Monochrome Minifigures

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

I will soon receive the first pieces in my monochrome collection after years of salivating at your collections. Does anyone know of the pros and cons of different products or print removal? I'd like to use something that leaves the surface as pristine as possible, that won't discolor the plastic, and that removes all of the print. I've seen Brasso and Quixx recommended in this topic, but I was wondering if there were pros and cons to them or other products.

[Coopa182]

I use Brasso mainly because we don’t have the other brands/types of other products in my country that people often mention. I’ve never had a part get damaged or discoloured. I always give the pieces a clean with a dishwashing liquid rub down and rinse with clean water, and dry with a soft towel and they remain in great condition.

[Holodoc]

I can only second Coopa's words.
By the way: Brasso isn't sold in Germany, so I asked some fellows around here to buy me some - and I never regretted it! 

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

Thanks for the input! Since I am a print removal noob, could you confirm this is the exact product you use? (Not sure if there are different kinds). Interesting that metal polish is useful to remove print.

I heard Brasso can leave the plastic a little dull. If so, how do you guys get around this?

Also, what do you guys use to apply it? Cotton? I want to make sure not to scratch anything!

Edited May 10, 2020 by BrickHat

[Coopa182]

I’ve never experienced any dullness and I have wiped a lot of minifigure parts. I personally use an old towel and pour a little brasso onto that, then hold the towel down on the table (putting some news paper down so it doesn’t soak through to the table) and rub the part back and forth against the towel. Give the can a really good shake first! Take it easy and gently and it takes less than a minute for a torso to be wiped. Legs are the most awkward bits to do! Here is what we get in New Zealand:

I had an old can, and when I first tried it I wasn’t having much luck! It turns out it must go off after a while, as a fresh can worked better.

[Holodoc]

What I did is all in this post.

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

Thanks @Holodoc and @Coopa182! Really appreciate your advice. I just ordered some! Wish me luck...

[Paperballpark]

There's a product in the UK that I bought called Quixx, which I'd thoroughly recommend.

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

3 hours ago, Paperballpark said:

There's a product in the UK that I bought called Quixx, which I'd thoroughly recommend.

Thanks! It seems to be more expensive in the US. Does it make the wiping process easier? Just curious.

Also, did you guys notice this figure on the cover of the upcoming minifigure journal? Could it mean a classic spaceman in medium lavender is coming?

https://www.thebrickfan.com/new-lego-puzzles-and-stationary-pre-orders-at-chronicle-books/

[Holodoc]

I believe it's 'just' the pink Lenny.
Sometimes it's really hard to determine a printed colour.

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

Sorry to bother you guys again with the basics of print removal. I just ran a test on a torso. First, I tried using a towel. After I was done, I examined the piece against the light, and I could see the scratches in the direction I removed the print. I then tried using cotton (on the other side of the torso), and I had the same result. Is this unavoidable?

Edited May 19, 2020 by BrickHat

[Holodoc]

Mmmh. I never experienced anything like that.   I used a mmore plushy cotton for it (see my link to original post above).

[Paperballpark]

On 5/12/2020 at 11:37 PM, BrickHat said:

Thanks! It seems to be more expensive in the US. Does it make the wiping process easier? Just curious.

Yes I found it easier to remove the print with it than with either an eraser or brasso, and it didn't seem to leave any kind of scratching or dullness.

I'm not sure what price it is in the US, but considering the prices that some of the elements cost, it's probably not all that much!

[Brickr]

Hi All,

Long-time Lego collector, newbie to the world of monochrome. Will post some pics of current collection/parts, have found the whole brasso/quixx discussion useful, tried brasso once and while it worked a treat I wasn’t a fan of the harsh chemically smell that seems to have been absorbed into the part... am going to try quixx next before I commit to whether I am going full purist with my collection.

I am normally purist OCD to the enth degree when it comes to lego, however I think I’m coming down on the side of “removing prints is not a ‘illegal’ move, but a restoration to the original pre-printed part” with it not being an ‘unofficial’ product or bootleg of any kind. That’s how I’m feeling today anyway.

is it just me or does anyone else get a great amount of pleasure looking into which hair/headgear accessories would go with each colour?

also... is that a dark turquoise torso and arms on Ron in the new astronomy tower set? Might be cheaper than Mira?

keep it up peeps ;)

[Brickr]

Update: I just tried both Brasso and Quixx, and can definitely recommend the latter. A little longer to work, but no smell, and leaves the plastic untouched (I used the cloth provided in the kit).

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

On 5/30/2020 at 7:03 PM, Brickr said:

Update: I just tried both Brasso and Quixx, and can definitely recommend the latter. A little longer to work, but no smell, and leaves the plastic untouched (I used the cloth provided in the kit).

Interesting. I have been trying Eucalyptus oil, since I've heard good things about it. It doesn't scratch the plastic, but it tends to leave a "ghost" impression of the print that takes long time to get rid of. Is there anything like that on your test pieces?

Edited June 1, 2020 by BrickHat

[Brickr]

14 minutes ago, BrickHat said:

Interesting. I have been trying Eucalyptus oil, since I've heard good things about it. It doesn't scratch the plastic, but it tends to leave a "ghost" impression of the print that takes long to get rid of. Is there anything like that on your test pieces?

Hi BrickHat,

tgere was with Brasso, but didn’t notice anything with Quixx. It was the smell, and potential for discolouration that also put me off the former, let me know how the Eucalyptus oil goes... should have some pics to post soon.

[Brickr]

Okay, so no pics as of yet (one day all of my work will be done and I can get to the fun stuff, but it isn't today!) but I have now finished collecting the parts for most of the currently available colours. I was originally on the fence about whether to wipe parts, but after testing Brasso and Quixx (and seeing how beautifully Quixx works, no smell, no scratches), I have decided to wipe any printed parts and then replace them with 'purist' parts as and when they become available.

I will post some pictures tomorrow, but I now have all parts for the following colours:

Yellow

Bright Light Orange

Orange

Red

Dark Red

Magenta

Bright Pink

Dark Pink

Dark Purple

Dark Blue

Sand Blue

Bright Light Blue

Medium Blue

Blue

Dark Azure

Medium Azure

Light Aqua

Lime

Bright Green

Green

Dark Green

Sand Green

Olive Green

Dark Tan

Tan

Reddish Brown

Dark Brown

Dark Orange

Medium Dark Flesh

Flesh

White

Light Bluish Grey

Dark Bluish Grey

Black

Pearl Gold

 

I also have all currently available parts for the following (full minifigs not yet available)

Lavender

Coral

Flat Silver

Pearl Dark Grey

Yellowish Green

Light Flesh 

 

I'm no expert, but I have purchased all new parts, and together with parts from my own store I have tried to keep costs down by buying the fewest minifigures that together combine into the most complete monofigs, and would be happy to share this info with anyone interested.

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

Looks like you've assembled a neat collection, @Brickr! Personally I'm after all monochrome minifigs that are not brown or gray. I think I have all the pieces I need now (with some pieces on the way), except for dark turquoise legs! Dark turquoise is one of my favorite colors, and it bugs me that we don't have a dark turquoise head yet!

[Holodoc]

Can someone please give me a hint to the figures in dark turqouise and coral?

On 6/11/2020 at 1:23 AM, Brickr said:

I will post some pictures tomorrow, but I now have all parts for the following colours:

Definitely looking forward to this!

[Brickr]

Off the top of my head ‘Mera’ from one of the Aquaman sets, she’ll give you legs assembly and torso and arms in DTurq. Pretty sure The Ron Weasley from the new HP astronomy tower set has a DTurq torso also. Only minifigure with coral that I can think off is ‘Kitty’ from one of TLM2 sets, but only hips and torso I think.

Been delayed on posting pics, will try to get these up tomorrow :)

[Holodoc]

Oookaaay...

comes with dual molded arms and legs, so only torso and hips are "useful" for our purposes.

has got a dark turqoise shirt, but Mera (from set 76095 black Manta strike from 2018) comes in a complete dt outfit!  

How could I miss her???

[Brickr]

22 hours ago, Holodoc said:

Can someone please give me a hint to the figures in dark turqouise and coral?

Definitely looking forward to this!

Trying to work out how to upload images... only allowing ridiculously small (max 20kb!) never posted images beforehand.

[LuxorV]

You should not use the attachment option to post photos on EB. It is designed for smaller files like avatars.

For bigger files/photos, you should use a photosharing site (like Flickr, Instagram and the like) and deeplink from there.

We have some tutorials on how to do it (follow the links in Holodoc's or my signature), but I fear they are mostly outdated now.

[Holodoc]

If you find a photo online (I found mine @BS an BL) you can also right-klick on the image and choose 'copy image address'. Then you can just enter the link in your post and the photo will appear again. It's not stored @EB then.

EDIT: I just saw you were refering to your own photos. Then follow LuxorV's instructions.