Is it a bad idea to keep stands and diorama pieces in an attic?

[mediame]

I keep all of my art boxes and shippers from my 1:6 figures in my attic, though I take everything out and put the accessories inside of plastic bags, and organize them in plastic storage containers inside my house. This is taking up too much space, and I am thinking about keeping the accessories inside my house, though putting all of the large plastic pieces such as the stands and mini dios that come with the figures into a storage container either in my garage or in the attic. I live in the Los Angeles area, and it has hit around 117 during peak summer, and I have no idea what temperature it gets in my garage or attic during this time. Does anyone have any thoughts on if these would survive the high heat of summer? What is the likelihood of them warping or being damaged from the heat?

Thanks

 

[Jay Virtual]

Generally, no since they're usually made of plastic and I would generally check them at least twice a year. The figures themselves on the other hand, especially 1/6 scale figures, should NOT be kept in box. I've been collecting 1/6 since 2002 and I've noticed that a lot of newer collectors are obsessed with finding older Hot Toys releases mint in sealed box, which will increase the likelihood of the figure having defects after being in storage for so long. The plastisizers used in the plastic tends to interact with the mixed media and made worse by the stagnant air in a box.

 

[Klornamafern]

Generally, no since they're usually made of plastic and I would generally check them at least twice a year. The figures themselves on the other hand, especially 1/6 scale figures, should NOT be kept in box. I've been collecting 1/6 since 2002 and I've noticed that a lot of newer collectors are obsessed with finding older Hot Toys releases mint in sealed box, which will increase the likelihood of the figure having defects after being in storage for so long. The plastisizers used in the plastic tends to interact with the mixed media and made worse by the stagnant air in a box.

Damn, made me think, I bought 2 of every figure I really love just to have a spare one for the future if anything goes wrong with the one I'm currently displaying.

I was thinking that in 10-15 years from now I would love to have a pristine boxed figure that was my favorite back in the day. Didn't realize it could be bad. I just started collecting last year and didn't really know how durable these figures are but since then I keep seeing used figures from 10+ yrs ago in absolutely amazing shape! I was actually having an urge to always buy 2 of each figure I get as I rarely buy one, just the ones I really like.

Have you done that or something similar? Really find this interesting, thanks for sharing the info! Definitely made me relax a bit as I don't have that non stop thought that I need one extra to store away.

 

[Jay Virtual]

Damn, made me think, I bought 2 of every figure I really love just to have a spare one for the future if anything goes wrong with the one I'm currently displaying.

I was thinking that in 10-15 years from now I would love to have a pristine boxed figure that was my favorite back in the day. Didn't realize it could be bad. I just started collecting last year and didn't really know how durable these figures are but since then I keep seeing used figures from 10+ yrs ago in absolutely amazing shape! I was actually having an urge to always buy 2 of each figure I get as I rarely buy one, just the ones I really like.

Have you done that or something similar? Really find this interesting, thanks for sharing the info! Definitely made me relax a bit as I don't have that non stop thought that I need one extra to store away.

Well for me I keep the 1/6 scale stuff out of their boxes for them to breathe as I had bad experiences with those older Medicom, Dragon, Hot Toys and Sideshow figures showing signs of aging when I buy them "brand new" or when I myself kept a few in storage for too long. Granted, it also largely depends on the storage conditions, moisture, humidity, temperature and exposure to natural and unnatural light but having them in box speeds up the possible plastisizer leakage.

It's just one of those things we have to accept about 1/6 and mixed-media collecting as I have old Kenner, Hasbro, McFarlane and Takara figures pushing 30 years old and still mint on card.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

Generally, no since they're usually made of plastic and I would generally check them at least twice a year. The figures themselves on the other hand, especially 1/6 scale figures, should NOT be kept in box. I've been collecting 1/6 since 2002 and I've noticed that a lot of newer collectors are obsessed with finding older Hot Toys releases mint in sealed box, which will increase the likelihood of the figure having defects after being in storage for so long. The plastisizers used in the plastic tends to interact with the mixed media and made worse by the stagnant air in a box.

Thanks for bringing this up. Much appreciated. Over the years, I've seen aspects of this discussion before, but never acted on it as most of my MIMB back then were still relatively newer/newish.

But I should definitely check them. The ones in their "crypts"

You might have saved some of my figures here from death by rotting, so thank you.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

Well for me I keep the 1/6 scale stuff out of their boxes for them to breathe as I had bad experiences with those older Medicom, Dragon, Hot Toys and Sideshow figures showing signs of aging when I buy them "brand new" or when I myself kept a few in storage for too long.

I don't know which brand made it ( Medicom? ) but someone made a 1/6th Trinity from the Matrix in the old days, and the jacket would literally disintegrate in your hands. The "shiny" bits on the outside would scale off. I don't know the specific material but maybe a type of vinyl reacting to the plastic or rubber? I know the original Dragon Models Resident Evil figures ( the female figure with the red jacket/vest), I know people had problems with the rubber arm sleeves and also the material on the jacket. My HT ED 209, the original run, the "dome" is flaking off, and it was taken out of the box very soon. I didn't consider if I left it MIMB, that it would have taken an even worse turn.

I'm pretty sure my old Ultimate Soldier stuff will survive a nuclear holocaust though.... I guess there's that.

 

[Masao]

This has been a known issue for a while now:
https://www.collectorfreaks.com/thr...oxes-for-long-period-6-months-or-more.184150/
Most small action figures, 1/6 heads and all pleather are made of the same stuff: PVC -poly vinyl chloride. It is known to degrade if heated. Even temperatures of only the 90f range can start a chemical reaction which results in eventual destruction of the PVC. Some have suggested that the moisture in the air combines with the PVC and results in small amounts of HCl. HCl is hydrochloric acid. Not good stuff to have around collectibles.

This appears to be the reason for including moisture absorbent packs in the packaging.

If allowed, the process can literally melt plastic parts. In the past, figures with styrene equipment would melt in contact with vinyl parts. -Think plastic pistol in a rubber holster turning to goo. Figures from the sixties and seventies show this kind of damage. Mego dolls are one of the best examples. Wonder Woman dolls melt if they are MIP - the vinyl of the limbs are incompatible with the plastic of the body. The best way to preserve the doll was to handle it repeatedly and allow the contaminants from handling accumulate. The patina that forms can prevent the chemical reaction. I have seen this at toy shows. The filthy played with doll is pristine but dirty. The mint in box doll is melted.

Today's figures are still made of mainly the same materials and need airflow and cool dry surroundings so the plasticizers can dissipate.

 

[glocke12]

Thanks for bringing this up. Much appreciated. Over the years, I've seen aspects of this discussion before, but never acted on it as most of my MIMB back then were still relatively newer/newish.

But I should definitely check them. The ones in their "crypts"

You might have saved some of my figures here from death by rotting, so thank you.

New member here but I've been interested in 1/6 figures for awhile...I had some 12" GI Joe classic figures from the late 90's and early 2000's still in the original box and when checking prices, realized they hadn't appreciated much in value so figured I'd remove them from their boxes and enjoy them. That spurred me to buy a few more off eBay that were 20+ years old and still in their boxes.

They started showing up and a couple of them had jackets or accessories made from PVC that were literally melting/disintegrating. It was a huge mess when I removed them from the boxes and the figures are essentially ruined...Fortunately these particular ones weren't that expensive and the vendor gave me a refund.

While it's great that so many of these are still available in the original boxes/packaging, I'm not sure I see the point in keeping them that way after realizing they will deteriorate like that so even though I paid collectors prices for some of these, they are going to be removed from the packaging and setup so they can be enjoyed like they were intended to be.

 

[Stryker2011]

When my parents tossed me out of the house (the minute I graduated from high school) they put all my GI Joes, Six Million Dollar Man, Lone Ranger & Silver, along with Star Trek, super hero, & Planet of the Apes Megos, miscellaneous other stuff, etc., in one big box and shoved it all in their attic. Just a few short years later when I was able to reclaim the stuff — everything, and I do mean everything, was ruined by melting and rusting (where metal was touching the figures they were permanently stained). Most attics are not temperature (or humidity) controlled, so this is a massive mistake. Ideal temp for this stuff is around 65 degrees F with moderate humidity (all year round), with absolutely zero sunlight — its not surprising many folks have issues if this isn’t feasible.

 

[potato]

1 thing i notice, furnitures and dioramas tend to sweat especially if made of injection soft plastic. this will react with plastic trays in contact with them. for example my Blitzway Scarface chair. Heat will cause the sweat to happen faster and more and might result in discoloration.

also some of my Neca Turtles accessories are packed really tight onto the tray, even the new ones i opened up i noticed gloss stains transferred from the tray onto the parts, not removable. also remove any rubberbands, seriously.