Prepping a "New Generation" pony for re-hairing (Izzy Moonbow)

[Eruna]

Hello!
I am customizing an Izzy Moonbow from the "A New Generation" 6-pack.I thought these pics would be helpful to anyone customizing one of these ponies. Several of these ponies have hard molded plastic hair, so this is the process for one of the ones with brushable hair. 
First off, let me tell you that the hair is gorgeous! It is super soft and very shiny. That said, I wanted to cut it all off 

As you might know, the heads of the ponies pop off of the neck pretty easily. To get to the hair, you will need to remove the plug at the base of the skull. In the case of this pony, there was not a lot of glue. I was able to run a sharp stylus over the seam with medium pressure multiple times until I could slip the stylus through the seam and pry the plug out.

I imagine that some ponies might have more glue in this seam. If this is the case, you may need to carefully cut the plug out along the seam with an exacto knife (I have checked and some of the ones in the 6 pack do seem to have a stronger seal where this plug is.)

After the plug is out, you will have a nice big hole for re-hairing, which is a huge bonus. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was NO glue holding the hair in! It pulled right out cleanly with needle nosed plyers. Even small left over hairs can be blown out with compressed air or a puff of breath.

Getting the plug out is the hardest part- afterward, as long as the other ponies don't have glue, these bodies seem like they will be a joy to re-hair!
Happy customizing everyone!
(p.s. excuse my "working hands" non-manicure )

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[BubbleTea]

interesting! I can't wait to see where this goes 

[TwistedRiver]

I'm so completely behind on pony releases. Kind of put ponies on hold during the end of G4 regular brushables so I've not seen these new ones. It's great how easily accessible the manes are, I prefer ponies with brushable hair and would need at least a little if I were to customize one.

[Leave a Whisper]

The rooting hole pattern is bizarre. Thanks for the tutorial.

[SunPony]

Thanks, that was helpful to see.  I'm about to try one this size myself, so I very much appreciate your pictures and info.

[LadyMoondancer]

This is so useful!! Thank you!

[Eruna]

I'm glad my pics are helpful! I look forward to seeing what everyone does with these ponies <3

Post Merge: January 12, 2022, 07:39:49 AM

The rooting hole pattern is bizarre. Thanks for the tutorial.

I agree!

[SunPony]

This rooting pattern made sense on rainbow reveal Sunny (the outline is in pink and the inside zig-zag "S" shaped parts were one for each color of the rainbow, so the rainbow is hidden unless you make an effort).  Not sure why they used it on Izzy, too, maybe just keeping it standard?

[LadyMoondancer]

Ohhh, this reminds me of a video I saw of Frozen dolls being rooted in the factory!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVk7QYOeY6s&t=8s&ab_channel=denisamedrano

Edit:  Shorter video of the similar machine in Mattel headquarters.  They've had the same machine for 20 years and never had to replace it! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wO3MTLBbNf0&ab_channel=KatieLinendoll

The process is not very automated . . . A person has to move the doll head about to get the hair in the right spot.

So my guess is the squiggly pattern is because it's more efficient / easier to root in that pattern instead of making a clean stop at the end of each line of hair. (The paint is there to guide the operator.)  On human dolls the hair goes in concentric circles, but I think that would be hard on a pony's head because it's less of an egg shape.

Also note in the video that Anna's hair is braided by hand . . . Yep, that's not automated either.  Crazy to think about the amount of effort that goes into making a simple toy.

[puuush]

Wow, interestig, Lady Moondancer.

That is super helpful, Eruna. Now I want to pick one up and try customising. I wonder if they are available in Germany's toy stores...