Anyone here well knowledgeable about plastic/wooden figures and how to maintain them?

[Videomaster21XX]

So here's the deal. My roommate is into a certain manga series, and I got him a hand painted figure of the main lead. Near 200 bucks on ebay, shipped to me and while the seller did do their best to protect it in shipping... it didn't really work out.

A small piece broke off that I glued back on, but the main issue is the figure had a stand with a small metal pole that went into the leg. Well they pulled the figure OFF this stand to ship it, and that lead to the biggest problem.

Best I can guess. The glue that WAS in there dried out and created a blockage because when I tried to put the figure back on the stand. The pole didn't want to go into the foot. It went a little then stopped. I tried to gently twist it on, and of course that was a huge mistake. The pole snapped off. I'm sure many of you are probably thinking I shouldn't have tried to do that. I'm sadly very much aware of that now.

So it's super glued on, but now that the pole is missing, I'm honestly not sure how well this is going to stay. Is there any particular glue I can use to REALLY bind it to the stand? The figure I believe is plastic, and the stand likely fake wood.

It's just, I spent so much trying to get a good gift, and I feel like I've got a crap present to give them because of this.

 

[ZakuConvoy]

I'll say, I don't have any experience with things like this.

But....maybe you could try hobby/plastic model cement? Or maybe some sort of model putty? You can probably find it in places like Michaels, or Hobby Lobby, or maybe even Wal-Mart last-minute.

Cement:

Plastic Model Cement | Hobby Lobby | 356683

Plastic Model Cement is a quick-drying cement that makes crafts and projects quick and easy. It works best on surfaces like ABS plastic and polystyrene. Use it to hold surfaces together firmly.

www.hobbylobby.com

https://www.amazon.com/Elmers-E1013-Model-Cement-1-Ounce/dp/B000MVOX2S

Putty:

Contour Putty | Hobby Lobby | 356709

Fill in imperfections and personalize models with our Contour Putty! Simply apply it to your project, let it dry, and use sandpaper to smooth out the rough edges. When you keep this putty on hand, you will ensure every part of your model is perfect!

www.hobbylobby.com

I honestly don't know if something like that would make things worse or not, but it's the first thing that pops into my mind.

Maybe it'd be better to go the other way and get a different base/holder? I don't know how fancy the bases that came with these figures are. If they're just generic ones, maybe you can pick up a different one that works just as well? Some of these hobby stores have doll-holders, mostly for Barbies, but they might work in a pinch. I think some of them are adjustable. If you had more time, I might suggest looking up other anime stands or maybe a Gundam model-kit stand online, but in-store might be the best bet for getting it by Christmas.

 

[Videomaster21XX]

Worth looking into. I'm going to have to let the person who's gift this is know what's going on anyway, so they can help look into it when time.

Just real annoying this happened.

 

[Badgertron]

Are the bottoms of the feet flush with the base (as in, flat)? You could use a couple drops of Gorilla Glue to permanently bond it to the base that way.

 

[Caldwin]

I'm not too knowledgeable about these things. But I have heard the words model rubber cement and epoxy when talking about things like this. Also, Gorilla Glue like Badgerton suggested, is amazing. I've had things that superglue is useless on but just a drop of gorilla glue would fix it perfectly.

 

[MEDdMI]

Another option you could try would be a bead reamer or circular file to get inside the foot hole and file off the dried glue. I wouldn't recommend this if the foot is delicate. It doesn't take much force to use these reamers so you need to be careful.

 

[Videomaster21XX]

Another option you could try would be a bead reamer or circular file to get inside the foot hole and file off the dried glue. I wouldn't recommend this if the foot is delicate. It doesn't take much force to use these reamers so you need to be careful.

Sadly that would be useless at this point. Like I said, the small metal pole that was supposed to go in there to hold the figure to the base snapped right off.

The figure is of course standing on one bleeping leg, so only one foot hits the base. She's still standing from the super glue, but I'm sure if you tapped her, she'd fall right over. I'm going to try the Gorilla glue, as I can actually buy that at my work.