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G3 G3 Disintegrating Hair Syndrome
- Thread starter MustBeJewel
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This may have not been brought up or it’s been a while, the big reason for a lot of the disintegrating hair is due to fish oil and fish oil by products used. Fish oil and fish oil byproducts are used as a cheaper filler and binder for the manufacturing of nylon hair, and also other plastic and rubber products. Sure it gives a nice shine and can be silky smooth but it does not last long and there is a chemical reaction between the nylon hair and the glue used to hold the hair in place. 
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I suddenly recalled my friend telling me about kosher marshmellows with fish gelatin. (You can tell if you melt'em)
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So… ponies aren’t a good collection for vegans?This may have not been brought up or it’s been a while, the big reason for a lot of the disintegrating hair is due to fish oil and fish oil by products used. Fish oil and fish oil byproducts are used as a cheaper filler and binder for the manufacturing of nylon hair, and also other plastic and rubber products. Sure it gives a nice shine and can be silky smooth but it does not last long and there is a chemical reaction between the nylon hair and the glue used to hold the hair in place.
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EwwThis may have not been brought up or it’s been a while, the big reason for a lot of the disintegrating hair is due to fish oil and fish oil by products used. Fish oil and fish oil byproducts are used as a cheaper filler and binder for the manufacturing of nylon hair, and also other plastic and rubber products. Sure it gives a nice shine and can be silky smooth but it does not last long and there is a chemical reaction between the nylon hair and the glue used to hold the hair in place.
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You guys - it's probably because that hair is not nylon- it was very likely polypropylene (or a mix of poly and nylon). Polypropylene is cheaper than nylon, but basically breaks down after 20-30 years. Or less if exposed to freezing or high heat. The timing is about right since G3 was the mid 1990s. From the get go, it feels a little dryer.
From sources: https://engineering.mit.edu/engage/a...they-get-cold/ and https://www.creativemechanisms.com/b...pylene.-part-2 https://www.thespruce.com/comparing-...-fiber-2908806 )
You can kind of tell if your pony has polypropylene hair- by pouring water onto it. Poly is not porous, so the water basically runs off of it instead of soaking in (you may have noticed flyaways couldn't be tamed by water).
Info to know (from above):
It is a kind of plastic with a known "high thermal expansion coefficient" - melting temperature of 320-347 Fahrenheit (160-175 Celsius).
It is known to become brittle when frozen.
It is also a kind of plastic that is susceptible to UV degradation- so sun will accelerate disintegration.
It is known to have poor resistance to chlorinated solvents and aromatics. So gel or hairspray could accelerate the disintegration.
It is also just susceptible to oxidation. Apparently it breaks down after 20-30 years.
How can you tell if it is polypropylene? Well, I'm not sure how age impacts this- but you can kind of tell just by pouring water over it. Look at this video: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CiUJRy0JUQD/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Poly is not porous so when you pour water over poly, it basically just rolls right off. It also can't be dyed. It is also really lightweight.
From sources: https://engineering.mit.edu/engage/a...they-get-cold/ and https://www.creativemechanisms.com/b...pylene.-part-2 https://www.thespruce.com/comparing-...-fiber-2908806 )
You can kind of tell if your pony has polypropylene hair- by pouring water onto it. Poly is not porous, so the water basically runs off of it instead of soaking in (you may have noticed flyaways couldn't be tamed by water).
Info to know (from above):
It is a kind of plastic with a known "high thermal expansion coefficient" - melting temperature of 320-347 Fahrenheit (160-175 Celsius).
It is known to become brittle when frozen.
It is also a kind of plastic that is susceptible to UV degradation- so sun will accelerate disintegration.
It is known to have poor resistance to chlorinated solvents and aromatics. So gel or hairspray could accelerate the disintegration.
It is also just susceptible to oxidation. Apparently it breaks down after 20-30 years.
How can you tell if it is polypropylene? Well, I'm not sure how age impacts this- but you can kind of tell just by pouring water over it. Look at this video: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CiUJRy0JUQD/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Poly is not porous so when you pour water over poly, it basically just rolls right off. It also can't be dyed. It is also really lightweight.
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G3 was early to late 2000s- just a correction. G2 was closer to mid 90s though
either way, the oldest G3s are coming up on 20 years old so yea you'd be right about that
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Thanks for the tip on how to tell the difference.
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Unfortunately the test doesn't work if they used a nylon/poly blend, but you can also just FEEL the difference pretty easy, even with blends. Nylon feels softer, silkier. Poly and poly blends feel very lightweight with a slightly rougher texture. A lot more flyaways. The best way to tell is to just get a pony (or doll) that you know is nylon, and feel the difference.
Also contrary to the description on "Dollyhair" - Poly also does NOT feel like Seran.
And yes, sorry- 2000s were the G3. But that is still coming up on 20 years, and since the process of disintegration s significantly accelerated by pretty ordinary things like UV and heat, I'm sure lots of ponies are experiencing hair loss much earlier.
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Thank you for the great information!
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I doused my two Rainbow Flashes and you can really tell the difference . . . Pony on the left has nylon hair, her hair looks and feels wet and is visibly damp. Pony on the right is polypropylene or whatever; her hair was immediately dry, the water just rolled off it.
The water test should also work for Petal Blossom.
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Thank you all for the tips about this kind of hair. Now it looks like I have an answer about why my secondhand Swirlypop’s hair just won’t seem right. It’s also a reason why I think I just can’t seem to get used to her as easily in my collection as my other secondhand ponies
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I realize I am 12 years late to this thread, but when searching up her hair color for this exact problem I was led here! Either via trading of hands for over a decade your pony made her way to me, or this is in fact a problem with the hair color itself. Given Jazz arrived with the hair in the package, just separated, I'm willing to assume it's the fault of the nylon material itself and not your particular pony. All this time I thought whoever owned her previously just really hated pink and cut it exactly at the base!
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I recently picked up a bag of ponies that included a mcdonald's sparkleworks- and her hair immediately removed itself from her head when I was inspecting the tangles!
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Thanks for posting this photo- this is a perfect example!
How crazy they would do her in nylon AND also in polypropylene - was it a different factory or did they just run out of nylon hair?
The water test is definitely the best for doll hair fibers too- some companies have been sneaking it in place of nylon. It's worse when it is a nylon/poly blend, because depending on how much nylon is mixed in, it may or may not absorb water.
It probably doesn't help that some people who sell hair (retrodolls unfortunately) apparently describe polypropylene as nylon- (but it is NOT, not nylon). Maybe the company that sells hair was describing it that way at some point? But polypropylene has been around for years now- so even though you can't find any "scientific articles" testing hair made with nylon (or seran) vs. polypropylene, you can find PLENTY of credible scientific literature and white papers discussing the pros/cons of polypropylene vs. nylon in other applications (like fabric, ropes, even carpet!).
I think confusing the issue is that at some point various factories were using a glue that apparently dissolved the hair over a period of a few years. So your doll (or pony) would be fine and nice and mint in box and the next time you looked at it- completely bald like it had been chopped off. But the hair itself still looked fine.
Poly hair tends to get more brittle and rough feeling and basically disintegrates slowly. Sometimes it turns colors (like kinda greenish).
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When they released Rainbow Flash and Petal Blossom, you could get them as a single-packed pony OR with a free baby pony. (Flower Flash or Romperooni.) The single pony and the bonus-baby version were available at the same time, and they cost the same amount.
But to cut production costs, the ponies packed with free babies were given poly hair.
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So I don’t have any photos right now but I can confirm that Baby Romperooni, Sunrise, and McDonald’s Sparkleworks all have rotting pink/ rotting orange(I call it this because this is the term the collectors in the other circles I’m in call it.) I already rehaired my Sparkleworks and Romperooni. Romperooni’s orange is also very brittle, but only the pink actually fell apart at the root. My Tea Lily’s hair is still holding together but it’s very messy and I’m afraid to brush it for this very reason.
I’ve never heard of Autumn Crisp having this issue until now, but I guess it makes sense with her also being a discount chain exclusive. I also own Rhythm and Rhyme and she has no issues, and a friend has Chocolate Delight whom also has no issues.
That comparison photo between the two Rainbow Flashes was really eye opening and I’ve always had a horrible time telling apart doll hair types so thanks to this thread and that Instagram video with the water maybe I can tell it apart better now. Nylon really is the way to go….
I really hadn’t heard of a non-pink/orange rotting colour until now and I assumed it was because red is such an unstable dye colour… what with fading pink and how some humans are allergic to red dye going near their eyes (why most eyeshadow palettes only call themselves “shadow palettes” now, omitting the word “eye” and putting tiny warnings on the back so they don’t get sued if you have an allergic reaction. )
But yeah I guess the answer really must just be that some factories used Nylon and some factories used Poly, we already know that similar issues happened with Furbies, and that Mattel has horrible hair glue oil seepage issues on only SOME of their dolls.
I'm betting that the tails on g4s will start falling out in 10 years since it's clear they're made of inferior quality material to the manes.
It’s a great idea to make a full resource list of everyone with rotting hair though, so people can confirm their issues!
I’ve never heard of Autumn Crisp having this issue until now, but I guess it makes sense with her also being a discount chain exclusive. I also own Rhythm and Rhyme and she has no issues, and a friend has Chocolate Delight whom also has no issues.
That comparison photo between the two Rainbow Flashes was really eye opening and I’ve always had a horrible time telling apart doll hair types so thanks to this thread and that Instagram video with the water maybe I can tell it apart better now. Nylon really is the way to go….
I really hadn’t heard of a non-pink/orange rotting colour until now and I assumed it was because red is such an unstable dye colour… what with fading pink and how some humans are allergic to red dye going near their eyes (why most eyeshadow palettes only call themselves “shadow palettes” now, omitting the word “eye” and putting tiny warnings on the back so they don’t get sued if you have an allergic reaction. )
But yeah I guess the answer really must just be that some factories used Nylon and some factories used Poly, we already know that similar issues happened with Furbies, and that Mattel has horrible hair glue oil seepage issues on only SOME of their dolls.
I'm betting that the tails on g4s will start falling out in 10 years since it's clear they're made of inferior quality material to the manes.
It’s a great idea to make a full resource list of everyone with rotting hair though, so people can confirm their issues!
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Its a risk but as long as theyve been well taken care of (no direct UV or extreme temperatures) their hair should last okay!Oh no! So a bunch of my ponies might go totally bald?
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OMG that's so funny about eyeshadow. "Shadow palettes"!
It's not due to different factories having different materials on hand. It's more like, in situations where Hasbro was like "Oh, this set isn't going to bring in as much profit as we want", they would use poly because it's cheaper in the literal "costs less money" sense.
That's why a lot of the ponies are discount chain ponies (lower price, not as much profit) or the "bonus pony" you would sometimes see in playsets.
I guess we should be happy they used nylon for most G3 ponies. I think it's going to be a disaster once G4s get a few decades out, the later years of those were definitely not made with nylon hair.