Removing Hot Glue: How to Remove Eyes that are Hot Glued

Very yellow picture and you can't see very well, but here you go ^_^:

 

Another good tip for removing the hot-glued eyes is to put the head in the freezer for 15 or 20 minutes. I find that the glue peels away more easily after freezing (I use needle-nose pliers to grab and pull, too).

 

No pictures but my girl didn't have a lot of hot glue on her eyes. Just a drop between both (holding them together), a drop on top of each eye, and a drop on the outsides of each eye.

All I did to remove them was wiggle the eyes until the glue came loose. Nothing was damaged.

 

I have no pictures but when I removed them I made victory quite easily using my blowdryer than freezing it.

They get quite soft with the blowdryer, and all you have to do after that is kinda push the eye into the inside of the head after you blowdry it for a bit.

My Yo-SD came with half the eye covered in that glue at default.

 

I was just wondering... would the temperatures damage the doll?
though I know it's a low temp.. but still, it can get very warm if you keep on blowing on the same spot right?

 

To me, resin seems to take forever to heat up, so I think it`s okay. The SR staff told me it was fine, and the Sumika staff told me that another option is just pulling it off which I found didn`t work quite well with Yo-SD`s.

If you worry about heating it too long, you always have the thinner-method where you just kinda rub it off with turpentine (but then you need Cast-clean also) as it seems to melt somewhat.

 

the easiest by far is the thinner method all you do is dab the thinner on the glue and within seconds it's 'dried up' enough for you to just wiggle the eye out!

 

That happened on my Alain too, I use hot water to remove the glue by a little bit pouring in his head, and slowly put the glue off the eyes sockets with chopsticks when the glue begin sofer.

 

I've asked my other friend and she said she used industrial alcohol (?)
where the eyes came off very easily without any harm to the resin nor the acrylic
though you'd have to be cautious cuz it can mess up the faceup.

p.s. she also said paint thinner is also another alternative,
but it damages the surface of eyes if default is acrylic.

 

I use Mr. Tool Cleaner, which I believe is something like thinner...it smells of alcohol. I dip a tool in it (like metal tweezers or jewellry pliers) and then just prise the glue out. I find this method quicker than the hair-dryer method I used to use.

If I recall correctly, I picked this tip up from ginarolo, who picked it up from a Volks staff member!

 

I went to dolpa enhancement class. The recommended method for removing hot glued eyes is to use a mineshima carving knife (looks like a metal cuticle pusher) dip it into x-20 tamiya thinner and coat the glue with that and then slowly pry out the softened glue with the blunter end of the tool.

Personally my preferred method is to take metal cuticle pusher available at most drugstores and sephora. Fill a small jar with boiling water and idip the rounder end of the tool in it til it's hot. I use the hot tool to slowly pry out the eyes starting from the bottom not the top. Be careful near the lash area on the top. The hotglue comes out as one glob when done right.

I prefer the water to the thinner because it's less sticky. Volks says that x-20 thinner doesn't damage the faceup. Hotdryer method can melt the lashes as well if you are not careful. The freezer method works but can weaken resin.

 

So what Eyes come glued in??? Do the luts limited???

 

At the moment I only know that Volks glue their eyes in.
Not really sure about other companies...

but what I found interesting was that the Chinese company "Asleep eidolon"
they actually glue the eye lashes on to the default eyes... Orz. XDDDDD

 

The blow dryer method didn't work for me. The resin heats up way too fast before the glue is even slightly soft or warm. So then I tried using the tip of the hot glue gun and melting the hot glue inside so that I can pry at it and remove it bit by bit with some pliers or a cuticle pusher. This method takes took too long and I can't melt the glue at hard to reach places so I tried the freezer method. I left the head in for about 5 minutes. I don't want to freeze it so it's just cold enough that the hot glue hardens. I got a pair of pliers or cuticle pusher and start lifting the glue and it comes off in one piece! It didn't mess up the face up and it much easier to remove the eyes.

 

Pliers and lots of force have always worked for me. Never a damaged head, eyelash or faceup, and the glue usually comes out in one 8 shaped piece.

 

I think after all temperature wouldn't be a very good idea @@a
it is always a potential damage to the resin,
I'm guessing that freezing can make it brittle.
and you never know which type of resin is more "resistant" to temperature changes.

I still never tried but putting a metal cutlery like toast spreader into a bowl of hot water
wait until the spreader's warm, use it to push the edges of the glue...
it might just work ;-)

 

My method was similar to AreeElf's. I got half a cup of boiling water and put a pair of metal tweezers into it and let the tips heat up. Then I gradually dug out the hot glue as it melted from the heat.

It took a while, but I would recommend this method if you are apprehensive about using a hair dryer or putting the head in the freezer

 

Okie. I've managed to heat the glue and pulled most of them out. It didn't come off in one piece. Some dried stuff still clogged in the head and it looks kinda messy like old sticker. I want to wipe it clean. At this point re-heating the remained glue didn't work much. What should I do? ;__;

 

I attempted to hot glue suede my boy, but I accidentally put in too much glue on a joint. Are there ways to remove it?

 

I just pick mine out with my fingernail.
Also: You can use the tip of a heated hot glue gun to thin the glue. Just be careful not to burn your doll.

 

Just to add my experiences ...

After an hour's worth of cursing and sore fingers and not getting anywhere with the hair-dryer method, my boyfriend suggested heating a scalpel blade up with a lighter-flame and gently pulling and poking at the glue until it was worn away enough to yank at the eyeballs. (I see some people have already mentioned using a jeweller's screw-driver, etc. -- I'm mainly just adding that this kind of method was what we resorted to in the end).

Essentially the motion you would be making with the blade is "pulling" the glue out. The heated glue will stick back to itself, so the idea behind this is to carve out/pull away the glue gently and in small bits.

Be very gentle. Go very slowly, have good light so that you can see exactly where you are using the scalpel so as not to accidentally slide it through the resin.

I recommend using a blunter blade, perhaps an old one. It doesn't have to be very sharp, as it's the heat that is working at the glue, not so much the knife -- just use the sharp tip for precision and direction.

The blade will cool down quite quickly so you will have to heat it up again. Most likely it will cause the blade to have a black residue/coating on it. Be careful with this also -- check your fingers often to make sure none of the black has come off on it (if, say, glue sticks to the blade and you are peeling it from the blade), in case you accidentally touch your doll's face-up.

After a while, if you have pliers you should be able to pull the eyeball out. We didn't have any pliers (curses!) and so we just had to wiggle and pull! The glue coming away from the resin makes a horrible noise! Like a kind of cracking/tearing noise! I wasn't prepared for it, haha! It's likely there will be some glue left over, at which point I would recommend using an old pair of tweezers (or pliers if you have any) to gently rip the rest out, perhaps using the heating method again if it's too tough.

I preferred this method as it was a more direct and controllable method of heating the glue than a hair-dryer. The hair-dryer, for me, seemed to be heating up the entire head and I wasn't comfortable doing that.

The whole job took about two hours, give or take. I have absolutely zero patience so this drove me crazy! XD

Lastly, why? WHY? Why would a company hot-glue eyes in the first place? Seriously! *sobsobsob* Whyyyyyy ;3;

 

Wow. That is a lot of painfully long hours of work there. Ouch. Before I took the Volks faceup class in New York, I used the blowdryer method to melt and loosen the glue. But this technique still left little clumps of glue that had to be chipped off.

When I took the faceup enhancement class at the New York Doll Party, Mikey [of Volks Doll Designing Department] taught us to use acrylic thinner, a thin, small spatula, a knife, and tweezers to remove the hotglue. Mikey said that the Volks X-20 thinner was recommended because it doesn't dissolve faceups. [Thank you to AreeElf.]

This is the technique:

1. Use the spatula to dip into the acrylic thinner and apply thinner to the outside edges of the glue, where the glue meets the resin head. Let the glue absorb the thinner for a minute or so.

2. Use the knife to cut around the edges of the glue. You can stick the knife little by little underneath the loosened glue.

3. Use the tweezers to pull and pry the loosened glue from the head. The glue should come out in one huge donut-shaped piece. The eye should fall loose from the glue as well.

This is the Volks recommended technique for removing glue. Make sure not to use too much thinner, so that it doesnt escape from your fingers or through the eyeholes and dissolve the faceup paints. I have used this method and quickly resorted to using a flat, thin pair of tweezers to dip into the thinner and apply it to the glue's edges. Then I use the knife to cut away the glue as it becomes loosened from the thinner. After it is mostly loose, I use the tweezers to yank the whole glue out, and sometimes the eye is still attached or it falls out freely. The whole process takes me less than 10 minutes. Not two painful hours. I highly recommend this technique! Anything else seems archaic and troublesome.

 

@Daniel Falls ... I will definitely be doing this method with the thinner that you mention if I have to get rid of hot glued eyes again! Thank you for posting about it in detailed steps.
I literally had nothing with me except a scalpel and some tweezers last night, though, so I didn't have the option then

 

I need to remove some bad hot glue sueding from my boy,would putting his parts in the freezer work?
~

 

I just put him in the freezer,will his resin be okay?

 

His resin should be fine in the freezer; several people have stuck pieces of their resin in the freezer in attempts to dislodge super glue. However, I don't know about hot glue... It sounds like it may be a good idea... Be sure to share your results, if you don't mind!

Whenever the times comes to get rid of my girls' hot glue sueding, I scrap the majority of it off with my fingernail first. Usually, nearly all of it comes off; however, I do sometimes get a few stubborn bits, which I lightly sand with some super fine sandpaper. I only ever bother to sand if I am not going to replace the hot glue sueding. I am very sorry to say that I don't have any special tricks (I wish I did!).

 

Well,the freezer helped to loosen it,and I had to scrape it out with a large needle.
I got most of it off! ^_^

 

Tweezers, point-blank. I've had to do it...I have to keep resueding my dolls since I play with them tons and so it gets gross and icky. Tweezers are yay, and they're great for eyelash placement too.

 

i salvaged expensive eyes from a cheap vinyl doll, but there are hot glue lines on the front. The eyes are acrylic? i scaped off what i could, but what else can I do to remove them?

 

she had a wig glued onto her head and there is still some left on her scalp. how can I safely remove the residue/glue?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I apologize in advance if this has already been posted somewhere on the forum- I've searched around and came up with nothing.

Thanks!

 

If its hot glue then heating it up slightly with a hair dryer can soften it up enough to start peeling away at it.

 

it would be helpful if you could mention what type of glue. if it is hot glue, you can just pick it off, if it is craft glue, you can wash it off with warm water, if it is some type of gummy residue? there is a product called "goo-gone" that removes sticky stuff, but i am not sure if it is safe for resin. maybe colorless nail polish remover or alcohol would work.
o.k that's it, out of ideas.

 

Thanks! it was hot glue but picking is not working unfortunately.

 

Another thing that works is to stick it in the freezer. It will make the glue brittle and easier to remove.

 

I have no idea in what thread, but somewhere on DoA I read that goo-gone is super bad for resin. So I wouldn't recommend that. But the putting a freezer or heating are both viable options, since so long as you don't get the resin really hot or leave it in the freezer for ages, it won't harm the resin.

EDIT: Found it! In the Cleaning guide for resin (I think it's stickied), it says this:

So... yeah. No goo-gone!

 

I got my first doll somewhat recently (leekeworld Kyou), but he came with his eyes glued in...how can i safely remove them?
I'm paranoid about hurting him! D:

 

If it's hot glue, you should be able to pick the glue out with your fingernail.
If it's superglue, then remove the head, and put it in the freezer for a few hours - It loosens superglue

Just don't use anything sharp near it (like a knife/xacacto etc), don't wanna gouge yourself / ruin the head!

 

I just removed Volks hot-glued-beyond-belief eyes from a Nagisa in Preschool. They set her eyes unevenly, and it was very disturbing.

It was easy enough to pop out the eyes--I just pushed them in gently and they gave immediately. However, I couldn't reposition them with all that glue inside her head!

I used a metal cuticle pusher that I bought this evening at the local drugstore. I wanted to avoid anything with an actual blade. I wrapped the handle in duct tape so that I could get leverage against the glue by pushing against the edge of the head--the duct tape cushioned my hands AND prevented the tool from scratching/marring/chipping the resin.

Before getting to work, I re-wrapped the face in its combination of foam strips and set it into the face protector so that I could hold onto something without touching the faceup and protect the eyelashes from being crushed accidentally.

It wasn't easy work, but it took me about 15 minutes and the inside of her eyewells aren't scratched at all. Some of the faceup that filled inside of the eyewells was scratched, but none of the actual resin was damaged. I'm glad I didn't have to acquire a specialty tool or other materials.

 

Hey everybody! I'm fairly new on the forums, and I'm about to get my first BJD: a Volks' SD Mark - Renewal Version. I've been eyeing this sculpt for over a year and a half, now, and I'm finally going to be able to get him next week!

I'm very excited about getting my first boy, but I know that Volks has the frightfully annoying tendancy to hot glue their eyes in. I've been reading on the subject of eye-removal extensively, and Volks suggests on their blog, The Sumika Times, to remove the glue using enamel thinner.

Is this safe to do?
Has anyone on the forums done it, and if so, what have they to say of their experience?

I've also read about the hair-dryer method. Is this easier and/or safer than the enamel remover method?

I'm sorry if this has already been asked, but I did a search and couldn't find it... Please help me to prepare for my new boy's arrival! All answers are greatly appreciated!!

 

I think most people either use a hairdryer or put the head in the freezer for a while. Enamel thinners may affect the resin or faceup, so I'd be careful with that.

 

funny thing about hot glue..it does stick to resin but because resin is a smooth surface, it doesn't stick well...you could possible take a pair of good tweezer and be able to lift part of the glue enough to Pop it out, or if you know someone with a hot glue gun, you could use that to lift it.

 

Generally reheating the glue, or popping the head in the freezer should do the trick when it comes to hot glue. I wouldn't risk using a chemical to try taking it out.

 

I have read that putting the head in the freezer may cause the resin to become brittle. I'm not eager to damage my boy's head the day I get him, so I believe I will try the hairdryer option.

I wonder why Volks would suggest using enamel thinner if there was a chance it could harm the resin...

Thanks for the advice!

 

I've used the thinner they've recommended, and it worked incredibly well. I've always used the hairdryer method before (and I've done that many, many times!) but this took a fifth of the time. TBH, with Volks' method you're using so little of the thinner I doubt it could harm the resin. It probably could damage a faceup, but I think using the hairdryer method is just as dangerous.

 

I've always simply used a hairdryer to soften the glue then just pulled it off. You can also ask the company not to set the eyes as you don't want glue. I've requested that before from some other companies that glue in their eyes.

 

it's hard to remove it by hand when it's old and hard`! an easy ways to do it? help?
;A;
​

 

Hot glue is hot glue. The approaches to removing hot-glued eyes are exactly the same as the approaches to removing hot-glue sueding.

 

I've heard that if you put the parts that have the glue in the freezer for about an hour, that its normally easier to peel off, so you could try that

EDIT: i just saw that other thread, i think you should follow what that says and use a hairdryer, just make sure the heat isnt too intense

 

Heat can yellow a dolls resin! So please read up on that before you use a hair dryer.

The freezer is the best way that I have tried. Cold has no effects on resin, but it the hot glue should get brittle and pop right off!

 

People have warped their resin doll parts using hair dryers, it makes the resin soft. I used the freezer method for my Volks Yo head as his eyes were hot glued in. About an hour in the freezer should make the glue brittle enough to come out.

I put my doll's head in a plastic sandwich bag. I got 99% of the hot glue out by using blunt pliers to pick it out. Luckily the hot glue was in two big globs and not thin layers.

 

Removing hot glue eyes

http://site.volksusa.com/sumikatimes/2009/07/24/come-unglued/

Very similar. ~Gus

 

Hmm, is that's the case, there should be all sorts of thinner for paints at Hobby Lobby.

 

Well, I wasn't sure where to put this, and I couldn't find a thread that answer my question. Feel free to move this thread, if this isn't the place for it.

I have a Volks SD13 Tsukasa Konoe, and he's still completely default. Meaning, his eyes are still hot-glued in his head. For those who have had dolls with their eyes hot-glued in, how were you guys able to remove the eyes without damaging them or the inside of the head? Some helpful advice would be greatly appreciated as I would like to get him some new eyes this summer!

Sen

 

I've use a hair dryer, set on low, and moved it around, but I was back off the head, like I was blowing my own hair dry. Then I've worked it out a little at a time. They say freezing the head works too, and the glue chips out.

 

I got my Volks yo Rengemaru who's acrylic eyes were hot glued in. The hair dryer method risks damaging the eye lashes as the glue there will melt too.

I stuck the head in a plastic sandwich bag and left it in the freezer for thirty minutes ( I think, it could be more but I wasn't paying attention ) and used blunt needle nose pliers to pull out hot glue, then I grab the eye rim and they came out easily. Minimal damage to the eyes, most of the glue came out and it was easy. Tiny bits of hot glue is still in the head, but I'm too lazy to pick it all out. lol

 

This maybe a silly question but does the freezing harm the face up in anyway? I'd like to change my Mimi's eyes soon too.

 

Not unless the face bumps into something in the freezer! I always put the head inside a plastic bag, and make sure nothing is touching the face--and I only leave the head in the freezer for 15 or 20 minutes. There's never been any damage at all to the faceups, and I've done this at least half a dozen times.

 

I put my Volks Daria and Gretel in the freezer for 45 min, and the eyes popped right out! I had to use some of the enamel thinner to get the glue that was stuck on the bottom of the eye wells, but it worked like a charm! Just make sure to have a white papertowel in your hand because of condensation.