Thank you for the inspiration to fix mine! I had to take it a little further though because after filling in the large missing areas like you show, with milk jug plastic and clear epoxy, I had the issue that some of the broken areas were convex not flat. The epoxy will only cure flat so I needed to come up with something that I could mold to replicated the missing pieces that bowed out (it was the fur trim area on Santa's coat, below the belt area, and also his boots at the bottom. Not this exact same Santa but an Empire table top one). I found thermo-plastic beads that when put in hot water become moldable until they cool down then they harden again. That worked wonderfully for needing to add a positive shape. After it was hardened though, I couldn't sand it or do anything like that because friction caused heat, which caused it to soften up again. So I got out my hair dryer and selectively reheated problem areas then wet my fingers and smoothed out the area by hand rather than by sanding and let it cool and harden again. To replicated the fur indentations and squiggly designs, I used my solder gun and "carved" them into the thermo-plastic area, once again the heat would melt it briefly then it would cool to hard again. After it was all put back together, I used an airbrush gun (nice kit from Harbor Freight) and repainted the whole Santa. If you'd like some pictures of my project and the products that I used, just let me know. Thank you again for providing this video which was the push I needed to believe I could do it myself!
Absolutely no issues at all. Proper prepping (as with any painting project) always is going to be the predictor of long term results. I have no fading, peeling or flaking!@@heathernicole3472
awesome!! hey I have a vintage large santa (was my grandparents from the 50's/60's) that has some damage... They gave it to the wrong grandchild (haha my brother) Santa has now come home (i bought my grandparents house) but has some damage. do you have a website that i could send some pictures and see if you have any suggestions? no pressure....love your stuff...Merry Christmas!
Would you recommend the red sharpie or acrylic paint for general foam reindeer reins? I got lucky and got 8 reindeer blanks from the factory. They have never had holes drilled or painted.
This is awesome. Do you know how long it takes the marker to fade after applying, if you continue with to put them out in the sun? Would you have to reapply every year or just every few? My mom has a Nativity set that we want to re-color
I don't have experience with Sharpies outside. When I did the video I mentioned small, inside blow molds. I would imagine that over time they would fade, just like paint, plus the amount of coloring time you would have to put in to cover the larger outdoor ones would be significant and daunting. That said, I do have a large, outside snowman that I have to completely redo and has large red buttons to color. I may do that in Sharpie to test long term. As always I highly recommend testing a small part first before diving into large scale projects.
You should always repaint a blow mold using Krylon Fusion or Rustoleum outdoor plastic spray paint. Otherwise all the brush strokes will show up like this when they’re lit up.
If I choose to touch up ones to display outdoors, will using these sharpies be ok? Don't care about fading over time but will the colors run? Thanks for the videos! Also curious about bulb and cord replacement ideas and where to purchase.
I've never used this process on an outdoor one... yet. I would imagine, since they can write under water that they semi-water stable. But, I would have to test it first. On cord replacement. I find them sometimes at yard sales or thirft stores, but they can sometimes be bought through ebay.
I havent seen anyone using a air brush to repaint these which is what I thought would be the most popular repair method besides cost any reason why that wouldmt work?
Not having used air brush before, I wouldn't be able to speak to it too much. Seems like it would work since they were originally painted that way in the factory. I would test it out on a milk jug to ensure you get uniformity and the correct thinkness so light still comes through. If you have the equipment, worth a test. If you do, post a video so we can see your results! Good luck!
Looks fantastic ❤
I love it ! Thank you for sharing how fixs. Old blow molds. Even 65 year can do this. Thank you ,thank you ,thank you .
Thank you for the inspiration to fix mine! I had to take it a little further though because after filling in the large missing areas like you show, with milk jug plastic and clear epoxy, I had the issue that some of the broken areas were convex not flat. The epoxy will only cure flat so I needed to come up with something that I could mold to replicated the missing pieces that bowed out (it was the fur trim area on Santa's coat, below the belt area, and also his boots at the bottom. Not this exact same Santa but an Empire table top one). I found thermo-plastic beads that when put in hot water become moldable until they cool down then they harden again. That worked wonderfully for needing to add a positive shape. After it was hardened though, I couldn't sand it or do anything like that because friction caused heat, which caused it to soften up again. So I got out my hair dryer and selectively reheated problem areas then wet my fingers and smoothed out the area by hand rather than by sanding and let it cool and harden again. To replicated the fur indentations and squiggly designs, I used my solder gun and "carved" them into the thermo-plastic area, once again the heat would melt it briefly then it would cool to hard again. After it was all put back together, I used an airbrush gun (nice kit from Harbor Freight) and repainted the whole Santa. If you'd like some pictures of my project and the products that I used, just let me know. Thank you again for providing this video which was the push I needed to believe I could do it myself!
How’s the paint sticking using the airbrush
Absolutely no issues at all. Proper prepping (as with any painting project) always is going to be the predictor of long term results. I have no fading, peeling or flaking!@@heathernicole3472
Is there something you can spray on it to protect the paint from rain?
awesome!! hey I have a vintage large santa (was my grandparents from the 50's/60's) that has some damage... They gave it to the wrong grandchild (haha my brother) Santa has now come home (i bought my grandparents house) but has some damage. do you have a website that i could send some pictures and see if you have any suggestions? no pressure....love your stuff...Merry Christmas!
Would you recommend the red sharpie or acrylic paint for general foam reindeer reins? I got lucky and got 8 reindeer blanks from the factory. They have never had holes drilled or painted.
This is awesome. Do you know how long it takes the marker to fade after applying, if you continue with to put them out in the sun? Would you have to reapply every year or just every few? My mom has a Nativity set that we want to re-color
I don't have experience with Sharpies outside. When I did the video I mentioned small, inside blow molds. I would imagine that over time they would fade, just like paint, plus the amount of coloring time you would have to put in to cover the larger outdoor ones would be significant and daunting. That said, I do have a large, outside snowman that I have to completely redo and has large red buttons to color. I may do that in Sharpie to test long term. As always I highly recommend testing a small part first before diving into large scale projects.
You should always repaint a blow mold using Krylon Fusion or Rustoleum outdoor plastic spray paint. Otherwise all the brush strokes will show up like this when they’re lit up.
Would you spray the inside, or the outside? Would the light still shine through?
@@giuliadavis8019 outside but you have to strip the old paint off first. Citrustrip works best from what I’ve heard
If I choose to touch up ones to display outdoors, will using these sharpies be ok? Don't care about fading over time but will the colors run? Thanks for the videos! Also curious about bulb and cord replacement ideas and where to purchase.
I've never used this process on an outdoor one... yet. I would imagine, since they can write under water that they semi-water stable. But, I would have to test it first.
On cord replacement. I find them sometimes at yard sales or thirft stores, but they can sometimes be bought through ebay.
You need a flesh skin color with jumbo marker to show up his face more when you light it up.
I havent seen anyone using a air brush to repaint these which is what I thought would be the most popular repair method besides cost any reason why that wouldmt work?
Not having used air brush before, I wouldn't be able to speak to it too much. Seems like it would work since they were originally painted that way in the factory. I would test it out on a milk jug to ensure you get uniformity and the correct thinkness so light still comes through. If you have the equipment, worth a test. If you do, post a video so we can see your results! Good luck!