Jumbo Voltron Restoration--Pic Heavy

[Iron Mego]

I figured there were enough Jumbo Machinder fans here to post this. Plus I find it pretty cool that there are a lot of folks in that collecting community, much like this one, who make repro parts and pieces for these awesome toys. Most of the Jumbos (Shogun Warriors) I've purchased till now have been pretty clean, and didn't need new stickers, but most were missing attachments, which are pretty easy to pick up. This guy, although almost totally complete minus some springs in the claws, was pretty dirty and had a lot of missing and scuffed decals. I knew when I bought it that I would try a restoration on it, and have purchased a set of repro decals for it. First step was cleaning it. Here's how it arrived:

[Iron Mego]

Here it is taken apart. Tried to peel off what I could of the stickers before soaking him in soapy water and then sending him through the dishwasher. The cleaning took much longer, and required way more elbow grease than I anticipated. Still working on getting glue residue off, but I'll post pics of the cleaned pieces tomorrow.

[ScottA]

I appreciate you showing the process. Should be fun to watch.

[megocrazy]

Goo gone will remove those stickers. WD40 works too but is a little bit oily afterwards. Might not matter on the plastic though. I they're gloss stickers you'll need to pull the plastic off the top of them and get to the paper sticker underneath.

[Iron Mego]

I've already gone through all that. I soaked it in the sink with soapy water. That effectively removed the paper part of the decals. I then ran it through my dishwasher, which helped with any remaining paper, and some of the residue. I checked online about WD-40s safety on polyethylene, then tested a small spot. It's supposedly safe, and didn't leave any residue or discoloration. I read online that, unlike with other plastics, it doesn't penetrate poly so it should be fine. I washed each piece off afterward just for added safety. I just have the blue leg left to clean.

[justzeg18]

I never realized how many stickers this guy had. This is the same one that came with a wired-remote motorized base?

[ScottA]

Is there a specific place that sells repro stickers for stuff like this?

[Iron Mego]

I never realized how many stickers this guy had. This is the same one that came with a wired-remote motorized base?

Yes, tons of stickers! I'm a little worried about that aspect of the restoration. I've never been good at applying stickers! And yes on the base as well. This one came with its base, but I took it off. I may try and get it working, but it's sort of a useless thing.

Is there a specific place that sells repro stickers for stuff like this?

A bunch of people on the Robot Japan messageboard do repro stickers for this and other Jumbos. I don't know of a particular website though.

[Iron Mego]

All clean, and (almost) re-assembled. Left the feet off so it'll be a little easier to put some of the decals on. Just waiting for those and that will be the last step, applying all the dad-gum decals!

[Confessional]

Ah, cleaned up beautifully and the plastic looks reconditioned. Those stickers did a good job of protecting those surfaces over time. Cool.

[Iron Mego]

This guy has held up pretty well over the last almost 30 years. Think they came out in '84 or so. The plastic is in great shape.

[Neutron X]

Looks really good! I like seeing a toy restored and brought back to life. Good job!

[Iron Mego]

Okay, got the stickers last week, but was sick with the flu, so I had to wait to put them on. I was very trepidatious about this part of the process, as I'm horrible at applying stickers. But other than gunking up one of the eyes, and being short on the big leg wraps (hope they hold) I did much better than I thought I would. Also, two of the red lion's face decals weren't sent to me, but I didn't want to wait for them to show up to take pics. I also found some replacement springs that seem to be a great fit. Might be a little heavy on the tension, but hopefully it won't strain the jaws too much. After all is said and done, I really dig this jumbo and it was fun "restoring" it.

[B-Lister]

Damn, It feels like I was waiting forever for an update.

You didn't disappoint.

Looks like a blast from the past!

[Iron Mego]

You were waiting forever! It took awhile for the guy to get the stickers to me. He does awesome work though, so it was worth it.