Sticky ponies

[BabyTaffeta]

Hello Pony peeps,

I am wondering what is it that causes this sticky feeling that some G1s get after the years?
I had a part of my collection stored in a cardboard box in my Appartement for a few years and now some ponies got that sticky feeling on the plastic no discoloration or anything else..they just feel sticky. But just some not all of them.
What is it? And what can I do to prevent or to get it away?
Any ideas please?

[stjarne]

i may be wrong, but to me this sounds like plasticizer leakage. over time plasticizer, the stuff they use to make the ponies vinyl squishy, can leech out and create a sticky feeling with g1's. same happens with g3's. its part of the aging process for some ponies 

your best course of action really would be to just wash them periodically with soap (dish soap is best) & water like you usually would and that can keep the stuff at bay for awhile. be warned it can come back though, because theres not really a cure for it. it'll keep happening til it can't leech anymore.
be sure to keep them a good distance away from non-sticky ponies. best of luck!

[BabyTaffeta]

That sounds like a reason, thank you!
It can spread on other ponies?? Oh no!!

[BlackCurtains]

Hi, yes it sounds like plasticizer leakage. You can dust them with corn starch after you wash them to help soak up the residue.

And yes, it can kind of spread. What happens is the gases it gives off while leaking can trigger the same process in nearby items (it doesn't just happen with ponies) that were already on the cusp of leaking themselves. So a pony that might not have started to leak in two years from now, will start to when the gases reach it. If they were all in a box together that's probably why more than one has it. You stored them in a box which is better than plastic. Plastic containers speed up the process.

But yeah, they can continue to leak for years and eventually will become hard plastic. That's all it does though. Oh, and in G3s it dissolves glitter. I'm not sure about the sparkle G1 ponies?

Also, it's not something that is supposed to happen. Even if ponies are 40 years old, it's a manufacturing defect, which is why some ponies or colors are more prone to it. Same with regrind.

So just wash them with dish soap, and sprinkle some corn starch or potato starch would work too, and keep the leaking ones together and well ventilated, away from other ponies or older plastic items.

[BabyTaffeta]

Ah that sounds bad That means there isn’t a real cure for it.
Yes, it seems like it happened to ponys with more brighter colors like my Baby Tic Tac Toe or my Quackers and some of my Summer Wings. Oh and Quarterback I think. They all came out around the same 2 years…

Thank you for all the advices!!!

Oh and it sounds like it won’t affect all ponies? Only the ones that would have get sticky in the next years all on their own?

[BlackCurtains]

Right. It would only turn sticky the ponies that would go sticky anyway.

[BabyTaffeta]

Is there something that I could put into the boxes to, I don’t know, „catch“ the gases?

[BlackCurtains]

I really don't know. I do know that a dehumidifier helps.

[BabyTaffeta]

Oh that’s a good idea! I have these little bags, maybe these will work, too

[Taffeta]

I don't think anyone has reported any glitter dissolving in G1 sparkle ponies. Only the G3s.

[BlackCurtains]

I didn't think so, but I wasn't sure.

Oh that’s a good idea! I have these little bags, maybe these will work, too

What bags? You want to keep the ponies out of plastic.

[BabyTaffeta]

I didn't think so, but I wasn't sure.

Oh that’s a good idea! I have these little bags, maybe these will work, too

What bags? You want to keep the ponies out of plastic.

No, I meant these little bags with Oxygen Absorber that you can put in boxes to keep mold away.

[BlackCurtains]

Oh! Yeah, those are good

[BabyTaffeta]

Oh! Yeah, those are good

Thank you so much for your help!

[TheBeatlesPkmnFan42]

Plasticizer leakage is definitely annoying, though it's toward the bottom of my list of flaws I care about since it's not cosmetic at all (aside from when it happens to Divine Shine G3s). Since all the ponies who go through it will eventually anyway I don't really bother separating my sticky ponies from my non-sticky ones, either. They're gonna do it eventually, might as well get it over with, right?