Getting My First Obitsu!!

[OkamiKodomo]

So, I snapped up a band new Obitsu 55cm boy complete with magnetic plate on the Den for barely over a hundred bucks. OMG I've wanted that cutie since the first time I saw Obitsu dolls on Junkyspot when I first got into the hobby. The posting had only been up for a matter of hours, and I happened to be browsing for a Mirodoll 68cm body for Myrretah's son, as a birthday present. I had just been talking about him with her too, and so after briefly debating, and getting the enabling push from her, I put him on a brief layaway. I'll pay him off on Friday.

So, does anyone have any tips on these guys? Flaws I should look out for, parts I should replace from other size dolls? I know the general care tips, staining and whatnot. I'm so damn excited. Thinking of putting a ResinSoul head on it...

[K2!]

Besides the normal vinyl care and feeding tips I have three things.
1) Posing
Familiarize yourself with the internal structure (skeleton) of the Obitsu body. You don't have to disassemble your doll to do this. Look at the cut away picture below.



Even though this picture shows the 60cm three part sliding joint style skeleton, the ball joint skeleton as in the 55cm has the joints in the same places.
Of particular importance are the joints in the torso. There are two ball joints in the torso. This is where the torso will bend. You can squeeze the torso vinyls to feel exactly where these joints are. Once you get a feeling for where these joints are it will be much easier to bent the torso as needed. Many people have broken one or more of these torso skeleton parts and I believe much of this is from mishandling. With resin dolls you can see exactly where the joint is, where two resin parts meet. But in the Obitsu two piece soft bodies (as in the 55cm) the two joints are located above and below the "seam" between the two vinyl torso parts, which is not where the torso bends. Some people have replaced these three parts with the spine part from the 50cm body, which has a more contortionist range of motion. It is also one of the few 50cm parts which will fit in the 55/60cm body. I have numerous 55/60cm bodies and have posed them weekly for MADh Vinyl and have never broken one of these parts. I have also never had a resin body so I learned to pose vinyl bodies, not resins.

When posing/moving limbs is is best to bend or twist the joint one axis at a time, rather than grabbing and pulling the limb into position as you might with a strung body. The Obitsu skeleton is designed with many twisting and hinging joints and it is best to make one part of a move at a time so as not to twist of bend a joint part in a direction it was no meant to go. Bend the joints slowly till you get the hang of it and your Obitsu body will be trouble free for years.

Yes, many joints will squeak when moved. This is normal. It means the joint is tight and will hold a pose well. Do not try and lubricate a squeaky joint. You will only damage the plastic.

2) Consider some parts replacement.
The stock 55cm body has a number of external vinyl parts which were designed for a smoother look. This comes at the cost of some range of motion. Most notably are the joints in the arms (wrists, elbows, shoulders). The vinyl parts were molded so as to cover more of the ball joint, preventing the joint from bending when the vinyls bump each other. What I have done to remedy this is to buy a second part of arms, the ones using the more bendable (but less aesthetic) slide joint elbows. You would need to purchase the 60RP-F01WP-31 Elbow part, the 60RP-F01WS-26 Upper arm vinyl, and the 60RP-F01WS-27 Lower arm vinyls. These three parts are white skin and sold as pairs so you'll get two arms. You would use the existing shoulder joint, wrist joint and hands.

The other part to consider replacing is the chest piece. The stock chest piece (55RP-M01WS-21) is rather plain. Parabox has a limited supply of their custom "macho chest" (AC-PB-5500A) The macho chest has a bit more bulk and muscle definition. Parabox says you need to replace the internal chest part but I'm using it with the existing 55cm internal chest part without issue. http://parabox.jp/obitsu/slimmuttyo/koukan.html

3) The hair dryer is your friend.
All Obitsu parts are replaceable individually. If you break a knee, you don't have to replace the whole leg, just the broken part(s). Many vinyl parts will seem to be nearly impossible to disassemble. This can be remedied by the application of heat from a hair dryer. Heating the vinyl will make it more pliable and disassemble and reassemble much easier.

[Trethowan]

You could write and sell a book on these guys, K2. It would be the ultimate vinyl guide!

[OkamiKodomo]

I couldn't agree more, Treth. K2, thank you for your helpful and experienced advice. I was wondering especially about the spine piece. I wasn't sure if they had the same skeleton as the 65cm or 50cm guys, or if it was it's own structure. I recall seeing so much about the bigger skeleton being less workable, more fragile... Anyway, super glad to know I can get the 50cm spine and be ok.

I've handled 1/6th obitsu, and they didn't squeak at all, so thank you for letting me know about that. I would have totally been many levels of "wtf" with a squeaky doll.

Before I switch the arms, I may fiddle with the skins on the arms and trim them a bit, to see if I can improve the mobility without replacing them entirely. I really do like the look of the ball-joint arms instead of the slide joint. Maybe I can compromise on the mobility just a little but we'll see.

[Linsilee]

Congrats on your first Obitsu. I have two now but one is 40cm and the other is 45cm. I am planning on getting two more in the future. I hope you love yours as much as I love mine. They are a lot of fun to pose and dress up.

[K2!]

I was wondering especially about the spine piece. I wasn't sure if they had the same skeleton as the 65cm or 50cm guys, or if it was it's own structure.

The 65cm uses similar spine parts as the 55/60. The center "tube" part is longer on the 65cm.

I recall seeing so much about the bigger skeleton being less workable, more fragile... Anyway, super glad to know I can get the 50cm spine and be ok.

I wouldn't say the 55/60 spine is more fragile. I think a lot of people are fooled by the location of where the two torso vinyls meet and they figure the body should bend there, when actually the joints are above and below the vinyl seam. Also the skeleton parts have a finite distance they will bend or twist, unlike strung bodies where you can just pull the two body parts and the elastic stretches to accommodate.

I've handled 1/6th obitsu, and they didn't squeak at all, so thank you for letting me know about that.

1/6 are completely different animals than the 40cms on up. The 1/6 bodies are mostly hard plastic skins with the jointing molded into each part. The 40cms to 65cms have a completely separate internal skeleton, which does all the hinging and twisting. The vinyl skins for the most part just rest on top of the joints.

I would have totally been many levels of "wtf" with a squeaky doll.

Many people seem to be put off by the squeaking, but most of the joints that squeak can be loosened. Just be prepared for a decrease in posing ability.

Before I switch the arms, I may fiddle with the skins on the arms and trim them a bit, to see if I can improve the mobility without replacing them entirely. I really do like the look of the ball-joint arms instead of the slide joint. Maybe I can compromise on the mobility just a little but we'll see.

Absolutely. You should explore the abilities of the body before any modding is done.

[Jobee]

Grats! I've loved my Obitsus.

[OkamiKodomo]

So I got my boy home and I love him already! However, it looks like his elbow may have been superglued at one point, because it snapped so easily. And upon examining it, it looks like the joint won't move at all. So I ordered another pair of elbows, because he needed a neck connector anyway, but I'm still not complaining, because even figuring shipping into everything, I got him for $100 less than retail. I ended up falling in love with his default head, so I think I'm going to open the eye holes and cut open the headcap to make it magnetic, and see what happens. Despite being in Yen, Parabox's website is fairly easy to navigate/purchase from and their shipping charges aren't particularly unreasonable. Thank you all for your input, and as soon as his replacement elbows get here, I'll post pictures of him.

[K2!]

You'll want that hair dryer for making the elbow swap easier.

[OkamiKodomo]

Yup, got it put aside!

K2, have you ever had an issue with an elbow that doesn't move? I don't like thinking the seller deceived me, and as I said, I still paid about $100 less than I would have paid for retail price, but the arm practically fell off in my hand when I went to pick him up and move said arm. The other arm moved fine, and I handled him very carefully. When I looked at the joint and tried to move the broken part of the hinge, it wouldn't move at all, and it looked like there was some sort of residue inside. I'm no expert, though, and if I broke it myself, despite how careful I was being, I'll own up to it. *face of shame*