Regular Weight V.S. Weight Reduced/Light By Design V.S. Down Scaled Dolls
Making the decision to purchase a doll can include consideration of whether to choose a doll that is regular weight, weight reduced/light by design or downscaled. Here are explanations of all three options and the pros and cons that I have found.
Regular weight - Regular weight dolls are generally original design, full size (weight, height and proportions) dolls made using traditional manufacturing methods and materials (including limited amounts of foam in the case of silicone dolls). Regular weight dolls can be made from TPE or silicone.
Pros:
-
Regular weight dolls tend to be more consistent in their quality than weight reduced/light by design dolls, being made using well established manufacturing methods and materials. Most if not all (current) regular weight silicone dolls will be made with limited amounts of foam at their core; this foam core does lighten the design slightly and adds to ease of handling (v.s. solid TPE or silicone dolls without foam core) by reducing the floppiness or jello like handling characteristics of a doll without. More on foam cores can be found in the summary.
-
Some find regular weight dolls to be more realistic than weight reduced/light by design and down scaled dolls due to height and/or weight and/or proportions being closer to that of a real human being.
Cons:
-
Regular weight dolls are the heaviest of all options. Many are in the 30 kg (66 lb) + range and some can go over 45 kg (100 lb). You may be thinking it is easy to lift a 45 kg (100 lb) barbell or human, but lifting the dead and sometimes jello like weight of a doll without ergonomic handles or the ability to assist is a completely different challenge. Not being able to handle the weight of a chosen doll commonly causes purchase dissapointment/regret and/or injuries.
-
Persons with physical disabilities may not be able to physically lift a regular weight doll.
-
The weight of a regular weight doll will provide additional challenge in moving/manipulating, dressing, cleaning and sexual use.
Weight reduced/light by design - Weight reduced/light by design dolls are either reduced weight versions of existing regular weight dolls or full size dolls designed from the ground up to be light, using common reduced weight doll manufacturing methods and materials. Weight reduction/light by design dolls are most commonly made of silicone, there have been limited attempts at weight reduced/light by design TPE dolls.
Pros:
-
Weight reduced/light by design dolls are lighter (by varying degrees) than regular weight dolls (a 35 kg or 77 lb doll may be reduced to around 28 kg or 62 lb) while remaining more realistically sized (realistic adult human height) than downscaled dolls.
-
Persons with physical disabilities who cannot physically lift a regular weight doll, may be able to physically lift a weight reduced/light by design doll.
-
Weight reduced/light by design dolls will be easier to move/manipulate, dress, clean and use sexually than a regular weight doll due to the lower weight. Also, because of an increased foam to body material ratio, weight reduced/light by design dolls may be more rigid (less floppy and jello like) and therefore easier to control or manipulate.
Cons:
-
Weight reduced/light by design dolls most commonly use increased amounts of foam at their core as the method of keeping weight low. This increased foam to body material (most often silicone) ratio means there is a much thinner “skin” layer. Quality and aesthetic Issues such as “skin” shifting, bunching, twisting, air pockets/bubbles/voids etc. are much more prominent as a result compared to regular weight or downscaled dolls.
-
Weight reduced/light by design dolls tend to be firmer overall in comparison to regular weight and downscaled dolls due to the increased foam to body material ratio and the resulting, comparably thinner “skin” layer.
-
Some may find weight reduced/light by design dolls to be less realistic than regular weight dolls due to weight being lower than that of a real human being of similar size (height, proportions etc.).
Downscaled - Downscaled dolls are effectively downscaled versions of full size (weight, height and proportions) dolls (think model car v.s. real car) made using traditional manufacturing methods and materials (including limited amounts of foam in the case of silicone dolls). Downscaled dolls can be original designs, not based on an existing full size (weight, height and proportions), regular weight doll. Downscaled dolls can be made from TPE or silicone.
Pros:
-
Downscaled dolls tend to be more consistent in their quality than weight reduced/light by design dolls, being made using well established manufacturing methods and materials. Most if not all (current) downscaled silicone dolls will be made with limited amounts of foam at their core; this foam core does lighten the design slightly and adds to ease of handling (v.s. solid TPE or silicone dolls without foam core) by reducing the floppiness or jello like handling characteristics of a doll without. More on foam cores can be found in the summary.
-
Downscaled dolls tend to be lighter than regular weight and equal to or lighter than weight reduced/light by design dolls.
-
Persons with physical disabilities who cannot physically lift a regular weight doll, may be able to physically lift a downscaled doll.
-
Downscaled dolls can be easier to move/manipulate, dress, clean and use sexually than a regular weight or weight reduced/light by design doll, due to lower weight and/or decreased size.
-
Downscaled dolls require less storage space due to their smaller size.
Cons:
-
Some may find downscaled dolls to be less realistic than regular weight or weight reduced/light by design dolls due to weight, height etc. being less than that of a real adult human being.
-
Downscaled dolls may be deemed illegal in your country/state due to their size (height). Be sure of your local laws before purchasing any doll.
To sum it up, it is my opinion that:
-
You may be wondering; why don’t regular weight and downscaled dolls have the same quality and aesthetic issues that weight reduced/light by design dolls have if all three use foam cores? The answer is they do, but the issues are much less prominent or even unnoticeable. The difference is in the foam to body material (almost exclusively silicone) ratio. The higher the foam to body material ratio, the more prominent these issues will become. Weight reduced dolls almost always acheive their reduced weight by increasing the foam to body material ratio.
-
Regular weight dolls will have less prominent quality and aesthetic issues compared to weight reduced/light by design dolls and will more realistically approximate a real adult human being (weight, height etc.) than a weight reduced/light by design or downscaled doll.
-
Weight reduced/light by design dolls will be lighter and possibly more rigid; therefore they may be easier to move/manipulate, dress, clean and use sexually than a regular weight doll. Persons with physical disabilities who cannot physically lift a regular weight doll, may be able to physically lift a weight reduced/light by design doll; which would allow them the ability to own and enjoy a full sized doll (height, proportions etc.). Weight reduced dolls do come with real compromises in quality, aesthetics and possibly feel (excessive firmness).
-
Downscaled dolls are effectively (but not always) downscaled versions of regular weight dolls and are therefore smaller dimensionally but maintain realistic proportions (similar to a model car v.s. real car) for their size. Downscaled dolls are lighter than regular weight dolls and equal to or lighter than weight reduced/light by design dolls. Because downscaled dolls are made using traditional methods and materials (including limited amounts of foam in the case of silicone dolls), they tend not to have the prominent quality and aesthetic issues that weight reduced/light by design dolls commonly have. They are a good choice for persons with physical disabilities who need a doll that is light and easier to move/manipulate, dress, clean and use sexually than a regular weight or weight reduced/light by design doll, but who does not want to compromise on quality and aesthetics. Downscaled dolls may not be legal in your country/state due to size (height). Be sure of your local laws before purchasing any doll.