Are there any doll repair shops in the US ?
Specifically in Fla ?
My doll needs her hands replaced…
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Tpe or silicone?
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She is all TPE
Do you have replacement hands?
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No. I don’t
What brand is the doll? I know WM used to make replacement hands with the skeleton to the wrist joint. Do you have pictures of the hands? I live in Florida and would be happy to help.
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They are WM dolls !
I am in Tampa Bay ~ where are you ?
Port St. Lucie. Let me check with my sales rep at WM and see if we can order hands. Do you have pictures of the hands?
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1st two pics:
WM 172cm D-Cup
2nd two pics:
WM 174cm G-Cup
WM doesn’t sell the replacement hands anymore.
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i replaced the hands on my 136A when all the finger wires were broken and the replacment skeleton did not fit well.
I thought outside the box and bought nail practice silicone hands that are articulated. I adjusted the arm rod in the hands to fit on the arm rod of the 136A.
this is what i bought from Amazon. I had to buy each hand separately. You might find it works for you.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CS5ZWPDP?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title
the replacement hands on the doll
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willhill, wow, that ìs amazing, what a great find
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Not sure I could replace them myself without some type of tutorial…
Did u strip the silicone off and use the skeleton or just join the bones?
the hands come with a rod arm bone from wrist to end of forearm. that rod is attacked to a swivel for the wrist.
The 136a i removed the hands at the wrist and removed about 3 inches of forearm skin which was replaced by the forearm skin of the silicone hands. I saved the STPE arm parts that i removed.
i cut the silicone hands along the forearm seams on ea ch side to get to the wrist element and have room to work. It was easier to peel the skin back than trying to go in from the wrist sides. I removed the rod on the hands with a cutting wheel so i could use the arm rod of the 136a and attach it to the wrist mechanism. I super glued the 136a arm rod to the swivel mechanism of the silicone hands. once glued i reglued the seam of the skin on the hands. i kept about 1/4 inch separation due to my doll being STPE and the hands being silicone. i attached alluminum foil and coated it with polyeurothane on the silicone side to create a barrier. i then put a sealant on both sides.
shirts and arm sleeves hide the meeting of the two. if my doll were silicone, i would attach the hands to the forearms and mold them together as one . I have nude arm sleeves ordered to cover the gap when sleeveless and i am also considering to get several tattoo arm sleeves for her.
STPE and silicone can destroy each other leaching oil so i am specific to keep it apart.
different manufacturers have different arm and wrist connections so i cant say yours will be like mine. i figured a way to connect them since i dont know how to weld. the wrists on my replacement hands dont operate now as the glue has stuck them in one position. but small price to pay for the hands looking and working in the other aspects. you can maybe drill holes and use nuts and bolts, use glue like i did, or if you weld its an easy connection. Either way it wasnt too hard a job to replace both hands. In the future if the hands fail, or the rod comes apart at the wrist, i will replace them again. I may learn a little welding, who knows.
having the 136a, the hands are quite big compared to the original but again small price to pay. i can somewhat hide the hands looking too big as you see in some of my photos of that doll body.
i made a video of the hands done but i get an error message trying to add it to this post.
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willhill, great job on keeping the TPE and Silicone separated