Dyeing a mego gray head

[drmego]

There was a question raised in an EMCE thread that I think should be
viewed by the whole community.

Megocrazy posted:

"Just a thought but what happens if you dye a grey/zombie mego head tan? Does the grey head absorb the dye? Would it fade in the same way it did originally? I'm guessing if you dyed it while grey it would obviously be darker than desired, but if you degrey it, using the methods we know of, and then dye it tan would it counter/stop the zombie process? Does anyone know the scientific reason why the head greys. Is it simply a reaction between the rubber and the coloring source? It affects Torch figures so it's evidently not the specific color. Could you dye a greyed Torch head red and solve the issue? I have dyed greyed heads darker colors so I know it does take dye just wondering if anyone has tried to nullify the zombie effect on a tan head."


I replied with the following:

I believe our resident plastics engineer AAAAA said that the gray effect was due to a mold or bacteria in the original vinyl used for 1979 production.

The tire wet/plastidip cure was temporary because the mold inside the vinyl
re-grayed over time. Dave Mc posted that all the heads he de-grayed went
gray again.

Dyeing the vintage head might minimize the gray look but it will not cure it.

[captact]

Thanks Paul For The Tip!!!!! Well Appreciated!!!
Ray

[Spyweb007]

If it is caused by some kind of mold/fungus/bacteria, is there anything that can be used that would kill the bacteria? Then any process for degraying the head might hold and not start to gray again. I have a nice 12" Buck Rogers with a completely zombified gray head that I really would like to restore. I had thought about painting the head and then sealing it to see if that would keep it from graying again.

[B-Lister]

What is the Sharpie Trick?

also, any process that could kill the bacteria, could potentially destroy the plastic, as both are organic substances.....so don't do anything potentially hazardous to a head you plan to keep, until you know what it's going to do! (I'm sure that goes without saying)

[rche]

I've done various dye tests on greyed heads and have indeed had some of them turn grey again after holding dye. Part of this may be due to the parasite problem, part of this may be due to the nature of the dye absorbing further into the soft plastic over time. I have also noted that RIT dye will 'fade' on some softer plastics over time.

If one has a recipe they follow for the dye dip tho, the process is fairly simple and it may just be an annual upkeep sort of thing to keep the head in a flesh color.

[ctc]

Hmmmm....

I've been told that the greying happens 'cos the plasticiser eventually separates from the vinyl. The cheaper the material, the faster it happens. (Hence the "bad batch" later stuff greying first.) Once it starts it can't be reversed. Not entirely. I've used auto interior vinyl paint on grey heads with mixed results. It WILL recolour the heads, and return some of the plasticity, but I suspect they'll still grey again. (I don't know how long it'll take: heads I did 4 years ago still have their colour, but they've lost a lot of flexibility.) The auto paint actually soaks in, which is why I think it wirks so well. Doesn't come in many colours though.

Don C.

[megocrazy]

I have a nice 12" Buck Rogers with a completely zombified gray head that I really would like to restore.

Funny you should mention this figure as it was one of the reasons for my asking. Every one you see is grey. I've wanted to get one of these for some time and simply haven't because I hate the way it looks zombied. I figured there was someone in the community that had played around with it in the past. The chemical de-grey is a tedious process but would be worth it if it held, it just doesn't. Thanks for setting up the post Doc.

[spamn]

Sad to hear the much trumpeted fix was only temporary. It was awesome when the de-zombification process was discovered. It's still great that we have the ability, just a bummer that it's a maintenance cycle rather than a permafix.

Assuming the problem is truly mold or bacteria, what if you soaked the heads for a week in something that kills mold and/or bacteria?

Like:
Listerine (talk about being able to call a figure 'minty'!)
Lysol
rubbing alcohol

Was that ever tried?

[cjefferys]

This is the first I've heard about mold or bacteria being the culprit. I thought it had something to do with the plasicizer eating away at the dye used to colour the vinyl originally. Then again, I'm not a chemical engineer, so what do I know?

Funny you should mention this figure as it was one of the reasons for my asking. Every one you see is grey. I've wanted to get one of these for some time and simply haven't because I hate the way it looks zombied.

If you are patient, you can find a Buck that isn't greying. I believe that Mego had production runs of these both with and without the bad vinyl. I have a Buck with perfect facial colouring and he's been sitting on a shelf, not packed away in the dark, for several years now with absolutely no change. A couple others here have a non affected Buck too. So there's still hope for you in finding a non-grey Buck.

[LonnieFisher]

So why are there no gray Spider-man heads? I have never seen a gray Spidey, but lots and lots of gray Human Torch heads.

[megozilla13]

I'm not a scientist or anything but mold and bacteria are living organisms that need at the very least food and water to survive. It seems completely illogical to conclude that, thats what causes some heads to grey.

I'd like to hear what others who have degreyed heads years ago have to say about the results now. While I have heard that some do revert to becoming grey, the original robin head I used when I discovered the process is still tan.

[cjefferys]

So why are there no gray Spider-man heads? I have never seen a gray Spidey, but lots and lots of gray Human Torch heads.

It was possibly just one batch of vinyl that had the problem. Spidey must have never had a production run that used that bad vinyl, I've never seen a grey Spidey either. Usually the WGSH that have the problem are later issue Fantastic Four figures, and I've also seen grey Superman, Robin, Shazam, Batgirl, Green Arrow and Teen Titans (except maybe Kid Flash?) figures, so these figures had at least one production run with the bad batch of vinyl. I don't recall ever seeing any of the other WGSH figures with the problem, have I missed any? Plus there's CHiPs, plus 12" Black Hole, Star Trek:TMP, Moonraker, some Reeves Supermans and some Buck Rogers (Buck only), Mighty Mightor, and the Candi fashion dolls. Any others?

[drmego]

That is a good question - Spider-Man was a huge seller for MEGO, but no one has
ever mentioned seeing a discolored Spidey head.

I can't imagine a production run that included Superman, but not Spidey.

[B-Lister]

I'm not a scientist or anything but mold and bacteria are living organisms that need at the very least food and water to survive. It seems completely illogical to conclude that, thats what causes some heads to grey.

Just because human beings don't call petroleum distillates 'food' doesn't mean the same holds true for bacteria.

as for water, there's water all around in our atmosphere. It stands to reason that something as small as a bacterium wouldn't require as much as something as complex as a multicellular animal.

[wayne foundation 07]

So why are there no gray Spider-man heads? I have never seen a gray Spidey, but lots and lots of gray Human Torch heads.

things that make you go mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm