How to help a yellowed brick with a sticker?

Question

My parents recently finally decided they can return me my childhood toys with 1990s Technic sets including the 8880 Super Car. All other sets were in boxes, but this one spent the last 15+ years assembled in a clean attic, so it's dusty and yellowed, but surprisingly, complete (I disassembled it with the instructions in hand). I haven't yet decided if I should keep or sell it, but I need to clean it.

Question: This piece.

I've read about bleaching LEGO bricks with hydrogen peroxide and about removing labels for repair. Do you think it's a good idea to remove the labels and then bleach the brick? Or is there some other, better way of helping this guy?

Answer 1

A paste of oxygen bleach slathered on liberally, and then some time in the sun will probably fade the yellow nicely. It should not degrade the plastic (any further).

Your real problem is not re-attaching the label, but removing it without tearing or leaving behind most of the backing.

Depending on the material and glue, you might be able to remove it carefully with water, if the glue can be dissolved in water. If you can get the paper off and let it dry flat, you should have little problem re-gluing it.

The challenge will be the choice of glue. You need something that isn't necessarily permanent when it cures, but can still stick to plastic. White craft glue (not yellow PVC!) should do the trick. But there are many modern adhesives used for non-permanent applications that can bind plastic and paper. There might even be an archival "spray-mount" style compound that won't yellow over time.

Though, honestly, white craft glue is pretty stable. You can even make a paintable slurry from white craft glue that you can apply with a paintbrush to one surface to make the whole thing easier.

But it will be removing and preserving that labels that I suspect will be the greatest challenge.

Answer 2

I think that the best thing to do would be to keep everything as it was because in selling, even if it is damaged, the ORIGINAL product will usually sell for more than a restored product. this also means keeping the stickers on.

I actually did an experiment my self with this and i found these results. If you are keeping it for yourself then i would do whatever you need it for. If you are going to bleach it then cover and water-proof seal of the stickers and only then bleach it. That is what I would do.

Answer 3

I've done this a few times before. To remove the sticker, get a hair dryer and gently warm it up - this will slightly melt the glue make it easier to get off. The trick now is to lift it without damaging it. I bought some incredibly thin, and sharp blades for a craft knife... they are thin enough to make their way between the sticker and the plastic and practically slide straight under. This will lift the sticker clean off. Depending on the age of the sticker you might need a bit of extra glue to help reattach it (also you may need to warm it back up to help the glue bond again)

Just take care :)

Answer 4

You do not need to remove your sticker to bring it back to full color. Just follow this process. Get a 3% hydrogen poroxide solution and a small glass. Pour the solution in and your piece and set it in the sun for 4 to 5 days, making sure the piece stays all the way in the solution. That should work.