Dr.Mego/new Trek knee pin removal?

[knightone]

Hi everyone. I'm new here, so please go easy on me. ;) I'm not sure if this is the exact right place to ask this, but:

I just got the new Star Trek figures from EMCE/DST and want to make some custom figures out of Kirk and the upcoming Spock and McCoy figures since I never had the heart to take apart any of my original Trek Megos. However, the knee joint on the new bodies have the new style pin (I think the same as on the Dr. Mego replacement bodies?) and I'm not sure how they can be removed or even if they can be. Does anyone have any tips? Thanks. :D

[Meule]

Here's a link to a knee pin removal how-to. Don't know if Doc's knee pins are different then Megos, but I would think thry can't be all that different

http://www.megomuseum.com/custom/kneepin.shtml

Good luck and welcome aboard

[Dave Mc]

These pins are different Thomas. There is no "female" side to the pin with a hole. Both have the flat head on each side. I don't know if they come apart or not. There doesn't appear an easy way to do it without breaking it.

[ABMAC]

Another reason I prefer real Mego bodies.

[knightone]

These pins are different Thomas. There is no "female" side to the pin with a hole. Both have the flat head on each side. I don't know if they come apart or not. There doesn't appear an easy way to do it without breaking it.

Argh! That's what I was afraid of! :smiley1:

What I had originally wanted to do was to start with some easy uniform swaps with the Andorian and Romulan to make alien Starfleet officers. But if the knees are removeable, the boots are going to be a problem.

So what do you guys think? What replacement slip-on boots would be closest to the Star Trek boots? The Chips boots or the Flash Gordon Ming boots from Doc?

I guess I could just break them somehow and use the replacement pins from Doc, but I don't want to risk breaking the entire leg doing it.

Thanks for the welcome guys, it's much appreciated. :grin:

[ABMAC]

Argh! That's what I was afraid of! :smiley1:

What I had originally wanted to do was to start with some easy uniform swaps with the Andorian and Romulan to make alien Starfleet officers. But if the knees are removeable, the boots are going to be a problem.

So what do you guys think? What replacement slip-on boots would be closest to the Star Trek boots? The Chips boots or the Flash Gordon Ming boots from Doc?

Thanks for the welcome guys, it's much appreciated. :grin:

The Romulan won't be a problem; he has a normal Caucasian body.

Forget the Ming boots. The Flash Gordon line used 9" bodies.

For an Andorian Starfleet officer, I would use an original Keeper body. They go pretty cheaply on eBay, especially since they usually have broken legs anyway.

[knightone]

The Romulan won't be a problem; he has a normal Caucasian body.

So I guess a simple head swap would be fine? Do the heads pop off easily as-is, or do you have to do a boiling water/hot water dip before you pop the heads off?

[ABMAC]

The neckplug should be flexible enough to allow swapping heads without heat.

[knightone]

Cool, thanks! That will make things easier. I can get my Vulcan captain without too much trouble! :grin:


For an Andorian Starfleet officer, I would use an original Keeper body. They go pretty cheaply on eBay, especially since they usually have broken legs anyway.

I want to try and avoid going to ebay and buying up original figures for my customs if I can.

So what do all of you think? Will the Chips boots do in a pinch or is there a better option.

of course if someone who has experience with Doc's new knee joints has any advice on pin removal...

;)

[ABMAC]

Cool, thanks! That will make things easier. I can get my Vulcan captain without too much trouble! :grin:



I want to try and avoid going to ebay and buying up original figures for my customs if I can.

So what do all of you think? Will the Chips boots do in a pinch or is there a better option.

of course if someone who has experience with Doc's new knee joints has any advice on pin removal...

;)

CHiPs boots will do, but they'll be noticeably wider than normal Trek boots, since those are actually smaller than naked Mego feet.

There's also the option of using Caucasian Trek legs on your Andorian officer. His thighs would be completely covered by the Trek pants.

[Dave Mc]

If you are making these characters in Star Fleet uniforms, why not just use the trek leg body? That way they match the other characters in Star Fleet uniforms.

[Hulk]

I wonder if replacement pins will work? If so, it may just be a matter of breaking the pin without breaking the knee sockets, assuming you have a supply of replacements. I might have to try some orthopaedic surgery soon.

[shellhead]

Docs knee pins are one piece and are easily removed by heating the leg slightly and prying apart. The Doc has demonstrated this several hundred times at toy shows to show how durable his bodies are, and he doesnt heat them at shows,they're just that tough! The reason this is possible is the plastic Docs figs are made of is very flexible so it won't crack.You may need pliers to pull the pin out of the part of the leg that it remains in.:smile:

Best of luck with your project,

Chris

[knightone]

Very cool! Thank you very much for the tip.

I'm assuming the pin is reuseable after it is removed?

[Meule]

These pins are different Thomas. There is no "female" side to the pin with a hole. Both have the flat head on each side. I don't know if they come apart or not. There doesn't appear an easy way to do it without breaking it.

Really? Didn't know that, I use original Mego bodies for my customs
__________________________________________


Docs knee pins are one piece and are easily removed by heating the leg slightly and prying apart. The Doc has demonstrated this several hundred times at toy shows to show how durable his bodies are, and he doesnt heat them at shows,they're just that tough! The reason this is possible is the plastic Docs figs are made of is very flexible so it won't crack.You may need pliers to pull the pin out of the part of the leg that it remains in.:smile:

Best of luck with your project,

Chris

But apparantly there is a way to remove the pins.
Good to know, thanks for the info

[Captain]

I had a similar issue when I made my Andorian security officer custom. Ended up using Docs black superhero boots. They look allright....Personally, I often wonder why Mego decided to not go this route versus casting new legs? Most likely, it was a dollars and cents decision...ChiPs boots look ok, but are kind of clumsy without some kind of sock. Dr. Zauis boots look the best of all, but I hate to use them for this....I have too many dr. Z's in search of footwear as it is.

On my Dr. M'Benga custom, I did drill out the center of the pins on Docs legs , attached classic Mego Trek boots from the old parts bin, and replaced them with Docs Mego knee pins. Worked ok, but I wish I knew they could be just pulled apart before I did it!!....Live and learn.

[Dave Mc]

Docs knee pins are one piece and are easily removed by heating the leg slightly and prying apart. The Doc has demonstrated this several hundred times at toy shows to show how durable his bodies are, and he doesnt heat them at shows,they're just that tough! The reason this is possible is the plastic Docs figs are made of is very flexible so it won't crack.You may need pliers to pull the pin out of the part of the leg that it remains in.:smile:

Best of luck with your project,

Chris

Doc Mego knee pins and the new DM/EMCE knee pins are totally different.

[megocrazy]

I'm not sure how they can be removed or even if they can be. Does anyone have any tips? Thanks. :D[/QUOTE]

Try soaking the legs in hot water for a while and then popping the knee joint apart. The hot water softens the plastic. If not Doc's replacement knee pins are not expensive and are a direct replacement if they should break. You can see the pins on Doc's site. :grin:

After reading Dave's post. Didn't realize the new figs had different knee pins. Will Docs replacement pins fit the EMCE figs?

[Dave Mc]

It appears that they would.

[knightone]

Doc Mego knee pins and the new DM/EMCE knee pins are totally different.

So the pins on the new Trek figures are different from the ones Doc has? Hmm...looks like I have some experimenting to do then to see if I can remove the knee pins.

Thanks for all the advice and info, guys. Much appreciated.

[Dave Mc]

So the pins on the new Trek figures are different from the ones Doc has? Hmm...looks like I have some experimenting to do then to see if I can remove the knee pins.

Thanks for all the advice and info, guys. Much appreciated.

They LOOK totally different in that BOTH sides have the same solid flat head that the male side of the pin joint has. They may work the same, I'm not sure, but you can't actually look at the other side of the joint and see the pin through a hole like you can original mego, CTVT, DM/7th Street Toys bodies.

[shellhead]

O.K. Lets try again, the loose TWO-PIECE replacement knee pins Doc makes are made virtually identical to original Mego Pins. the knee and elbow pins found on docs complete replica bodies are, as I described earlier, ONE-PIECE. Every figure doc has had produced in China ,including the Trek figures, all have the one piece pin system. I've taken apart and re-assembled literally hundreds of Docs figures without a single problem. If you want to, you can put a two-piece replacement pin back in the figure when you re-assemble it to make more Mego like, but you will also introduce the possibility breakage at the joint,(just like real Megos).:terror:
Most of all don't be afraid pull on Docs figs when you take 'em apart, theyare built super tuff with customizers in mind!:grin:

Best, Chris

[Dave Mc]

Okay, faulty data alert on me! I don't use many DM bodies. The one I have on hand has knee pins that look like standard mego knee pins but are definately DM make. This is the body I used for my comparision.

After Chris' last response, I checked again. Yep, it's a standard looking knee pin. Hmm... So I went and pulled some clothes off a few customs I had made that used a DM body. They have knee pins just like the EMCE pins. No "female" side with a hole. I checked the three that I could find.

So, evidently the body I used for my original comparision with the new EMCE body has had knee replacement surgery using DM repro knee pins.

So, Chris is right, the EMCE pins that come on the body are just like the DM pins that come ON the body, but NOT like Doc's replacement pins that are clones of original Mego.

Lesson learned. Check more than one example before coming to a conclusion. :please:

[boss]

I've taken apart and re-assembled literally hundreds of Docs figures without a single problem.

I wanna party with this guy.

just kidding. great info.

[knightone]

Thanks for the input guys. I sat down with a Captain Kirk figure and pulled on the legs and, sure enough, everything came apart without breaking or warping. These bodies are fantastic!

Now, putting them back together. I guess I just pop them back. Any tips or tricks? Do I need to heat them up to make this easier? Do I hammer the knee pins back?

Thanks again, everyone, for your time and patience!