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What is flocking and why is it important for restoration?
Flocking is the application of fiber particles onto a surface using adhesive to create a texture that's velvet soft to the touch. It's important in the restoration of So Soft ponies as over time, many of these flocked ponies will become damaged or worn causing them to lose much of their flock material. The glue used in the flocking process deteriorates causing flocking to be lost, as well. For anyone who loves this line of ponies as I do, it's sad to see them lose the material that makes them special. For most collectors over the years, your options were to either clean them and leave the flocking as is or completely deflock them. If you've ever been interested in fully restoring the look and feel of these ponies, learning all about flock and how to apply it is essential. Resources and information about flocking as a hobby is relatively scarce, particularly in the pony collector community. Only a handful of artists have achieved the proper look and feel of the originals and while it's not possible to match the originals perfectly, the recreations are very faithful when done accurately!
How is the flocking applied?
Flocking can be applied mechanically or using electrostatic. When done mechanically (think sprinkling or spraying the fibers on top of the adhesive), the fibers are not all applied upright onto the adhesive and will often lay down flat, creating a much less appealing finish. In order to achieve the look and feel of the SS flocking most faithfully, you must apply the flock using electrostatic. Put simply, the static causes the flock fibers to stand upright and when propelled into a surface with adhesive, all the fibers will stand up-right, creating a uniform surface that is velvety soft to the touch.
What are the flocking fibers made of?
The two main types of flocking commonly found are made of rayon and nylon. Rayon is a natural fiber made from wood pulp while nylon is synthetic. While both can be used as flocking material, rayon is meant for indoor use and does not hold up as well to handling. Nylon is more durable being water resistant, fade resistant, and is used on surfaces meant to be handled. Toys, automotives, and taxidermy pieces are often flocked using nylon.
If you wish to fully restore a pony's flocking, you must first fully remove the original flock. I currently would not recommend a patch job on top of original flocking as the two will not match. Here is a very detailed and comprehensive tutorial on deflocking. I deflock using much of the same materials and techniques. Once you've removed the flocking, be sure to fully restore any body work (repaint, sunfading, etc.) before moving on to the reflocking process.
Electrostatic Flocking Machine
There are several flocking machines currently on the market for hobbyists, majority of which are marketed towards model makers and table top gaming. The machines that work for static grass applies to flocking, as well. They are typically produced as handheld devices or metal plates (aka flock box). The only machine I can personally vouch for is the The Pro Grass Box Flock Applicator. Demonstrations on how the flock box works can be viewed here, provided by the company who produced it.
Flock
This is arguably the most essential and most difficult aspect to get just right. So far, I have tested 3 different flock fibers; rayon (0.30" length), white static grass (1-2 mm length), and finally Suede-Tex Nylon (1mm length) is what I am currently using. The fiber type you need is nylon with a length of a least 1mm. The term denier or dtex refers to the thickness of the fibers; 3.3 dtex is what I am currently using. The length for most original SS flocking seems to be between 1.3mm-1.5mm, however I have not found a seller that offers this particular length in white. Personally speaking, I've found the slightly shorter flock is great for allowing the body color and marks to show through more clearly than with the longer flock.
Adhesive
Hobbyists will often suggest using PVA glue or Mod Podge. However, for ponies, it is preferable to use an adhesive that is more durable to wear and waterproof to allow for hair styling or light cleaning if need be. Currently, I am working with epoxy adhesive as it is durable, waterproof, and the thick/sticky consistency of the epoxy allows the flocking fibers to embed themselves very nicely. The two epoxy adhesives I have used during testing is Gorilla Glue Epoxy and Slow-Cure Epoxy by BSI. While the Gorilla Glue works well, the problem is the working time; 5 minutes is a very brief window of time in order to fully/evenly coat the surface in glue (I have missed many spots as a result of rushing) and fully apply the flocking. The Slow-Cure Epoxy solves this issue by allowing for up to 30 minutes of working time, which should be plenty once you get the hang of using these materials.
WARNING: Epoxy fumes affect your health and can be dangerous if overexposed. Please be sure to take precaution and use a respirator while mixing and applying epoxy. Wear a respirator that filters organic vapors such as the 3M 6000 respirator that I’m currently working with.
This is a comparison between Shady and Sundance's original flocking; it seems that Hasbro has used at least two different lengths of flocking during production. I would argue that you could choose to reflock with either length and still be faithful to the originals. I personally like Sundance's shorter flock as you can much more clearly see her mark and brighter body colors would show through nicely, as well.
This is a comparison between manual application (blue pony) and electrostatic application (pink pony) using the same flock fibers. As you can see, the manual application isn't uniform and the fibers lay down flat while the other shows the fibers standing on end. The fibers standing upright is also what gives the surface its velvety texture (otherwise the fibers are stuck too far down into the glue).
Using two different lengths of flock fiber (the 0.30 mm and 1-2mm), I tested the appearance when applied to a fakie pony. The longer flock is also thicker in diameter, so it feels more like beard stubble than velvet! Great for dolls in fact, but definitely doesn't suit the ponies here. The second photo shows a test I did on Hippity Hop's wing; the length and particularly the thickness of the flock doesn't match the look (or feel) of the rest. The thicker fibers don't condense together the same way smaller fibers do, which is why both length and thickness of your flock is important!
My first full reflock using electrostatic was Truly. Unfortunately, this is also how I learned rayon flock was not comparable to the nylon flock. At first glance, it seems serviceable enough and could be acceptable. It wasn't until I handled her while rehairing did I discover the fibers were easy to crush down, not to mention the feel wasn't right either. Overall, it just looked and felt very flat, as a result I do not think rayon is suitable; you really need nylon for the proper look and texture.
Before and after flocking with the nylon 1mm. Here you can see my flock box and the shaker I use to store flock as I'm working. I flock out in my garage as the process is very messy. I wear a respirator to avoid breathing in the fibers and epoxy fumes while working. I also use gloves to avoid accidents with the static shocks.
Now you can see the comparison between the rayon flock and the nylon flock. Even though these rayon fibers are shorter than the nylon, rayon isn't as durable and doesn't hold up to handling. With the nylon, you can grab/touch the surface and the fibers will not become crushed down. The texture of the nylon is velvety smooth!
Before the final reveal, full disclosure; I am still learning and still making mistakes! If I learn something new, I'll be sure to make a note of it so others can avoid the same. Because the glue is clear and quite thick, sometimes I miss spots during flocking. It's difficult to locate these spots during the flocking process because of the excess flocking. The excess flock tends to mask the spots without glue until it's dried and you've dusted off the extra, revealing the bald patches. I decided not to touch these spots up as they're quite minor overall and it was my first nylon full flock. I also risk messing up the flocking around it if I tried a patch job.
Another issue to note is the glue cracking; because the nylon body is malleable, with enough force you may lift up the epoxy. This is something I had done accidentally when trying to reinsert the tail using the floss method. The cracked epoxy can likely be reattached with more glue, but I chose to leave it be as I was able to lay it back down well enough. These are things you really only learn through trial and error.
Flocking is the application of fiber particles onto a surface using adhesive to create a texture that's velvet soft to the touch. It's important in the restoration of So Soft ponies as over time, many of these flocked ponies will become damaged or worn causing them to lose much of their flock material. The glue used in the flocking process deteriorates causing flocking to be lost, as well. For anyone who loves this line of ponies as I do, it's sad to see them lose the material that makes them special. For most collectors over the years, your options were to either clean them and leave the flocking as is or completely deflock them. If you've ever been interested in fully restoring the look and feel of these ponies, learning all about flock and how to apply it is essential. Resources and information about flocking as a hobby is relatively scarce, particularly in the pony collector community. Only a handful of artists have achieved the proper look and feel of the originals and while it's not possible to match the originals perfectly, the recreations are very faithful when done accurately!
How is the flocking applied?
Flocking can be applied mechanically or using electrostatic. When done mechanically (think sprinkling or spraying the fibers on top of the adhesive), the fibers are not all applied upright onto the adhesive and will often lay down flat, creating a much less appealing finish. In order to achieve the look and feel of the SS flocking most faithfully, you must apply the flock using electrostatic. Put simply, the static causes the flock fibers to stand upright and when propelled into a surface with adhesive, all the fibers will stand up-right, creating a uniform surface that is velvety soft to the touch.
What are the flocking fibers made of?
The two main types of flocking commonly found are made of rayon and nylon. Rayon is a natural fiber made from wood pulp while nylon is synthetic. While both can be used as flocking material, rayon is meant for indoor use and does not hold up as well to handling. Nylon is more durable being water resistant, fade resistant, and is used on surfaces meant to be handled. Toys, automotives, and taxidermy pieces are often flocked using nylon.
Materials
I have spent countless hours researching and learning all I possibly could about flocking, then applying what I've learned into restoring So Softs. I'll be condensing my work into categories for those looking for specific information. Everything written below is based on my personal experiences and by no means do I claim to be an expert, please proceed at your own risk. My goal is to broaden this specific aspect of My Little Pony restoration as it's very niche with almost no information or resources listed in one convenient place. I hope to encourage others to pursue this type of restoration and continue to educate others on what they've learned, as well! If we all put our work and findings together, we can continue to help others restore and preserve these toys for years to come.
DeflockingI have spent countless hours researching and learning all I possibly could about flocking, then applying what I've learned into restoring So Softs. I'll be condensing my work into categories for those looking for specific information. Everything written below is based on my personal experiences and by no means do I claim to be an expert, please proceed at your own risk. My goal is to broaden this specific aspect of My Little Pony restoration as it's very niche with almost no information or resources listed in one convenient place. I hope to encourage others to pursue this type of restoration and continue to educate others on what they've learned, as well! If we all put our work and findings together, we can continue to help others restore and preserve these toys for years to come.
If you wish to fully restore a pony's flocking, you must first fully remove the original flock. I currently would not recommend a patch job on top of original flocking as the two will not match. Here is a very detailed and comprehensive tutorial on deflocking. I deflock using much of the same materials and techniques. Once you've removed the flocking, be sure to fully restore any body work (repaint, sunfading, etc.) before moving on to the reflocking process.
Electrostatic Flocking Machine
There are several flocking machines currently on the market for hobbyists, majority of which are marketed towards model makers and table top gaming. The machines that work for static grass applies to flocking, as well. They are typically produced as handheld devices or metal plates (aka flock box). The only machine I can personally vouch for is the The Pro Grass Box Flock Applicator. Demonstrations on how the flock box works can be viewed here, provided by the company who produced it.
Flock
This is arguably the most essential and most difficult aspect to get just right. So far, I have tested 3 different flock fibers; rayon (0.30" length), white static grass (1-2 mm length), and finally Suede-Tex Nylon (1mm length) is what I am currently using. The fiber type you need is nylon with a length of a least 1mm. The term denier or dtex refers to the thickness of the fibers; 3.3 dtex is what I am currently using. The length for most original SS flocking seems to be between 1.3mm-1.5mm, however I have not found a seller that offers this particular length in white. Personally speaking, I've found the slightly shorter flock is great for allowing the body color and marks to show through more clearly than with the longer flock.
Adhesive
Hobbyists will often suggest using PVA glue or Mod Podge. However, for ponies, it is preferable to use an adhesive that is more durable to wear and waterproof to allow for hair styling or light cleaning if need be. Currently, I am working with epoxy adhesive as it is durable, waterproof, and the thick/sticky consistency of the epoxy allows the flocking fibers to embed themselves very nicely. The two epoxy adhesives I have used during testing is Gorilla Glue Epoxy and Slow-Cure Epoxy by BSI. While the Gorilla Glue works well, the problem is the working time; 5 minutes is a very brief window of time in order to fully/evenly coat the surface in glue (I have missed many spots as a result of rushing) and fully apply the flocking. The Slow-Cure Epoxy solves this issue by allowing for up to 30 minutes of working time, which should be plenty once you get the hang of using these materials.
WARNING: Epoxy fumes affect your health and can be dangerous if overexposed. Please be sure to take precaution and use a respirator while mixing and applying epoxy. Wear a respirator that filters organic vapors such as the 3M 6000 respirator that I’m currently working with.Flocking Experiments
As mentioned, I have spent a considerable amount of time both researching and experimenting with flocking. I will show a condensed overview of my work and observations during this time leading up to my first successful reflocking.
As mentioned, I have spent a considerable amount of time both researching and experimenting with flocking. I will show a condensed overview of my work and observations during this time leading up to my first successful reflocking.
This is a comparison between Shady and Sundance's original flocking; it seems that Hasbro has used at least two different lengths of flocking during production. I would argue that you could choose to reflock with either length and still be faithful to the originals. I personally like Sundance's shorter flock as you can much more clearly see her mark and brighter body colors would show through nicely, as well.
Another issue to note is the glue cracking; because the nylon body is malleable, with enough force you may lift up the epoxy. This is something I had done accidentally when trying to reinsert the tail using the floss method. The cracked epoxy can likely be reattached with more glue, but I chose to leave it be as I was able to lay it back down well enough. These are things you really only learn through trial and error.
Gusty So Soft: Before and After Flocking Restoration
What a journey it's been! I chose Gusty out of all my SS because she was by far the most damaged and in need of love. She was damaged to the point where even if my first flocking wasn't perfect, it would be leagues better than what she started with. Her original flocking and adhesive was deteriorated beyond saving making deflocking very easy compared to most, the vinyl yellowing was also lightened in the UV chamber.
I have many other SS ponies prepared to reflock and I'll be posting those results along with any additional updates as I continue my flocking work.
Without question, this project was a labor of love; for my passion in toy collecting, restoration, and for the MLP community.
What a journey it's been! I chose Gusty out of all my SS because she was by far the most damaged and in need of love. She was damaged to the point where even if my first flocking wasn't perfect, it would be leagues better than what she started with. Her original flocking and adhesive was deteriorated beyond saving making deflocking very easy compared to most, the vinyl yellowing was also lightened in the UV chamber.
I have many other SS ponies prepared to reflock and I'll be posting those results along with any additional updates as I continue my flocking work.
Without question, this project was a labor of love; for my passion in toy collecting, restoration, and for the MLP community.