount because they're not sanding the dolls.

People keep on singing about "how much these dolls cost", but it's not like the doll companies are just sitting there twiddling their thumbs and hoarding up every penny of the sales. They're a business, with expenditure and revenue.

Personally, I don't care if my dolls have seams (I remember when I got my first doll and saw his seams I freaked out because I thought they were damage... Calmed down as soon as someone clued me in) and I wouldn't want to wait longer just to have them sanded (if I ever feel concerned enough, I have high-grade sandpaper and water, I can do it myself). I don't understand the mentality of seams being something awful and horrible, they're part of these dolls, their belly-button, so to speak. Something that speaks about their origin and the methods used to create them.

The only time I think they should be sanded is when the seams come out pointy and jagged and start going after clothing and people's fingers. Then that means someone managed to put the cast a bit sideways, so just a little run over it with sandpaper to dull it down to standard size - shouldn't take longer than a few minutes at most.

 

You have a slightly different concept of bjds than what they actually are. They are art in a sense, but they're art pieces that are finished by their owners. They're very different from other types of dolls or to carry on with the art analogy, very different from buying a painting or sculpture.

The price is the price. The price is usually for a bald, naked, faceupless doll with seams. Some companies may throw in a few extras if they feel like it or feel they can do so, but standard bjds are meant to be very basic. The owners are supposed to take care of the hair, clothes, faceup, and seams if they are so inclined to do so. If you start adding more services, expect them to cost more money. Sanding takes time and manpower, so of course that's not usually a free service--especially since it isn't actually necessary to do. People need to realize that the money being charged is usually for the basic doll only, because in this hobby that's what they go for. Anything extra on top of that is probably going to cost you more.

 

I absolutey do NOT want companies offering all their dolls with default sanding. I am not at all interested in paying more money and waiting weeks for something I can do myself in an afternoon.

I think it's great some companies are able to offer it as an option for those who don't have the time or facilities to do it themselves, but I don't want them sanding my dolls.

 

Second this! I don't mind seams because they (along with the joints) emphasize what the doll really is: a doll. As long as the doll isn't horribly miscast or has sharp seams I don't mind. My Woosoo has some pretty high seams along his ribcage. It's covered up by clothing 90% of the time anyway.

I don't mind if companies want to include seam sanding as an option, just like face-ups or body blushing. But please don't up the default cost and wait times just to remove some seams.

 

I just received my first doll today, and truth be told, I thought I'd be all "ew, gross!" about the seamlines, but in truth, they're not that bad. As with any product that has to be CAST, it's a natural occurence.

In truth, I'm interested in trying to sand them out on my own (probably on a smaller piece where a muck-up won't be easily noticed) just to see if I can do it proper, or if it REALLY makes any difference to me.

As for the expectation that a doll should come sanded; I agree with most of the other people on the thread who have said that they'd rather not pay an extra mark-up (which would happen, guaranteed) for a service that we don't necessarily want (nevermind need).

In truth, my doll's seamlines are actually quite smooth and not really all that noticeable, so I don't find them all that offending. I can see why some people might want them sanded, but if anything, it should be an opt-in service that you end up paying extra for (because you pay extra for a face-up, which is a "value-added service", so you should have to pay extra for seam sanding, which is another "value-added service").

/twocents XDb