What do you think about Hybrids?

I don't see anything wrong with hybrids. I think there are a lot of reasons why people choose to use parts from different companies to finish a single doll. Maybe you like the head from a company, but not the body. Maybe you like the head, which is almost always the cheaper part of a doll, but want to save money on a body and know where you can get a less expensive one that is a good match. Maybe you want a different body for better posing.

I'm not sure my Kill_U_2nd would be considered a hybrid because K-doll doesn't make bodies, but I have mine on a Luts body because the resin matches. I also recently received my Musedoll Re-an's head in the mail. The Musedoll body doesn't suit the character I'm creating AT ALL, so I bought a Customhouse body for her instead.

I don't think it's wrong. People shouldn't feel like they HAVE to use parts from a single company to create a doll that is personal to them. It just wouldn't be the same if we were forced to only use what comes together.

 

I would never say that it's "wrong", but I do think there is a bit of a stigma that we sometimes put on hybrids with...cheaper bodies. When I see a gorgeous head on a cheap body, I get a little put off. It feels like compromising to me. I own both expensive and cheap dolls, and I love them all, but I would never mix their bodies, it looks silly to me, and detracts from their beauty.

 

Actually, I have had this happen with a hybrid. When I got both parts, they matched beautifully... but the head yellowed faster than the body did, and a year later I was left with a doll that didn't match anymore. I initially thought it was the sealant on the head yellowing, but the headcap also yellowed some. It wasn't a big issue for me, as I didn't like the body much anyway. I sold the body and I'm now looking for a different one for that head.

However, if I'd loved the body anyway, I probably would have just done some blushing to match the two. One of my hybrids was a pretty bad color match, but with some blushing you can't tell the difference.

 

I guess I don't understand why it would look silly. If the size is good and the resin matches, unless there was a visible difference in quality, it wouldn't look bad. And some owners don't think of it as compromising. Maybe they actually like the cheaper body over the expensive one. I guess it's up to the individual to decide. Either way, I definitely don't think hybrid owners should be made to feel as though their dolls don't look good or aren't good enough because they use some cheaper parts from different companies. -_-

I think any doll can be beautiful whether it is made from parts from one company or several. It's all in how they are put together, the faceup, and many other things. Otherwise, it would be like saying that, even though a doll had a gorgeous head, it wasn't really gorgeous because it was on a cheaper body. The body doesn't take away from how nice the head looks, in my opinion.

 

I agree with shou-kun on this one, having dolls that fit both criteria. I have a Delf Lishe head on an AoD v2 body (one of the more common "cheap" body alternatives) and I love the hybrid. It has double-jointed posing, which is not available in the Delf body. It's also slimmer and sleeker in shape, without compromising aesthetics. She poses naturally and points her toes quite prettily.

I also have a CP Delf girl that is a non-hybrid (on the Delf mature body), and I love her too. She's very curvy and pinuppy. She stands incredibly solidly and can hold a pose forever. The CP body has delicate, expressive hands with multiple options.

Both the default body and the "cheap" body have their ups and downs, but I don't see it as compromising in either case. I think "compromising" would be keeping a body I didn't really want, for whatever reason. Each body has what I want for that specific doll. The fact that one is less expensive is a happy bonus that allows me to use the money I saved on other dolly purchases instead.

That being said... what's wrong with compromising anyway? Some people are on a budget and need to compromise in order to have a doll within their means... and there's nothing wrong with that in my book.

 

I've posted in this thread about my lati/puki hybrid, and I just want to add that I generally put photos/discussion of her in the lati threads. To me, a company is usually more recognizable and loved for their face molds, so I would put hybrid dolls in the thread that their head belongs in.

 

I have a hybrid. She's an Angel Region head on a Doll in Mind body. I personally love her because Angel Region's bodies are more gender neutral than I prefer. I would get another hybrid, especially if I got a minimee (since they don't yet make a body). However, I think I would prefer to get a head sculpt that I like but put it on a really nice body. For instance, I am planning to get a minimee, but instead of putting it on an inexpensive body just to get a complete doll quickly, I'd rather save up for a nice body that would pose better. Getting that "just right" look is more important than getting a doll quickly in my book.

 

I don’t really think companies should really be so… persnickety about hybriding. You are paying them for a part after all.

But then it’s also like taking one person’s handmade stuffed animal, ripping off the eyes or something, and putting it on a another stuffed animal. Or one of my sculptures, and taking parts off to add to another. It’s butchering someone else’s art in a sense, just using parts of a piece with no real regard to the whole artwork.

BJD is an artform though, so why be so sensitive? Sometimes you can’t help the fact a company doesn’t have body sculpts released to match with your head. Sometimes you really just don’t like whatever part at all. I respect a company and their opinions on how their dolls should be used, but I believe people should be able to do what they please. I think what should matter more to them is that they’re actually selling. :/

Concerning quality of hybrids, an expensive head on a cheap body just would be silly. It wouldn’t feel right to me, and I don’t want to worry about the results that come from using these cheap bodies.

However, if it’s a quality body at an affordable price, then it would be perfectly ok.

 

My hybrid frankendll Eisheth is perhaps now one of my more irreplaceable and therefore expensive dolls. She is Volks Pearl on a Dollmore Glamour bust body. The funny part is that apparently NEITHER of these companies would approve of what I've done. I could never take her to the Volks store and I can't post pics on Dollmore. But to me she was so completely worth it to get the doll I want I don't CARE if the companies have a 'problem' with her. She's MY doll and I love her.

 

What is the problem with a 'cheaper' body? Sometimes it may be the only thing that matches. My DIM Achernar for example, his colour will not even match a DIM body (2009 colour slightly different to 2008 colour). The only body I can find that matches is Bobobie/ResinSoul, a 'cheaper' company. Is it therefore wrong or detracting from the gorgeous head that I put him on it because it is cheaper? I'll put him on one either way because I want a complete and colour matching boy.

 

The major difference in this comparison is that the maker of the stuffed animal or sculpture intended that object to be sold as a whole. It probably never even occurred to the creator that someone would be inclined to mix-and-match. Whereas BJDs were created with the idea of customization in mind... that's part of their entire appeal. For someone to take a doll that's made to be altered and mix-and-match body parts is much less of a stretch, considering that it's intended you will mix-and-match wigs, eyes, even faceups.

Sorry, I'm just asking for a bit of clarification here... I'm not sure what you meant by this. What do you consider the difference between a "cheap body" and a "quality body at an affordable price"? By "cheap", do you mean dolls made of poor materials, like some of the knockoffs sold on eBay?

Or is a "cheap doll" a Bobobie and a "quality affordable price" doll a Volks doll someone is selling at a low price?

Just curious, because it could mean either/or.

 

Hybrids are sometimes unavoidable if you don't like the idea of heads in boxes. More than a few dolls now come with two heads, or the option for a second head, or you get a head for an event here or there -- and the company doesn't sell the bodies separately.

Not a fan of heads in boxes, here.

 

ok, i am starting to have an issue with this whole "fear of a cheaper body with a more expensive head" stuff. if given a choice in the matter im sure most people would much rather have a whole doll that they like, even if its a less expensive one, than a floating head. i dont blame them. there is nothing wrong with getting a body for your head. why should we care what head is on what body as long as the person owning the doll likes it?

that said, what if you like and prefer the cheaper body? is that wrong too? my Migidoll head looks a thousand times better on the old IP body i got for way-cheap than he ever did on the volks body. i just bought an AOD girl body for my MNF head because MNF are too damn short for what i want. im not compromising my vision of a character to have a doll everyone can approve of. am i worried about resin match? a little...but its not my main concern...proportion is my main concern, matching with the character. resin color can be fixed or worked around. and if not, thats what photoshop is for.

and how about the flip side. what about a "cheaper" head on a more expensive body? is that awful too? why??
for those who might think so, i spam my B&G Afra head on a Volks SD13 body. so there.

just not here, since its not for pictures and will probably get deleted anyway XD

 

Cheaper head on a more expensive body, yes, I do wonder what is thought of that one if cheaper body for expensive head is thought to be a little iffy. My Angel of Dream/Soom hybrid is an AoD (cheap) head on a Soom (expensive) body...

 

Yeah, I don't get that either. Who cares? Why does it matter? The less expensive body might be a really good match for the head or fit the character's build really well. And even if it is just to save money, there's nothing wrong with that! People get way way way too uptight about what other people are or aren't spending. I have hybrids where the body was just as expensive as it would have been buying the whole doll from the original company, and I have some on less expensive bodies. I have to like a body and feel like it is good for the character, but if more than one body can work for a head and I get a choice, I'll go for the lesser priced one hands down. It's an expensive hobby, and there's nothing wrong with trying to keep costs down where you can. As long as the owner is happy with it, then it shouldn't matter. One of the advantages to hybridizing is the ability to make dolls more affordable.

The sooner people stop worrying about other owners buying (relatively) inexpensive dolls and parts the better off we'll all be.

 

Quoted for Truth.

 

To me, hybrids are normal in this hobby and nothing to worry or go ethical about. Like OP said, it may happen because of taste, or companies selling only head, or other reasons.
Or maybe the comapny's body isn't posable enough.
I don't have any problems with it, and i plan on making a couple of hybrids in the future.

 

I gotta say, without hybriding, I wouldn't have most of my dolls XD not a single one of them has been bought as a full peice >_>
I can't think of any reason it would be wrong, after all, they're basically pieces and you can even get extra pieces for them! High heeled feet, and now with Soom's leg and body etc pieces, the companies are even getting into helping us with more excuses to hybrid :3

 

A friend of mine ended up putting Heliot hooves on a Bobobie body. I would never, ever belittle her for doing such a thing, no matter what I think about Bobobie*. Not only did she find a creative solution to a problem, but she saved money in the process and it's the only way she'd ever be able to complete her boy.

For crying out loud! Stop worrying about what others do with their own property. It's. None. Of. Your. Damn. Business.


* [SIZE=-10]I actually love Bobobie/RS.[/SIZE]

 

I agree with VampireAngel13. Sometimes one company's body just won't work for the character you have in mind for a certain head! I have a T. Lahoo head whose going to end up on a DG body. Why? Not because I'm "compromising" or any other silly way one would want to interpret it, but because at 64cm, the DoT body is too tall for that character!! I don't see anything wrong with hybriding; if it helps you further your vision of a doll or character you love, then go for it!! I think the fact that hybrids get flak at all is silly and ridiculous...someone else's hybrid is not directly affecting you or harming your dolls' "integrity" or doing anything negative in any way. So get over it..?