What do you think about Hybrids?

^^ This.

Some of my all time favourite projects are my hybrid dolls. I relish the hunt for the perfect body, and I've had floating heads that have been sitting in my closet for literally 2 years because I keep waffling about what sort of physique the character would have and what kind of body best captures that. I hate same-ness, and I refuse to pay for the same thing twice, so heads from the same company get different bodies. I also use things like height and musculature as part of my character development, so it's often very important for the character to have the right build and height in relation to others. I'll take a match that isn't 100% perfect if the body's right.

 

I love love love hybrids. Out of 9 dolls I own (are on their way) I only have one that has all of her own parts.
Besides the obvious body from company a, head from company b, I also have quite a few other limbs switched out. Some have different arms, or hands and legs.
It;s amazing in my eyes that this is all possible and it's really expanded the hobby for me. If I could only get dolls with the parts they came with, I wouldn't be happy.

 

Some of the most memorable dolls I've seen around the forum have been hybrids. I particularly loved Nanyalin's Cernunnos:

http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...brid-Tan-Dollmore-Victor-Lou-Soom-Spiritdoll)

 

I absolutely love hybrids . They're the ultimate way to create a doll according to your needs and wishes.


However, I've noticed there are three different kinds of hybrid doll owners.

First, there are the forced hybrid doll owners. There are still lots of companies who offer only heads, so you just have to make a hybrid if you wish to own a complete dolls. The owners of such hybrids are usually very cool about their hybrids, not too excited, but also not afraid to show them.

Then there are those owner who love to go wild, who have a great imagination or a certain character in mind and do everything to match their doll's resin parts according to their wishes. If they want a certain head, they're not afraid to buy the whole doll only to sell off the body and everything else that is not needed later. They usually spend large amounts of money to create their dream dolls and it's always a joy to look at those frankendollies (and their WIP threads if they make some)! Those hybrids are usually the most awesome dolls ever.

And then there are also those collectors who got hold of a head of a expensive or rare company, but cannot afford or cannot find a body from the same company. So they go with second best. I've often noticed that among these hybrid doll owners there are many who do not feel comfortable with their doll which is such a pity.

 

To me, hybrids are the way to get exactly the doll you want. I have a number of hybrids for various reasons. Usually it is because I don't like the jointing or sculpt of the original body and a matchy alternative is available. I have two Volks boys that are hybrids because I wanted 70cm height which is not available from Volks. I bought my Date Masamune as the full set, gave the body to a floating head, and am awaiting the arrival of a SSDF. Whereas my Alain is quite proud of his Spiritdoll Proud.

 

That is the beauty of BJD's. They can be what ever you want them to be. I have both hybrids and non-hybrids and find it very sad that someone might think lower of them as a result.

 

Since Im the buyer that pay A LOT of money to get the dolls I want, I think that the companys has no say whatsoever what I do with my doll parts. I bought them, now they are mine to do as I please.

I love hybrids, it is a way to make the ultimate doll that I want.

 

This.

I like my OCs to be of a certain physique, and if the company that sells the perfect head for the OC doesn't have the perfect body for said OC, hybridising is the only way to go. I'll rather they be slightly mismatched resin wise than have a totally off body for the character.

 

That's kind of what I had wanted to do. I mentioned in the 18-30 discussion how I wanted to get an AS Kana head now, and a body later, because saving for a whole doll all at once was going to be too much money for me. I had also looked into getting a body that cost less than the AS body (like maybe an RS body). Someone warned me, saying how depending on how long between buying each, resin can change color a little, and the head can age. I hadn't thought of that, but people thought it was a good idea to just keep the head cloistered away in a box until I could buy the body.

Now, I'm sort of thinking that I want a more serious-looking sculpt than the AS Kana. I'm actually considering the Doll Love Alice with light make up because she has a similar look to the AS Kana, just not as smiley.

I think I probably responded to the hybrid debate, but I always thought hybrids - regardless of why you were creating one - was run-of-the-mill. I hear talk about hybrid dolls all the time here, and I have no qualms about doing it (as I've pointed out) to keep costs down, or because I liked one body over another.

I wonder if DM still has this stance? I can kind of get why they might have it - they don't want to tell you what other companies can fit their dolls, so you spend all your money with DM... but I think there are bound to be people who have DM hybrids of some kind, so it seems a little redundant.

The only issue is that you can't get just any head or body. Sometimes, the resin is really off, or sometimes the neck is too big or too small. Not only are you supposed to look for the body and head you want, but you also have to go digging to see if it works with whatever else you want to pair it with.

 

I think there is nothing wrong with hybrids, and more are being worked on all the time. It's common place for companies to sell heads, bodies, feet, and hands separate.

I got a DM head off the MP and discovered FD pale normal matches very well, so I will have a DM/FD hybrid.

 

I really gotta give kudos to the people who pull off any hybrid that looks coherent and well thought-out. Personally, I suck at them. I have such a hard time finding companies outside of my comfort zone (Volks) and taking the plunge. I go hog wild making hybrids within the Volks company, like putting MSD head on SDC bodies, or taking what was once a handsomely cute SD13 Boy and turning him into a girl (Kaelin, Okita 1). I am trying to do more hybridization as like the heads of more and more companies, but I just feel so O__________O when I'm holding another company's body. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!?! Ugh. I am so bad.

 

All my dolls are hybrids and I love every single one of them. I honestly don't get where Dollmore gets off telling people not to use their heads on other companies' bodies. Seriously, what. A sale is a sale, people. So what if someone's just buying a head from you? Isn't that better than no sale at all?

One of the things I love the most about BJDs is the fact that, rather than buying a ready-made doll off the shelf/website (though there's nothing wrong with that, mind you), you can pick and choose and assemble and paint and dress your doll to suit your own particular taste and wishes. That might include a body from Company A and a head from Company Y. So long as you can get a decent resin match, I say go for it.

DIY FTW.

 

My Jina is a hybrid and I prefere him that way. I admit that at that time I wanted a cheaper body but if the body I chose happened to be too tall for his character than I would've picked another one that might have costed more. I like that in this hobby you can customize your dolls as others have already said.

 

I never thought there were issues with swapping bodies and heads. And I never knew a company tried to tell their buyers what they could do with the dolls they bought. Imho, the owner shouldn't feel they have to please anyone but themselves. I love to see all the different styles and ideas that people create.

As for people looking down on hybrids; sometimes all you can find is the head you've been looking for. So, what are you supposed to do? Keep it as just a head? Well, I guess you could, but I'd rather find a body for it.

 

Hybrids can be really really cool~ I don't own any myself (Not yet anyway XD) but it's truly a way of making your bjd your own or to give your poor floating head a body. (My friend owns this lovely IOS head on an Infinitidoll body and he's a wonder to hold~) And sometimes, I may like a certain head sculpt but prefer a different type of body definition. Like how some companies have more muscular bodies than others. Or a certain head may scream 'FEMALE!' to me, but it was originally on a male body and the company in question doesn't make female bodies in ways that may suit the character I have in mind. So hybridisation would be a way of making a bjd truly 'mine'.

And the resin doesn't necessarily have to match. (I saw a picture of someone's doll on a blog that was supposed to be a 'patchwork frankenstein' character... and he was an artistic mismatch of resin tones. )

 

^^^ Exactly!

I have several hybrids. In fact, my very favorite of all my dolls is a DZ Shengxi head on a Gen 1 AoD body, and to me, he is the very model of perfection! All my dolls are Original Characters as well, and they HAVE to be right... if I find exactly what I need all from one company, then great. If not, a-hybridizing I shall go!

 

I think hybrids are ethical and don't look down on anyone for hybridising their dolls. I understand companies saying they are against it, but I believe that is them speaking from a business perspective (selling parts separately would net them less money, and their parts mixed with less-professional parts could reflect badly on their brand), but I don't believe that their desires are binding. If someone wants to buy the parts and mix them up, the companies have no recourse to stop them.

On the other hand, I don't plan on owning any hybrids myself, because I want my entire doll collection to have the same aesthetic, and part of that is having similar body sculpts. I'm modifying them myself and collecting 'alternate' parts from the same company (different bust sizes, longer legged bodies, etc), but I think I'd just nitpick it to death if I bought a body from a completely different company.

 

i adore my Fairyland dolls... but I hate their hands.. If I could put another companies hand on..
i'd so love that.... I also love my dollshe boys... but I hate their bodies. Loongsoul has fab bodies.
Hybrids are the way to go if you want every aspect of your doll.... "your way".... ( :

 

I think hybrids are fabulous...and after all, this hobby is all about customizing. I just see hybridizing as another method of customization. As an example, I have a DIM minimee head (the only way to get a mature looking MSD sized male at the time.) However, the DIM bodies in that size were for young boys only. I had to go to AOD to find a mature enough body for him. The match is great and I just adore my Hatter. And I certainly wouldn't hesitate to hybridize any other doll if it gave me what I wanted in the end. It's all about creating the perfect character after all.

 

Isn't part of the reason for getting bjds is the ability to customise? Why would hybridisation be even an issue?
O___o


I understand companies preferring you to get a whole doll, that's more money, but taking a hard line on it?
woah

other then dollmore, any other companies that do this?