The History, Cost and Long Term use of Toy Tooling. Everything you want to know about Tooling

[@johnmorey720]

I've had some experience knowing custom toymakers - usually they use silicon molds or much smaller steel molds, and they have explained the reasons for things like a pressure pot, but it's still really fascinating to know what the deal is with professional tooling!

[@spectorcreative1872]

It is a pretty crazy process when you put it all together.

[@andrewtaylor940]

Great Video. Just to add a few more details (for whoever cares). Part of the expense of the tooling comes from what type of plastic will be used. Not all plastics are the same. Generally higher quality plastics such as high end ABS (Lego!) Require not just hotter plastic, but also higher pressure injection. Molds for high temperature, high pressure parts require hardened steel. Which is much harder to mill out and shape. And is much much more expensive. PVC is a low temp low pressure plastic. Basically a form of synthetic rubber. You can get away with much less expensive tooling. Especially if you aren't going to be running the tool for a million cycles. So you can often use Aluminum. Or similar cheaper metals. The Molds will wear out much faster, and the figures will be made of softer PVC which goes brittle with age. But PVC can hold a very sharp sculpt or shape at a low temp and pressure using fairly affordable tooling.

[@spectorcreative1872]

You have clearly done this before! Thanks for adding the great additional information. A follow up video may be needed.

[@pemberto82]

This is by far my favorite video on your channel so far. Thank you!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Well thank you! Please do feel free to repost. It helps the channel a ton

[@mikesmith2718]

I love videos like this it's almost like being able to pick your brain for Insider information. This channel is a wealth of knowledge. Keep up the great work

[@spectorcreative1872]

Thank you! Suggestions for topics ALWAYS welcome and please do feel free to share online with others. It helps the channel a ton!

[@bulenthasan]

Holy crap this is the best one yet! Who would have know elephants were actually the reason why everything became a plastic mold!

[@Canoby]

That is a fascinating piece of history to be sure. As is plastic is better in my view than carved up elephants, and carved up elephant teeth

[@spectorcreative1872]

Everything start with elephants

[@FellVoice]

Excellent video! When the original 80's line was reissued as Commemorative Series did they use the original tools or did they retool to exacting specifications? Thanks again, love it!

[@spectorcreative1872]

No, they were all new tools, like a copy of a copy

[@jamesjustice4515]

Big guy this is sledgemaster. Now that was a fantastic and detail video. Thanks young man. I wish I had some of those modes for my future collectors museum. Good night and god bless u and family

[@spectorcreative1872]

Always appreciate your awesome positive feedback and wishes Sledge!

[@aarong6382]

Hasbro on Transformers. "This tooling stuff is expensive"! "What if, now bear with me, we repaint the same figure eight times"

[@spectorcreative1872]

Brilliant! Do it.

[@holonet1]

Fantastic video! I was wondering though, instead of destroying that Super Girl mold for example, assuming you want to re-use it. Couldn't you just mill out the area you needed to change, then make a new part to insert into that space with the design you needed? I've seen it done with low pressure molding. They use modular inserts to modify mold designs without having permanent changes made. Although, I'm not sure if it's applicable to regular molding.

[@spectorcreative1872]

That is just too expensive in the long run. And we knew we wouldn't be doing supergirl anymore.

[@BlackhandPL]

Could you possibly (maybe in the one of the future videos?) elaborate on how costs are split among different stages of mould creation? I'm curious which part of the costs KO/bootleg companies cut out. Quite often designs go through modifications like upscaling or adding articulation (like KO of Titans Return Gnaw) or adding parts (like thigh extensions and fillers on BPF's KO of Siege Ultra Magnus) so I'm pretty sure that usually new moulds have to be made (surely in case of upscaling or simplifying).

[@spectorcreative1872]

I certainly can!

[@jerrybeckettdd]

Excellent explanation of toy tooling. Thank you... I don't know why it didn't watch this video sooner.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Well thank you! Any suggestions for topics always welcomed

[@bryanabbott6169]

I've worked in a couple plastic manufacturing plants before. At one factory, I've worked with lost cores (a tin bismuth mould was manufactured in the plant to serve as an interior mould that can be melted out of the plastic part at a lower melting point than the plastic). We were making one-piece air intake manifolds for Dodge/Chrysler Neons back in the '90s. At another factory, I've worked with a small plastics mould press from Japan. I had to clean them after they were delivered. They still had runners left over from toy robot parts. I should have asked how old the press was, but it could be from the '70s/'80s. We used this press for making plastic ripcord spools for lawnmowers.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yeah crazy how this stuff comes up over and over!

[@tjmb]

Hi Scott! Great information, thanks for putting this video together. I have a few questions I’d love to know more about. If it’s too much for a comment, maybe you could address them in another video. 1. For more complex toys, like a Masterpiece Transformer for example, with a large number of small parts how much does that increase the cost of tooling and do you have a rough idea how much the tooling for a single MP Transformer would cost? 2. Are tools still hand carved or is something like CNC machining able to be used (and why/why not)? Thanks for your time and for all this info you’re sharing with us!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yes, the more parts the more the tool costs, and yes they are done by hand

[@MrLethal1986]

So i was watching a new process called friction welding. A aluminium powder is blown at super high pressure and builds up sort of like a hour glass pouring sand. Could this process possibly be used and then the moulds re-tooled? Great content was really interesting thanks for sharing.

[@spectorcreative1872]

I"m not 100% familiar with it, but I'll take a look!

[@krzysztofmathews738]

Great video! A solid explanation of the subject.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Glad it was! Please do feel free to share with others

[@mikespiegel_]

One thing that's is also interesting to note is how the molding process has improved over the years. This is very noticeable in the plastic model community, were model kits made in the 80s suffered from partially formed parts, flash (a thin layer of plastic protruding from the part were the molds met each other) and very noticeable gates; al these required a large amount of work to fix when assembling the model. Now we have multiple colored parts on the same sprue, under-gated molding and high precision tolerances.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Oh yes! As with most things in the the industry things improve all the time.

[@andersdenkend]

The plastic model kit industry is also very interesting and creative when it comes to re-using tools. There are companies in 2021 still selling model kits with tooling from the '70s! Sometimes they add new parts, sometimes just new decals (color variants). And sometimes they are called Bandai and just make a completely new tool of a 1/72 scale Millennium Falcon, even though Fine Molds already made one a couple of years back.

[@tonilarios]

"If the toy ends up on clearance, that's how companies go belly up" Not if you are Disney tho! They'll just keep doubling down, what could possibly go wrong?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Well eventually the mole people could attack

[@tonilarios]

@@spectorcreative1872 LOL

[@Guernicaman]

Except Disney doesn't make toys. They license them to toy manufacturers to take the risk for them, don't they?

[@georges8200]

the original tooling for the delorean cars were found totally by accident as fishing weights and the company that makes the "modern" deloreans out of Texas bought them and reverse engineered them to make new ones. so technically the modern ones actually use the original stamps.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Wow, that is crazy! What a cool story

[@austinreed7343]

The Atari Jaguar molds/tooling were used to make dental equipment.

[@harrypartridgelive]

Thanks for another great video, Scott. Would love to hear you discuss the difference between cheap toys and higher priced toys. Gang tooling, dollar tree quotas vs collector quotas, how money is saved through cheaper plastic and fewer paint decos etc. I know you're busy but just an idea.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Getting a lot of questions about Dollar Tree so I will add that to the list!

[@patofthesharingan6468]

Would you know what happens to used tooling? Wouldn’t a Mattel retain them for future use or scrap and recycle the materials to make a new tool?

[@spectorcreative1872]

It is very expensive to store tooling. Think of the thousands of toys Mattel or Hasbro make each quarter. Most of the time the old tooling is sold as boat anchors as I noted in the video.

[@JMcMillen]

@@spectorcreative1872 I've never understood why they didn't recycle the metal so it could be turned into new blanks to be tooled again. It's metal, you can just melt it back down.

[@RealShield2099]

Hey Spector Creative. How about 3d printing? I have been amazed how far printing has come just in 10 years. Now you can buy a nice little hobby SLA printer for $200 and you can do some really cool stuff with it. I am sure professional grade printers can do even more. Do you think 3d printing is now or soon will be a way to move away from tooling and drastically reduce costs?

[@spectorcreative1872]

3D printing will take the place of tooling, but we just aren't there yet from a cost and durability factor

[@brianfarkas8172]

Great video. Thanks.

[@thenotontvshow1928]

Great information! The boat anchor thing is wild

[@spectorcreative1872]

Blew my mind when I found out

[@DanyTV79]

Very informative and interesting. I want to ask you if you kno how Hasbro is making the re-releases of original Star Wars and RGB toys?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Those are all newly tooled. Just recreations of the old tooling/scupts

[@ferdinandblond8798]

Wonderful and informative video, now I know where all the nineties gi-joes and other toy lines ended up. :P I'll be waiting for the video about alternative tooling that you mentioned in the comments. Thanks for your generosity in sharing your experience with us! :)

[@spectorcreative1872]

Glad you enjoy! And please do share these with others online. It helps the channel a ton

[@spot138]

Hey Scott, do know think the tools for Castle Grayskull for Classics is still out there somewhere? I know MOTUC was a small project for Mattel at the time, but is that something they would have hung on to? Now with all the new MOTU stuff coming out it might make sense to reissue it maybe?

[@spectorcreative1872]

I know during my time at Mattel the tools for 200X were tossed. So it is possible we are now at the point where the tools for Classics are being discarded. Storage of these is very expensive

[@driver8sk]

I love vids on the actual manufacturing process. One thing I've always wondered about is the bootlegs when they're indistinguishable from the original. Is it mostly bootlegers measuring the originals and creating their own molds or an inside job?

[@spectorcreative1872]

A little of both!

[@Tim85-y2q]

It's probably worth keeping in mind that the factories where the toys are actually made are largely independent vendors. Other than having a contract to produce the run of toys, they're not really direct stakeholders in what happens to the molds, so it's small wonder that weird things sometimes go on.

[@PrivateEye10]

You think there will ever be a way to make this cheaper in any way?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Maybe when 3D printing eventually becomes affordable.

[@joespooky4750]

When you gave the approximate cost of an action figure, that made me curious... Was that for a 1:12 scale minimal articulated style one or a 1:6 style figure with elbows and knees etc?

[@spectorcreative1872]

That was for something like a Black Series or Marvel Legends figure

[@joespooky4750]

@@spectorcreative1872 thanks for letting me know!

[@DominusTecum316]

Q: If a toy gets put in retail but then gets sold in clearance, does not the retailer lose profit because those companies already paid for amount to enter their stores? Maybe I missing something? Either way it is not good for the toy company to see their toys on clearance because in the future the retailer would be hesitant to or in smaller amount or not order a certain toy line that did not sell well, right?

[@JMcMillen]

Sometimes it can just be a regional thing where a toy sells better in some places than others. Then it's up to the retailer, above the store level, to decide if it's worth the cost to transfer the items from one store to another or just dump them for a possibly less costly loss.

[@spectorcreative1872]

I'll do a whole video on this!

[@MattsCollection]

I am really enjoying your content! So informative!

[@spectorcreative1872]

So much more to come! Topics always welcomed.

[@katiepersons6575]

And then there's Hasbro. Makes a mold of the Millenium Falcon in 2010 and sells it for $120. A decade later instead of making a new mold with modern engineering techniques they instead re-use the old mold, slap some new paint on it and sell it for $400. Because it wasn't enough to not have to pay for new tooling. They wanted more than 300% of the price they used to charge!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Well labor and materials have also gone up

[@cable30]

Dang, even at store ur like paying ebay prices just cause time change and so get it now or wait til cheaper any i guess.

[@robd1329]

Im glad i got the 2010 Legacy falcon for 75 bucks clearance at toysrus

[@FallenGemini]

Is it true that the cavity in the tooling shrinks during production, which is why the final product is usually slightly smaller than the resin prototype? I recall a DC Collectibles press release on the DC Icons line and how they are entering digitally sculpting with the line - there was a brief mention in the press release where they had to digitally sculpt parts of a figure larger than usual to accommodate the shrinkage that the tooling had during its production.

[@johnmorey720]

This one really fascinates me. I know that tools cost a huge amount of money, but not WHY they cost so much (compared to say, an indy producer's homemade steel molds and such). It's good to know!

[@spectorcreative1872]

And knowing is half the expense

[@mechtech220]

the vocal is off in the beginning of the video

[@genesanford9412]

?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yeah it happens sometimes, always trying to get this right!

[@knowel7138]

This will be a great course for a design school. And I know I’m not the only one that sees the value in these videos

[@spectorcreative1872]

Always glad to see them in an academic setting

[@lionelcregut1222]

I have a toy project and I was wondering if someone could give me a rough bracket of the cost to expect for the tooling

[@spectorcreative1872]

That is what Spector Creative does! Drop us an email and we can help out!

[@lionelcregut1222]

@@spectorcreative1872 perfect! I just did!

[@greatgibby]

I've always wondered how they are made... By hand seems like a super difficult job and it's amazing that a sculpt can be recreated like that on reverse. I hope someday we'll be able to use 3D printers to the point where tooling won't be necessary. Thanks for the cool video 😊

[@Tim85-y2q]

It's probably still a fairly long way off before 3D printers can work in material that would be anything close to the structural tolerance needed. Most 3D printing material now is fairly fragile by normal standards, let alone industrial applications.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Eventually 3D printers might help but we are not there yet

[@greatgibby]

@@spectorcreative1872 so sad, but definitely a future worth looking forward to. Hopefully it'll be in our collecting life time lol.

[@Uff-dada]

As far as volume is concerned it would be hard for printing to replace injection casting

[@Dented_Battle_Armor]

Wait! Scott u mentioned that the tooling is made with metal. I would love go know how does it goes from the prototype sculpt (the ones done by the 4 Horsemen) to the steel tooling? U mean they create the sculpt on the tooling surface by hand?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yup. That is how the do it. Well they make a mold and then push that into the metal

[@BadAssXerx3]

really interesting, I started last year with my Marvel Legends Colletion and it's interesting to see reused Bodieparts on many figures( my favorites are the Symbiotes), the Legs of Hydra Captain America, who was a complete new Mold were reused for Cosmic Ghost Rider and most of the female figures have the exact same body

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yeah the reuse body parts is what can make a line economical.

[@transfan1988]

Hello, are the prototypes made by hand and then used to make the mold?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yes.

[@Tim85-y2q]

It's interesting how you've been going through the modern Star Wars line and I remember back in the day it was in conjunction with that line that I first heard the term tooling (in conjunction with why some of the wave 2 figures were delayed.)

[@spectorcreative1872]

And I will get into all of that!

[@shona-sof]

I'm wondering what goes into tools for something as complex as Transformers. Do they make multiple sets of tools per figure to keep up with the sheer number of figures they manufacture? if so, how do they keep the parts uniform enough to accommodate the transformation engineering? that sounds cost prohibitive. But they still make reissues of popular 80's toys today. Are the molds simply recreated to be as close as possible to the originals, or are they still using the original molds?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Multiple tools are only made when the run rate is VERY high, such as for a movie launch.

[@renpytom]

Is there any chace you can discuss tooling for packages vs tooling for the actual figures? I'd be curious if the packages are made in the same way, or if they use a different technique like vacuum forming.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Meaning the inner blisters? I do have a video on that in the works!

[@renpytom]

@@spectorcreative1872 That would probably be it, yes. Thanks!

[@jaicro89]

Great video, good information and well explained!!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Thrilled you like! Please feel free to repost online. It helps the channel a ton!

[@kevinp2722]

Perhaps a stupid question, but does each mould always produce one item at a time? I always assumed for a he-man head (for example) the mold would produce 10 or 100 heads with each injection. One at a time seems crazy slow

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yup, one at a time!

[@robertwishin2868]

To pick on Transformers for a minute, a number of the original G1 figures have had reissues over the years. I have seen people talk a lot about mold degradation over multiple uses. When doing a reissue of a figure from 20 or more years ago, is it better to use the original mold (assuming it isn't an anchor) or to retool it to do a larger production run and future reissues?

[@spectorcreative1872]

The original mold won't be good anymore, so an all new one must be created

[@ericrook78]

Finally caught up! So, something like the Star Wars Retro Collection from the past couple years, would they (Hasbro) have made new molds for these figures? If you're saying companies don't keep molds around for very long (2-5 years). And then what about the POTF2 vehicles. Most of those were exactly the same as the vintage vehicles. Would those have been new molds as well? I guess if they are heavy and take up a lot of space, storing them would be an issue.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yup, all new molds. I"ll do a video on this ASAP

[@gijobra1982]

When items go to clearance does that impact the cost to the manufacturer or the retailers? I would think the retailers make that decision after buying a contracted amount from manufacturers and this only impacts the retailers cost?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Often manufactures have to pay the retailers the balance for any discounts

[@ArroyoVideo]

Thanks for this video. I always wondered why super7 couldn't keep re-making old figures/playsets, now I know.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Gad I could help clarify! Feel free to share with others who may also be curious. It helps the channel a ton

[@erickmunoz3894]

How does the tooling get sculpted into the metal ?? I’m asking how do you go from a sculpted prototype into making it into a metal tool for mass production?? You have someone sculpt each piece out of metal ???

[@spectorcreative1872]

Thin Plastic molds are made which are used to sculpt into the metal

[@lepterfirefall]

Fascinating as always

[@spectorcreative1872]

And appreciate the comment as always

[@darthdelrio8308]

I have heard that the tooling costs are basically the same for Black Series vs Vintage Collection which is why Black Series seems to be their main focus since they can sell them at the higher price point at roughly the same cost. Does that sound right to you?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Actually yes.

[@iampoch01]

How long do the tools last before they're unusable? Also, is there a way to make a copy of those tools?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Usually 4-7 years max

[@iampoch01]

@@spectorcreative1872 once they're used up, are they replicable? I heard a rumour that the reason why Hasbro aren't able to give us the vintage Dinobots is because the tools for them are already broken. But there were bootlegs released fairly recently, so it's confusing for me why Hasbro can't do that.

[@CineSalvaje]

Great video, like always!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Thanks for watching and leaving a kind comment!

[@silverbullet1620]

I would like to find a good customizer. I like custom toys. I have a few.

[@spectorcreative1872]

One of my favorite parts but I am not that skilled!

[@silverbullet1620]

@@spectorcreative1872 any chance you could put me in contact with any who can?

[@Guernicaman]

Fascinating & really well explained. Now...what about digital printing of figure parts? Wiuldn't that ommit the metal tooling process of toy manufacturing? Perhaps there lies the future.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Do you mean 3D printing? It would be technology is not there yet.

[@Guernicaman]

@@spectorcreative1872 - Neither were digitally painting portraits of faces in action figures, until one day it was. 🙂

[@josephreyes8404]

Sounds like Toy Tooling a revolutionary innovative breakthrough to reduce cost at make whatever the molds will be replaced with ever green.

[@spectorcreative1872]

In a way yes

[@michaels8940]

Yeah REPLICATORS. LOL

[@PuertoGeekan]

With new processes like additive manufacturing and techniques like automation and robotics, are technologies being developed that could replace the traditional way tooling is done and help reduce the costs of production? It looks like the process of tooling hasn't evolved much since its early days and may be due for some...urm, re-tooling?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Not yet but people are always trying to find new better ways

[@matthewpoe1056]

In the model kit industry they use laser cutting for the die to put in the small details. The CAD work for the design is done here in the States and some of the die manufacturing is done here too. But the plastic injection process is done in Asia (mostly in China). Lego has plastic injection system in Romania for Europe.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yup, so much is overseas now.

[@biostemm]

So how does a conpany like dollar tree pump out their final faction figures so cheaply? Less detail? Fewer paint apps? They own the ip? Re-use someone else's tooling? Thanks!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Dollar Tree does not make their own figures, they sell them. Many times the items they are selling are overstock that manufactures are trying to get rid of by selling cheaply.

[@biostemm]

@@spectorcreative1872 the "final faction" line is an original creation of theirs.

[@oansun]

Scott, can you do a short video on why Mattel will only use their Commemorative He-Man head anytime they do a "retro" look for him? Like in Origins, Video Game appearances, the oversize figures, T-Shirts and such? I understand the history behind it (buying an old figure off eBay and sculpting a new one based on it) but at this point scanning technology and "face printing" is at such a high level they surely can just scan a nice condition head and use that? It's so much better than the goofy Commemorative head. There has to be something else going on. Thanks!

[@spectorcreative1872]

As far as I know there is no "policy" about this. I think it is just a coincidence. I would do a video, but I really don't know anything beyond this. We could have used this head on the very first Classics He-Man is we had wanted to. No policy stopped us

[@TheCrabbyArchives]

So do mold makers essentially have to forge/carve out the shape with only a sculpt as a reference? Or do they have more tools(heh) at their disposal?

[@spectorcreative1872]

They make a rubber mold of the sculpt and press that into the metal

[@smithdream]

How was Dollar Tree able to tool their Final Faction action figures and sell them for a dollar each?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Part of it is quotas, they may also gang tool them together

[@smithdream]

@@spectorcreative1872 Their sculpts for this range are really cool. Action figure collectors and customisers are going crazy for them.

[@wiictvchannel1112]

It's one of the best toy lines of late 2020/2021 for me and I'm not even joking. Hadn't been so excited for 3 3/4 for a long time and for a dollar each it's like a dream come true.

[@smithdream]

@@wiictvchannel1112 You're lucky. We can't even get them in the U.K.. It's a Godsend for kids and adults at that price. It will get a lot of people into army building action figures and customising.

[@wiictvchannel1112]

@@smithdream That's a damn shame :( And I totally agree, I've been buying a lot for nieces and nephews who love them and for myself. I've customized a few already and have a little Kharn army going. I've probably already spent more on Final Faction than I have on other toys so I'm really trying to support it. Hopefully it gets wider distribution and more figures.

[@ToonamiT0M]

The Playmates Toys Star Trek line had a ton of figures. You would often see the same body used for characters in Starfleet uniforms. But the line also had a lot of figures with unique parts that only ever showed up once.

[@spectorcreative1872]

And that is part of how to put a toy line together. Using shared/existing parts with new ones

[@Skyescavernlibrary]

Excellent vid! So that's how Mattel altered some of the MOTUC armor for their Masters of the WWE Universe line. I didn't realize the tooling could be altered. For instance, your Flying Fists He-Man armor from Classics had shredding put on the back for the Masters of the WWE Universe Hulk Hogan figure. As a side-note, were you aware that Mattel were actually still using some of the tools from MOTUC for MOTWWEU?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Once you alter it you can't alter it back!

[@jackkramer9101]

This video is perfect.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Well thank you! Pass it along to others, it helps the channel a ton

[@NomicFin]

The cost of injection-moulded plastic tooling is also why a lot of miniature manufacturers make metal or resin models instead, and why even Warhammer/40k, the biggest wargame brands, for most of their existence only used plastic for models that were either too big to do in pewter, or they knew would sell in large amounts (i.e. the army-builder models players will be buying multiple boxes of were in plastic, but a character model a player would only need one of would be metal). These days they're big enough to do all their new models in plastic, but it's a recent development. Tooling for pewter models is a lot cheaper than plastic ones, but on the other hand pewter is more expensive than plastic, so once you get big enough production runs the more expensive tooling required for plastic will pay itself out.

[@Tim85-y2q]

It's also why some boutique toy companies make their figures out of materials like softer PVC instead of full ABS grade plastic. The molds are cheaper because of lower temperature/less stress during the injection molding process. Of course, that causes other issues in the final product.

[@spectorcreative1872]

And I am going to do a video on alt methods of making toys soon!

[@raccoonstarsmember]

When he was a little girl? 0.o

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yes. That is when he first fell in love with Elephants

[@benflay6038]

Very interesting informative thanks scott And then when made you use it up get use out of it so see same sculpt repainted many times e.g. same weapon with different figures Or a Dalek in every colour as have mould just paint it They remade the original millennium falcon so must have kept original mould Paint masks video please The injection mould also used for model kits

[@spectorcreative1872]

Have you seen this one: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o2a7d62fZ9Z0ipo

[@Daoloth]

This explains why my plastic army figures or cowboys even DnD ones would have all those extra little bits. They would use the same mold for the Wizards or Demons with different colors which is easier to understand why now. You can just remaster older stuff using OBS or whatever programs to filter out certain sounds or other stuff to help audio instead of having to rerecord them totally. Even Ray Harryhausen would canibalize or mod his own creations for Clash of Titans or earlier movies where couldn't unmod once he modded them so its been a long time doing to save time etc.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yup, that is why

[@Daoloth]

@@spectorcreative1872 I never realized it was that expensive but we would notice growing up repainted or used things. Keep these coming they are interesting for me among others by reaction so :). My friend used to make Pewter Terminators from Space Hulk or Warhammer 40K doing molds on his own real amazing stuff to me heh.

[@ultramaximusreviews]

This was a good video. I'm so close to wanting to design some toys and sell under my brand. I was actually going to ask about mold degradation in lines (or tool degradation as you'd call it) but you answered it JUST as I was thinking about asking.... oh and why are you showing us an old man's balls from 1865? LOL

[@spectorcreative1872]

You had me at Balls from 1865

[@rodrickadamginsburg8960]

History, linking the past to both the present and future!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Doc Brown in a nutshell

[@LightningBoltJpS]

How do toy companies sometimes reproduce, seemingly, the same action figures decades after they first came out, if they don’t still have the tools from when they were first produced? I assume it must be because they still have the designs for the toys and can reproduce the tools from that, but if that’s the case how much of that $30,000 to $100,000 cost you mentioned is the labor costs of the design work before the tool is built? It’s always been my perception that rereleased toys have to be higher margin products for toy companies than a wholly new toy would be, but this video is making me wonder if that’s true.

[@spectorcreative1872]

It is an all new tool. I'll do a video on this soon!

[@johnmorey720]

DID YOU KNOW... some of the Magnesium-based plastics used to make early billiard balls and faux-ivory jewelry was volatile and explosive? And yes, sometimes games of pool would end... explosively, to say nothing about the jewelry! The Victorian era was crazy!

[@spectorcreative1872]

You had me at Exploding Victorian Balls.

[@genesanford9412]

Scott ,the one thing i DIDNT know was that part about the old molds being sold as scrap.Now THAT was some sad news indeed.I didnt know that ,but it makes sense.I break & toss old plaster molds a lot (though i milk the mold as long as i can ,repairing it only if the cast looks like poop).For toys, i guess the better the metal ,the better the casting.Aluminum wouldnt hold up too well for toys.

[@BainesMkII]

You'd think the metal would get recycled into making new blocks for new molds. I guess it is just cheaper to sell it as scrap and buy new metal than to recycle it though, particularly when the finished tooling is sitting in a factory in China while the new tooling is probably being created on a completely different continent.

[@genesanford9412]

@@BainesMkII yes ,seems a lot of aspects to making these things we love.Glad theres a few guys like Scott behind the scenes helping to create them.( cause then we get a product that THEY are proud to put out ,not just somebody puttin out product)

[@spectorcreative1872]

These things are big, heavy and after time useless. So even disposing of them is difficult!

[@genesanford9412]

@@spectorcreative1872 Sounds just like Politic,s

[@genesanford9412]

@serick73 ,i aint voted in 15 yrs...and that joke leaned towards the guy they just got rid of anyway ,and i DIDNT vote for any of them.If your gonna try to be "hip" ,get your shit straight , when your old enuf to vote ,then pipe up ,

[@wheatonsspeedshop1412]

Also some companies modify the tooling to where it's nothing like the original and then people wonder why that same... In my case model kit never gets released again. I've built models for 33 years now so I understand how all this works

[@spectorcreative1872]

Amazing how trying to reverse engineer it does not work!

[@ADAM_COLLECTS]

A simpsons reference and, To top that, “this is an example of his balls” and you didn’t giggle.

[@spectorcreative1872]

I edit out the giggling.

[@Canoby]

I love these vids that detail the whole process of toy manufacturing. Also wondering if you ever regretted modding Supergirl into Stargirl (both great looking figs BTW)

[@spectorcreative1872]

Regretted? Heck no! It totally worked.

[@Canoby]

@@spectorcreative1872 Stargirl certainly came out stunning, for sure

[@waffensuperninja]

Tools probably not carved by hand anymore in general these days but im sure all of the molds of the toys i played with most certainly were

[@JMcMillen]

They are still expensive. Back in 2012 when Reaper Miniatures wanted to start moving towards plastic miniatures the cost of a mold to produce a single 28mm mini was $1000 each. And these were pretty much all single piece castings of a figure less than 1.5" tall.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yes, much is done by computer but hands still play a big part in it

[@waffensuperninja]

@@spectorcreative1872 so the original work is sculpted in clay I'm guessing? Then the mold is cast based on that? I really would like to hear more of the sculpting side of the toy biz unless you mde vids about it before i found your great channel!

[@xazylsclubhouse]

So when Hasbro lent out the tooling for G.I.Joe to Funskool and other companies what would have been the benefit of that? I get that there would have been some fee involved but surely that's risky business from a financial standpoint, especially since (apparently) some of the tooling was lost or broken.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yuo, companies do this all the time and lease out tooling for money

[@xazylsclubhouse]

@@spectorcreative1872 thanks for the reply. Im currently going back through your full catalogue and I am thoroughly enjoying the content.

[@perfectallycromulent]

Hasbro sent the molds off mostly with no intention of ever using them again. they started doing it with the 1982 straight-arm figure molds getting sent to South America in 1984. what is maybe more interesting is that they let Palitoy use a few of their figure and vehicle molds for Action Force items for sale in Europe while those molds were being for GI Joe items in the USA (like the 1983 Z-Force version of the MOBAT tank and alternative colored Steeler for a driver).

[@eltenda]

Great video as usual

[@spectorcreative1872]

Well thank you! Repost to your friends!

[@gavinhelgeson2880]

Perfect

[@spectorcreative1872]

Please do feel free to share with others! It helps the channel a ton!

[@bonesandthenecrozoo]

Great Vid!! Interesting and informative....👍💀

[@spectorcreative1872]

Glad you like! Please feel free to repost and pass along. It helps the channel a ton!

[@lukejuke4611]

So are toy manufacturers responsible for the losses on clearance items then? I was under the impression the store ate the costs. Granted I understand if you keep releasing stuff that hits clearance the stores aren't going to keep buying.

[@spectorcreative1872]

I'm working on a video on that now!

[@JeffTheFutureJaros]

You didn't do any Tooling around on this video at all, All Hail The Guru of Toys!!!!!!

[@spectorcreative1872]

Oh a man who would pun would pick your pocket

[@JeffTheFutureJaros]

@@spectorcreative1872 Haha not a pocket picker, just a punner!

[@mikeyjhilli]

This was interesting. So the boat anchor stories ARE true.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Totally true.

[@SmokeForPants]

Super7 got a nasty surprise when they went to do orange Ram Man and found out very late in the process that the tool had been modified to make Tuskador. There's an extra expense they didn't figure into the budget.

[@Tim85-y2q]

Was it modified? I thought it was just the same mold with extra armor glued on.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Yup! Perfect example!

[@SmokeForPants]

@@Tim85-y2q If I remember right, the underlying torso had to have cavities cut into it to accommodate the tusk plug-in feature. But I haven't taken it apart myself to verify.

[@SimbasGuardWT]

Wow! I never knew toymaking had so much risk involved.

[@spectorcreative1872]

So much!

[@SimbasGuardWT]

@@spectorcreative1872 It's mind blowing.

[@hellspawnhulk]

How do small companies afford to make all new tooling for every single action figure such as dc direct (dc collectibles) and mcfarlane ? ( I know mcfarlane repaints some of them and adds some different parts)

[@spectorcreative1872]

Well DC Direct does not pay royalties and McFarlane has very little overhead.

[@adrake7]

You mention that toys going on clearance hurts toy companies financially, but haven't they already sold the product to the retailer at that point?

[@spectorcreative1872]

I'm working on a video on this now

[@X.Q.Jonah-]

Is it true that much of the tooling for 80s-90s G.I. Joe sank to the bottom of the ocean or is that a toy urban legend?

[@spectorcreative1872]

More like Hong Kong Harbor.

[@torpedo8384]

Many molds were also degraded with use over time. Some went to Estrella in South America and to Funskool in India. And there’s also the persistent rumor that some perhaps many were sabotaged and purposely defaced beyond usage.

[@ReptilianRichardRamirez]

Hey bro, wanted to say thanks for all the amazing figure content. Quick question though... Do you think MOTU is worth me starting to collect this late into the game? Your content has ignited a spark and made we interested. The franchise is way, way before my time and I always thought that it was silly with a stupid story and even worse characters. I think I'm going to try to pick up the Origins line He-Man & Skeleor and then go from there. Thoughts???

[@spectorcreative1872]

I don't think something like MOTUC will ever be outdone, so if you were going to collect one MOTu line that would be the one

[@robd1329]

I just started the Origins line. The line is can easily be found on ebay for the first 2 waves. Their everywhere

[@IuriFiedoruk]

I think you missed just one point. For limited quantity, when the tooling don't need to last for like a million injections, you can get much cheaper molds. Of course, if the product is a success, and you want to sell more, in this case, you are in trouble, as you will need to build another mold and this can be difficult to have same format as the original one. And the defect ratio on those are much higher too. But alas, this is a viable option for limited runs of products.

[@spectorcreative1872]

YES! I am going to do a video on alt methods of producing a toy without tooling.

[@CyberDragon10K]

Your voice cut out for the first 19 seconds of the video. Is it possible to reverse engineer a tool from an old, existing toy? I believe Hasbro/Takara lost the tools for the G1 Dinobots and have been unable to do straight reissues of them since. There's Chinese KOs but I'd guess they're fuzzier/pudgier than the original toys.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Toy companies do this all the time. Like the Retro Star Wars or Kenner Ghost Buster figures. Those are all new tools based on the vintage toys.

[@rodrickadamginsburg8960]

18.5K 🥳🥳🥳🥳

[@spectorcreative1872]

20K by the end of the month?

[@justinmohan7103]

Brian Flynn from Super 7 said the Thundertank is gonna cost them like 450-500K. I think it will get made and I think they will sell a few thousand. If they sell 1500 I think they break even and after that its profit.

[@spectorcreative1872]

That sounds about right as far as tooling.

[@williamthompson5504]

The last G1 Optimus Prime mold shattered in 2012 after China reissued him as an Asian exclusive. The Walmart reissue of the cab is an all new tool. Hasbro reported it would have cost $100 at retail to sell Prime and his trailer because it would require tooling an entire new one.

[@JeffreyPiatt]

The recent G1 prime reissues were sourced from the retool done to the cab for G2

[@spectorcreative1872]

Tooling ain't cheap!

[@gavinhelgeson2880]

So who decides clearance sales? The retailers? Or the manufacturers of the product? Because I would think the Toy company already made their money, so the retail stores takes the hit?

[@spectorcreative1872]

I'll do a full video on this. It is too complicated for a quick answer!

[@no_one_from_nowhere]

3:52 “when he was a little girl” 🤔

[@spectorcreative1872]

Obviously.