Bimong Waiting Room

Got a shipping notice for my tan Narae body, that I ordered later than everything else. Still waiting on the big and small boys and jointed hands. Looks like soon for everything but hands. Really hoping that's the case - that full tan SD Narin in his post is what I ordered so it's nice to see! Brings me hope haha

 

I'm told my 58cm body will be shipping on Friday. Hopefully it's actually true and the process is smooth getting stateside.

 

I also got notice about my 45cm Narin shipping soon! AAAAAHHHHHHHHH! IT’S BEEN 84 YEARS LET’S GOOOOOOOO

 

Also got my shipment notice for my MSD Narin body. Now all I'm waiting on is the SD Narin Grey elf and his jointed hands.

 

While I'm not surprised, I am disappointed that bimong missed his stated ship date. He says sorry for the delay, that it's being packed still but it's being shipped this week.
Smh

 

My Dandelion body has been shipped! I'm so happy!

 

My 58cm body was delivered!! And the <$10 keychain pointe shoes I pre bought for the body, that I worried would be too big, actually fit perfectly!





And of course none of the heads i have work for the body as is. I am not used to 10cm necks on such skinny, narrow shouldered, 58cm girls. lmao. Eventually I'll work up the courage to do a neck mod and sand it 4mm thinner in diameter and it'll fit my preferred style of heads better.

 

My boy is home!



I have absolutely nothing ready for him thanks to a last minute change of heart about what character to turn him into (was originally planning on Present Mic from My Hero Academia, but I feel he'll suit Rafayel from Love and Deepspace more). While this is my second Bimong doll body, it's my first time having a Bimong head! Had no idea his dolls used faceplates. c:

Anyway, N401 is such a lovely sculpt, can't wait to get him sent out to be painted.

@bahboh Congrats on the arrival! Slimming down a doll neck isn't too bad of a mod to do. Had to do that for a Raccoon Doll body I had so the head I got for it would fit better. A dremel definitely makes the process a lot faster, just be careful and take your time.

 

I received my MSD Narin boy body and I love him, but I feel like something is wrong with one of his legs. It wants to slide and buckle to the inside. Nothing is twisted inside, all parts are appropriate L and R, the silicone is even and fine. I know about wiring and sueding, it's only this leg and while trying to discover why I noticed they weren't quite the same.

His leg really looks shorter than the other one. He can't stand very well and his right leg has room to sway and swing when everything is perfectly even. No hip pivot. The right leg doesn't quite touch the ground. He also constantly slides to the side when standing. It's all because of the right leg. His right foot does not line up with the left.

I've lined everything up perfectly to ensure there wasn't user error, drawn lines on pictures and everything but Bimong is fighting me about it. I don't really know what to do. I waited the closer part of a year and a half for this body and I feel so bummed out. I'm trying to be so nice and open, but I feel like I'm not being heard.

 

@Littlebirdzoom

Did your MSD Narin come with those squishy silicone pads in his hip sockets? If so, maybe the silicone can compensate for his uneven stance, but it'll need time to bed in and mould to his standing pose.
When I got my Narin68, I found that he was very finicky about standing at first, it was quite hard to balance him and he'd constantly shift. But I kept on free-standing and playing with him, and over time he got more stable - the silicone sueding in his hips seemed to mould to the way he stood and I played. I've had him for 5 months now and he's much more stable than he was out of the box.

That said, I have noticed that my Narin68 has some imbalances in his posing. I'm not sure whether they're specific to my doll and happened during casting his parts, or it's a general issue that has to do with the master mould. They're more like annoying idiosyncrasies to me and don't seem to be serious as what's in your doll.

If you share some photos of your MSD Narin standing up and lying down to show the leg imbalance, maybe I and others can help diagnose and offer solutions?

 

He did and I mentioned that in my original post. It's not the silicone. I'll come back with photos when I have time to sit and upload them this week. It's a very strange thing! I just wish Bimong was being a little more open about hearing me. I'm glad to know the silicone might just need time to mold? He told me to go in there with a knife and reshape it but my dude I am NOT the artist here

 

Something else I thought about ... when you sent feedback to Bimong, did you unstring the legs and compare the leg pieces to each other to see where the unevenness is located? I'd be interested to see this too, whether there's a casting error somewhere.

My Narin68 had a casting error in his legs that resulted in damage (a crack developed in one leg but not the other) and the difference in the leg parts was noticeable when I unstrung him and did comparisons. I've since repaired the crack, my repair has held with no further damage, and my doll poses well - I'm glad I managed to resrolve it. But I know my doll isn't the only case of uneven casting and issues in the legs.

 

I didn't. I tried to line them up while strung, but this is a great idea. Do you have any tips how I can do this? I'm trying to measure the individual pieces but it's difficult.

 

@Littlebirdzoom

MSD Narin should be strung like any normal doll (my Narin68 is). You can unstring his legs and then compare the pieces to each other to see if there's any visible difference in length and shape. Do this for individual pieces, and then put the pieces against each other as if he's strung, to see how unevenness manifests when the pieces are together.

I would also check whether the stringing on both legs is even, sometimes the loops are uneven in length or the knot is caught inside the doll somewhere, which makes the legs imbalanced.

You said that the legs are visibly different in length. If this is caused by the resin actually being different in size, I imagine you can see it when you directly compare the L and R leg pieces with each other when unstrung.
This is the evidence you can produce to Bimong that maybe a casting defect is causing your doll to have uneven stance.
(That's how I noticed my Narin68 had a casting defect - the shape of his knee sockets were subtly different. The movement of the knee peanut against the thigh piece was producing a crack in one thigh but not in the other, and I demonstrated the movement of the pieces to Bimong in videos and photos.)

But if you can't detect differences in his leg pieces, then the unevenness may be caused by something else besides the resin. Hence my original suggestion that the silicone sueding in his hips might over time compensate for any unevenness in stance. But what causes the unevenness exactly, is hard to figure out without more info.

I hope this helps. This is how I'd diagnose this problem if it was my doll. If you show photos, I and others might be able to help more.

 

My apologies, I didn't mean to ask for tips like that. I meant more of it there was any special way I could find differences aside from a measuring tape to further build my case. Round objects are hard to measure and I mostly wanted suggestions on clever ways to get accurate measurements. I'm trying to find ways to prove to him that I'm not just imagining things or trying to cause trouble for the sake of it.

I ended up unstringing him and measuring everything a hundred times with help and control to ensure it was accurate (accounting for curve) and lo and behold the thigh piece in question is smaller then the other. Seems most of the right leg is just wonky. And the piece inside the thigh is also slightly smaller, which is why his leg keeps twisting so easily. His calf is also shorter on the same side by just a few mm, but the thigh piece is noticeable just visually (and measuring it made it pretty obvious). So my hunch was right and now all I can do is present him with the evidence and hope it gets fixed. I just hope this doesn't turn into a problem. I still have an item on order with him (a grail doll, the SD Narin) so I'm nervous about negativity affecting how I feel. But we'll see. I'll report back!

 

I got my Dandelion body! I was puzzled by the size of the package (so small!), but luckily she travelled safely even if without a box.

 

Asked Bimong for an update on my order yesterday. He said he's working to have my 58 Narae sent out by the end of this month, but no word on my 68 Narin. I know there's been some issues with the 68's legs like what @aihre posted, so perhaps that's a factor.
I'll check in with him again in a few weeks.

 

similarly I asked Bimong about my 38cm narae with jointed hands, and he said jointed hands are taking longer than expected, but should be finished within the month. We shall see!

 

Bimong has sent photos of my Narae! She has been cast! Still not sure about my Narin, but his order info was also written with Narae's, so perhaps they'll both be coming home soon.
It's nice to have some progress within the timeframe Bimong gave me last time

 

I've been holding out to contact him about my order (c skin narin set), although this is my longest wait for a doll, but finally I also received photo of my order that is ready to ship, along with address confirmation. Won't be much longer now.

 

I've also received a picture of my Narae strung and address confirmation.
Not sure about my Narin yet

 

Well, my Narae has been sent. Bimong didn't message me with the travking number, but he sent me a photo of the customs slip to confirm my address and the declared value.
The slip also had the EMS tracking number on it and it became active this evening, so heads up for anyone else waiting for shipping

 

Thanks for the updates everyone! This thread keeps me going. In looking at my last post in this thread, it's been close to 6 months, and still no doll in hand. I reached out again, and he sent an IG reel of the dolls being cast. "Early next month".

At this point I'm just checking in once a month to remind him that my order exists. This is the final doll I am waiting for to complete my collection and I'm looking forward to being "done".

 

My Narae has arrived safely, and very quickly considering that I'm not in the city (5 days from South Korea to regional southern Australia).
She was opened by the Australian border force, who thankfully didn't consider anything in the package dangerous!
I can't believe how light she is compared to my other 1/3 dolls – she's a similar weight to my Volks minis. She poses very well, and the resin is lovely and toothy. Unfortunately it's winter here, and the cold, wet weather is less than ideal for spraying sealant. Hopefully I'll have a chance to paint her in the coming months.
Doll tax, Narae 58 Eva in New Tan:

 

Bimong posted stories of his incoming batches and some SD Narin were there. I asked him if mine was in there and he said yes, but didn't give me a picture or anything. Here's to hoping the wait is over soon. That batch was huge! A lot to put together. All I need after him is the jointed hands.

 

Here's hoping my Narin will be finished soon too!

 

About to be August, has anyone heard anything? He seems to be working on the big boys but I haven't gotten pictures yet. I saw the jointed hands are starting to come in as well.

 

I saw 2 Narin68s recently on his instagram and was hoping one was mine as it matched my order (Grey head, C skin), but I haven't heard anything yet either

 

Looks gorgeous! Would love to see pictures if you end up shaving the neck down I have the same problem with my Eva body

 

For your viewing pleasure.
Left is in unmodded vs right is sanded neck thinner and shorter.
The head is a volks SDGr Cinderella head.
https://i.redd.it/juuhg2ocf4if1.jpeg

 

Is anyone else getting discouraged? I know it's only been a few weeks since I last posted here, but I just can't get a straight answer out of him. I've been thinking about it a lot and thinking about a realistic timeline for the 68s and the jointed hands. I really don't want to join the two year club and there won't be another chance to get this guy, but part of me just wants a refund at this point. My last two dolls from him came to me with issues as well and I just feel a bit down about it all. I don't know. Not trying to whine, just not feeling hopeful and getting down about the lack of communication. If I hear "within this month" one more time I think I might tear up lol. I only wish he would just be up front and say he needs a few more months, I guess.

 

I just messaged Bimong today for an update on my order after seeing a photo of heaps of cardboard shippers on his IG story.
He said my doll should be ready to be sent out next week...fingers crossed

 

Wow thank you!! This looks so good!! Great job on the mod

 

A couple days late here (work has been exhausting) but I received my order last Friday!!! Mine was definitely one he shared on his instagram account. I may have spazzed when I saw it. I haven't had a chance to upload any photos yet, but the order contained a 41cm Narae body and 9 heads. (This order was for my mother, my sister, and myself, lol!) It shipped suuuuper fast once it hit the post office. I'd expected it to be here today, as a matter of fact, not Friday!

The body was for my mother, and I only regret not being able to get one for myself at the time. I'll try to get some pics up later to share.

Good luck to everyone else still waiting. I know it's been a long, looooong wait, but I do think we're all almost there!

 

How did this go?

 

@Littlebirdzoom No reply within the week. I messaged again on Friday for an update. Bimong said he'd send confirmation photos on Sunday and ship out Monday. It's now Monday in my time zone and no pictures...I'll message him again this afternoon.
Hopefully constant firm but friendly messages will get my order out to me...

 

I hope it works

The tan Narin head that got posted was mine. Apparently? He told me he would have pictures and then never gave them to me, so I contacted him a month later and he said he would send me some in the evening, which he didn't, then when I reminded him the next day he sends me pictures of the head. I was under the assumption he meant the whole doll so I was a little upset (also knowing he's had these heads for a long time). I asked him when the body would be done and got the "very soon" response again. I don't know what to do at this point. .-. Especially with all the tariff business now

 

Just in case it helps anyone...

I ordered a 1/4 size Dandelion head last February (it was after the order window closed, but Bimong was kind enough to allow me to place the order anyway, perhaps because we'd had several good transactions before).

Anyway, I received an email tonight saying that the package shipped! No tracking number yet, but I will report back when I have more information.

I hope everyone who is still waiting will receive updates soon!

 

Update: Last night after I messaged Bimong again, reminding him he said he'd send photos Sunday, I got a photo of my Narin all cast, disassembled, with my order details attached.
Going to nudge Bimong again if I don't get a tracking number by the 29th

 

Good to hear some more updates. He also sent me (without being asked) a picture of my big Narin unassembled. I asked him how long he estimated assembly taking, then he told me because of the heatwave he's been sending dolls partially dissembled. But no time estimate. I don't feel good about needing to string my own doll after waiting this long, but it's fine. It's not difficult to do. I'm just happy to see pictures of the whole guy. I don't know if that means he's sending the doll like it is in the photos we got @castironteapot ? Did he say anything about disassembling?

He also reassured me about the tariff situation and what he's doing for it, so that was nice!

I'm currently waiting on tan jointed hands for him as well and wondering if Bimong is trying to wait for them to be done to send it all at once. I wonder how many people ordered the hands. They look like such a process to put together since there's no strings! My poor hands could never

 

Whoops, spoke too soon! Apparently he realized the head was the wrong color (fortunately before shipping) so he needs to remake it. I told him I was happy to wait - hopefully that will give a little more time to other orders! I know other people are a lot more eager to receive news than I am (this is a head for a potential hybrid - I definitely look forward to it, but there is no rush).

 

@Littlebirdzoom I haven't heard anything about my doll being sent unstrung. I'm going to prod Bimong again about shipping if I don't get a tracking number by the end of the week, especially as he'd previously said he'd take photos of the doll then send it the next day.

 

Did you get your update? I'm sorry I keep asking.

 

@Littlebirdzoom Nothing so far – I've been dealing with personal matters lately so pressing Bimong on the order hasn't been on the top of my priorities.

 

So I ended up asking for a refund because I can't get a straight answer out of him. I'm getting really put off about this doll and just want to be done with it. There have been many many missed promised dates and no honest/up front communication. While I am fully aware refunds are not a typical part of the hobby (and after 12 years in the hobby I think I've only ever asked for two, including this one) , that's not entirely my issue right now.

Instead of giving me the refund, which he has historically been fine with, he said he would ship my doll tomorrow. My Narin is left unstrung. I initially said this was fine because of the heat wave, but it's been months since the and it's no longer hot like it was in Korea.

He said he would ship my doll and then refund me for the jointed hands if he couldn't fulfill it by the end of the month. I told him I don't want the doll without the hands, then he told me he would ship everything by the end of the month then.

I don't know what to do and I don't feel good about this doll anymore. I feel as though I'm being dodged. I don't like the idea of receiving an unstrung doll after two years? Almost? only after I asked for a refund despite me trying to communicate twice a month at least for months now and getting no answer. I don't really know what to do at this point, but I'm pretty sure if I hadn't asked for the refund there would be a good chance I might not have gotten my order before Christmas. I don't want to be a jerk to him, but I'm at a loss and none of this would have been as bad if communication could have happened.

 

asked Bimong point blank if he had a specific date he thinks he'll ship by, and he told me next Friday--we'll see if it ends up coming to pass though! for reference i ordered a 38cm girl with jointed hands.

 

Bimong promised to ship my order by the end of last month when I asked to be refunded. Nothing happened, so I reached out again. He said he would show me pictures by the end of yesterday. Nothing. So I asked him again today for pictures. He said pictures tomorrow.

EDIT: I received pictures of the item half done. I asked him when the rest would be done and he said the next day. I received pictures when he said he would, so that's nice. He said he would ship after the 10th. So my next deadline should be then.

 

I was given a picture of the tracking label not attached to a box and looking it up, it seems it was finally dropped off. Has anyone else gotten their tracking yet if they're still waiting?

 

Bimong sent me my label back in July haha! So I have the tracking number even though it hasn't gone anywhere.

Also, update on my end, I ask Bimong if he was still able to ship today, and he told me that he found that there's a slight difference in the resin color between the hands and the doll itself, and so he wants to recast the doll. I asked him to send a picture of the hands and doll so I could see the difference for myself (since I know color differences tend to be more noticeable in photos, so if I figured I could decide if its worth the trouble or not) and he hasnt responded yet. My instinct is to just ask him to send it as is lol like I dont really want to wait 3 months for a slightly differently colored doll

 

No updates here. I know my doll has been cast, but that's about it. I'm about to go away and I don't want the doll arriving when I'm not home, so I'll ask Bimong for an update in mid-November.

 

Well my Narin finally arrived after years. And he arrived in pieces. Bimong said he would string him and he arrived otherwise. At first it was because of the heat wave, then he said since it was over he'd string him and we explicitly agreed to it being sent strung, then upon arrival I asked and he said it was because of EMS rules. I have problems with my hands and I was very lucky I had someone to help me put him together, otherwise I would have been surprised with a pile of parts I couldn't touch after waiting so long.

At this point I don't care. All of the missed promised dates and changed reasons, changed stories - I'm just over it and happy it's done. I have all my dolls now and I'm happy to never deal with that again. I sincerely hope everyone gets their dolls soon, but I highly recommend staying on top of him about it.

This entire experience has put such a bad taste in my mouth about an artist I once loved. I guess it doesn't matter since he's retired from doll making now, but I'm still upset. I'm just happy my SD Narin is home and safe.

As for the doll, he is beautiful. I was certain I was going to want to sell him, but he's gorgeous. His pieces arrived not very well packed and I'm shocked he's not broken. Only some pieces were in a little bubble wrap, but the most fragile pieces, head and entire body got sent in a single layer of foam that wasn't closed. No extra padding anywhere and the box was rattling.

I paid for jointed hands as well and there's a huge glob of glue on one of them, but other than that there's no issues with him. The jointed hands are incredible. He's so handsome and bends so well. The thin resin scares me, but I love that he doesn't weigh a ton.

My wait is now over and I really, really hope everyone gets their stuff soon too. I've seen a few more come in.

I've wanted this doll for so long for many reasons, so hopefully a faceup and some clothes can save him for me.

 

Congratulations! It was an ordeal, but you have the last Bimong dolls made! That is very special. I think he has a unique style that few come close to. Enjoy your gorgeous Narin.

I've been out of the hobby for more than a decade, had sold my D-Storic Narae for cat funds. Bimong is still my favourite. I would gladly take over anyone's waiting ordeal here, it's worth it people!

 

If there’s any thinned places that worry you I had good luck reinforcing some extra thin areas with Apoxy sculpt!

 

The entire body cavity for the middle joint and thigh joint pieces are very thin in ways I wouldn't be able to reinforce, as they rub against other pieces with not much space between. It's more of the body and high pieces on the doll were constructed thinly, so it'd be a difficult task. I think I'll take your advice for the eye wall edges and some of the edges of the middle joint. The middle joint scares me tbh lol. Have you reinforced this body? Or his other dolls? I'm curious to know what you've done!

 

Oh that makes sense it might be hard to reinforce there!

I have the 58 girl body and over some years the middle joint edges bent and slightly cracked (in the thinnest part). I boiled it and it went back into place then I just reinforced behind that area and sanded it smooth!

 

Thank you for sharing your experience and solution! I will definitely keep that in mind and try it after testing it somewhere. That's such a clever fix with the boiling too! I think it'd work well under the torso especially.

 

@Littlebirdzoom I've had my Narin68 for almost a year and I've played with him a lot. So far, I haven't had issues with his structure except for the left knee - the joint hollow in the left thigh strained and then fractured due to the knee peanut pressing against it. This was a structural flaw, as his right knee didn't have this issue. I talked to Bimong about it and he gave me some tips. I ended up heating the fractured part of the thigh piece in freshly-boiled hot water and subtly reshaped this hollow to fit better against the knee peanut, glued the split parts of the resin together with Loctite 401 glue, then reinforced over the whole cracked region with a thin amount of epoxy.

This all happened back in Jan/Feb of this year, less than 2 months since I got my Narin. I documented this on my BJD blog on this post (toward the end) and this post (also toward the end). So far, this repair has held up without further cracking, and I'm pretty confident that nothing worse will happen. Aside from this, I've had no problems with him. I play intensively with my dolls and I've posed Narin a great deal and put him under some strain. He's held up very nicely. But I do handle him a bit more carefully vs my other dolls, and check over him after photoshoots just in case there's subtle damage. So far so good!

Perhaps keep an eye on your Narin's knees and other high-movement jointed areas to make sure no cracks develop, but they are repairable with epoxy and glue. Good luck!

 

I've hit the two year mark from when I placed my first and final order with Bimong. I messaged him yesterday to ask for an update, and he said that my doll is currently on his work desk for processing and that he would ship this week. Since many others have shared that he's given similar responses/timelines that have lapsed, I am not taking it at face value.

Once I'm able to track it EMS the particular flight inbound to the US am I going to believe it's really "on its way". Even then having not imported anything in the US this year, I'm unsure how customs will handle the duties and tariffs collection at whatever rate they will be at that time.

Here's hoping that my Dandelion (Open Eyed + Sleeping) on the 53cm Fusion body with jointed hands in N Skin arrives before the end of 2025.

 

@VeraLyne Hello from another 2 year club member.

I've also asked for an update on my Narin now that I'm back from abroad.
It's still a bit baffling to be that I was able to get my Narae 58 to me without too much of an issue, but trying to get my Narin sent out has been much more of an ordeal...

 

I picked my girl up from the post office today, and thus, for me the saga ends haha. I think she'll be my last doll purchase so I guess it's fitting she kept me in suspense so long lol. FYI I mentioned my concerns about the tariff situation to Bimong and he adjusted the value on the shipment docs so I didnt have to pay anything additional when I picked her up

She's a d normal 38cm smiling narae with jointed hands for reference.