Is rehairing bad?

S

Shizuka

Guest
New to the site, and new to restoring, though I've restored (attempted with decent success) about 5 G1 ponies already.

I see mixed opinions about frizzy, cut and faded out hair. Frizzy messes and chopped hair drive me batty. I can tame the frizz, but it's still there. I'd rather give the pony new hair. I use color matched nylon hair from dollyhair.

I see in some threads people seem to prefer the original hair, no matter what condition it's in. What are the community's thoughts on rehairing?

Second, is a head that turns (separated) considered damage?

Third, has anyone tried embossing powder (fine glitter type) to reglitter symbols?

*Stares at tub of ponies soaking to remove interior rust and mold* Don't worry, I'll still love you...
 
Firstly, they are YOUR ponies....you can do what you want with them. I would say that if you ever plan to sell them down the road, just be sure to mention that they have been rehaired to whoever is buying them.

There are some who like complete originality with their ponies, but for the most part people get worked up over the rehairing of "nirvana" ponies. These are ponies that were made in countries outside of Hong Kong. These ponies are rarer, and so people would rather have one with their original frizzy hair than sliky rehair. I think it's just because they are not as common.
 
I understand they are mine, and that is why I have not hesitated to rehair. But I'm curious about other opinions.

I think I have a Nirvana pony. It's Tootsie, but she's white. She had hair that was stiff like straw and when I brushed her, hair started falling out. Is that normal for nirvana?

Thanks for your input!
 
It's a matter of opinion.

I personally would rather have the original hair unless it has been cut so short that it can't be brushed or styled at all (though if it's a male pony short hair doesn't bug me). And even then, some ponies still look cute with short hair.

Frizz doesn't bother me too much. I would rather have original frizzy hair than new hair in most cases....but I might want a duplicate who does have nice hair if it's a pony I really like. ;D

I also hate buzzed off forelocks. I have a couple ponies with this issue and I want to get their forelocks rehaired with donor hair from another bait pony with the same color. it will still be original pony hair, so it's fine in my book.

About loose heads - no! That's not a problem. If you're considering regluing heads, I say NOOOO DON'T DO IT! lol. There's no reason to!

Sorry, no idea about the powder. Though someday I hope to restore some glittery symbols, too! So more power to you with that. Although I think some customs are just awesome and beautiful, and the people that do them are very talented, it warms my heart much more to see a pony restored. <3 Especially G1s!
 
hummmmm......I suppose with the G1s..i would always choose frizzy hair, rather than silky rehair.
(But that is just my opinion) We aren't "picky" collectors in this house. =)
 
I would not re-hair ones I plan to sell later. Better to let the buyer do it themselves if they so choose. I prefer original hair. But restoring is fun! So hey go for it right? :)
 
I like the idea of having my ponies look more like how they once did, and really crimped and crinkled frizzy hair gets me down. Once I have a better workspace for it, I will rehair many of my ponies(that need it, of course) so that they can look their best. I love them a lot, so I doubt I'd sell them.
 
I say rehair away! I hate nasty tangled and frizzy hair. I would rather have a pony look nice, you know?
 
if you ask about -my- personal opinion. i LOVE original hair. aslong as it's not cut really bad i would keep the pony original if i got it. if it is missing half its mane or plugs of hair i would replace the missing areas, and if the hair is just too badly cut off i would rehair. but frizz, i'd never rehair. i prefer my ponies original, and tbh i think the pony loses value when it has been rehaired. i would not pay nearly as much for a pony that has been rehaired as i would for a pony with original firzzy hair. but this is my opinion :)

as for international ponies they usually come in bad condition, with frizzy, dry and even missing hair. i have several bald ponies :lol: they would really loose alot of their value to me if they were rehaired. i paid much more for my baitish spanish Cherries Jubilee than my minty one that has been rehaired.

i know alot of people say 'i'm never gonna sell my ponies' and i am one of them, but you never know what happens. and you might end up having or wanting to sell them. i'm not trying to sound negative, but they would in most cases go for more money if they are not rehairs.

with that being said, i LOVE it when people restore ponies rather than baiting them. i restore bait ponies myself and it is so much fun. only ponies i would rehair though are ones who are missing most or all of their hair.

blablabla :p
 
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I know for myself I would much rather have original hair but I don't see anything wrong with de-frizzing that original hair. If the pony has lost hair plugs I will rehair only those sections. If they have a complete haircut I bypass them. If they have only had a few plugs cut I will rehair. So to me restoration should be as minimal as possible with the goal to get the pony as close to what its original state would have been without altering it completely. If someone has taken the time to rehair a pony that would have been thrown out otherwise, they have given it new life and I know plenty of people would purchase that pony. I would much rather have as much original as possible even for common ponies. I do have a couple of ponies that I have done things to that will ruin their value with "purest" collectors. I don't have any plans to sell those though and they would not have sold well in their condition to begin with. Frizzy hair does not require a re-root to fix. It just takes some conditioner, a curling iron and patience. I have de-frized every pony head I have gotten that was a rats nest and they all look like new now. So I don't really understand the process of re-rooting frizzy hair. It can be fixed and the original hair is better all around. I don't mind loose heads..its actually better in a way because you can keep up with the condition inside the pony which is important. I would never re-glue. I would only re-glitter a bait, I would leave other ponies alone even with worn glitter symbols because, thats altering the pony too much for me.
 
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be careful soaking ponies unless you've already taken out the tail. the metal clamp and the washer will just make it worse! also only use chemicals to clean that won't eat away the paint!


I've used embossing powder, and if it stays clean it works wonderfully. The easiest way is to mix it up with mod podge and make a clear paint (super thick on the glitter) and it comes out fantastic. You could also use tape and create a cut-out of the symbol, then spread the glue and toss the glitter on top. Gets very messy though, and it's hard to get the symbols exact that way.


rehairing - it's your pony. it only matters if you plan on selling one day, and depending on the pony and the hair, it might actually improve the value. The only ponies I wouldn't rehair are super rare ones or ponies whose hair is fixable or the damage is barely noticeable, like a few plugs missing, a tiny trim or just a small section trimmed. Now if you're talking about a more common pony like Parasol or Bowtie with a mohawk, go for it!

I also like rehairing ponies with different colors. I have a Rosedust with green hair, a Cherries Jubilee with lime green hair and a Tootsie with pink hair :)
 
I'm with everyone when they say, if you plan to resell, don't rehair. let the new owner do it.

I have two rehairs, which I did myself, and they are two ponies I don't ever plan on selling, so it didn't bother me at all to rehair them so they were beautiful again, but I don't think I'd intentionally buy a rehair unless it was someone I REALLY wanted.
 
Thank you everyone for your thoughts! They were very informative.

I don't plan to sell my ponies, but you never know down the road.

As for the soak, the ponies were soaking in hot water, heads and tails removed. I treated the tails for rust separately with naval jelly.

I had a blast from the past today when a rubber band I'd used to hold down a mane slipped free as I was removing it, and made itself into a rubber band halter, twisting under the chin and looped over the nose. Anyone else used to do that?
 
Shizuka said:
I had a blast from the past today when a rubber band I'd used to hold down a mane slipped free as I was removing it, and made itself into a rubber band halter, twisting under the chin and looped over the nose. Anyone else used to do that?
Click to expand...


totally did that on all my horsetoys! and used a broken toothbrush to groom then with :)
 
My personal preference is rehaired if it is bad or really bad. A bit of fuzz won't bother me, but I was a hair cutter as a child, and most of my ponies from that time are nearly bald, not simply mohawked (I'm working on fixing that). Also terrible frizz is something I wouldn't want. I'm not collecting for the value, but for the look of the pony, so it won't matter to me how rare it is.

Most people do seem to prefer original regardless though.
 
If it is cut I say rehair! I do that with my fairy tail birds. You have to enjoy them they are your own ponies...I really like looking at the ones I rehair and feel like I have given them a new life and feel proud of my accomplishment.

I would only replace hair that is really messed up or cut and try to match it very closely. Like if the mane is good leave that and replace a cut tail. If a few plugs are missing/cut just replace those and leave the others in tact and try to get a perfect match. :D
 
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