Mr. FORD’s Amazing Rehabilitation – Links Added.

Recently I acquired a wrecked and incomplete 1979 Kenner ALIEN action figure and set about to restore it. I fully documented the process in eight installments as Mr FORD’s Amazing Rehabilitation. Now all eight pages are complete. For ease of navigation links have been made and a permanent shortcut to this lengthy article has been added to the sidebar at right for quick access. If you are remotely interested in the 1979 Kenner ALIEN toy or want some tips on how to repair or restore one of these old action figures, you might find something very useful here. Go for it! Links are also available below.

Part 1: Recovery.
Part 2: Dismantle & Clean.
Part 3: Working on the Head.
Part 4: Attaching the Arm.
Part 5: Attaching the Tail.
Part 6: Replacing a Leg.
Part 7: Reattaching the Dorsal Quad Appendages.
Part 8: Final Assembly.

This task of taking a messed up and broken down derelict action figure relegated to council kerbside rubbish collection was fortunately recovered by a keen eyed passer by who recognised it for what it was. Transforming this ruined vintage toy into something worth much more than a candidate for landfill fell to me. Doing so was a ton of fun and it’s all there.  I’ll do this again sometime. Enjoy Mr. FORD’s Amazing Rehabilitation.

-windebieste.

Kenner ALIEN Rehab. (Part 8) – Final Assembly.

Welcome to the last entry regarding Mr. FORD’s rehabilitation. In this entry we wrap up his repairs with a final assembly and comparison images. The condition he was when I received him to how he looks now are dramatic to say the least. His work is finished. Well, almost finished. He’s as good as can be – for now. I simply don’t have all the parts needed to make him complete but that is a task for another time. This effort was a lot of fun! Later I will link all the pages together into a cohesive piece of work and it will be easier to read through the entire eight page article without coming back to the front page. Nonetheless, The final page of Mr. FORD’s restoration is posted and is now live.

-windebieste.

Kenner ALIEN Rehab. (Part 7) – Reattaching the Dorsal Quads.

We’re getting to the closing stages of Mr. FORD’s amazing rehabilitation! This effort is being made to restore him to as good as condition as possible and for him to become worthy of display. We’re almost there. At this point all that remains is simple. His quad dorsal appendages need to be refitted, straightened out and made secure on his back. Not a difficult task.All we need to do is return all four of those “weird tubie things” onto his back. Three of them are broken and will need to be repaired. We’ll do that by using nothing more complicated than a trio of common and easily acquired paperclips. How is this repair supposed to work? Good question. Check out Kenner ALIEN Rehab, Part 7 and find out.

-windebieste.

Kenner ALIEN Rehab. (Part 6) – Replacing a Leg.

Let’s address the issue of having Mr. FORD’s legs returned to his torso. Like everything else regarding this beat up old toy, neither of these limbs are in perfect condition. While damaged, his left leg is still intact and imminently useful. Unfortunately, his right leg suffers significantly more damage than can be easily repaired.It’s obvious this damaged limb isn’t going to useful and it’s a great thing these old toys can be disassembled. Mr. FORD will just have to have a complete limb replacement. This task is now documented in the latest installment (Chapter 6) of his rehabilitation.

-windebieste.

Kenner ALIEN Rehab. (Part 5) – Attaching a Tail.

Mr. FORD needs a tail! Hah. That line almost sounds like a children’s book title. Well, why not? Considering Mr. FORD is actually a children’s toy, intended for AGES 5 AND UP when he was originally made all the way back in 1979, it’s not all that inappropriate, really.

Anyway, above is the tail Mr. FORD needs to aid him in becoming “feature complete”. Let’s get it fastened in Part 5 of Rehabilitating a four decades old grotesque play thing.

-windebieste.

Kenner ALIEN Rehab. (Part 3) – Working on the Head.

Continuing with our endeavors to have this beat up old sample of the 1979 Kenner ALIEN toy back on his feet, we turn our attention to Mr. FORD’s head. It’s in generally good shape if a bit knocked around and scuffed. There’s also a nasty crack along the right hand side. While it’s now a feature permanently scarring the figure, it is causing other issues that can be fixed. Let’s tackle those.

There are other minor details worth having their attention drawn to. Without too much effort, we should be able to get the head into as good a shape as possible. These old Kenner ALIEN toys are a ton of fun to work with and restore. Let’s get stuck into it which means the third installment of this Kenner ALIEN Rehabilitation Project has been posted.

-windebieste.

Kenner ALIEN Rehab. (Part 2) – Dismantle & Clean.

Success! I was able to remove the screws and dismantle this decrepit old ALIEN toy. Concerns about Mr. FORD not being able to achieve this critical stage have been alleviated. Here he is. Now in pieces, cleaned and off to a great start. You can read the progress of this unfortunate and broken old toy in the latest installment of his rehabilitation, Kenner ALIEN Rehab. – Dismantle & Clean. So far so good; and with the success of the critical disassembly out of the way, we are well on the path to completion and having Mr. FORD standing back on both legs once again.

-windebieste.

Kenner ALIEN Rehab. (Part 1) – Recovery.

I recently had the good fortune to purchase this 1979 Kenner ALIEN toy. Unfortunately, he’s definitely seen better days. To say the least, he is severely beat up, broken, missing parts and is coated in dust and dirt. So what of it. He’s perfect, I say. Perfect that is, for a makeover that will hopefully result in this broken, one legged decrepit old toy back standing back on his feet once again, without the need for a display stand to hold him upright. I’ve also decided to document my efforts in rehabilitating this less than stellar sample, bringing him up to display worthy status. If it is possible. I’ve finished what is (intended to be) the first page of his Kenner ALIEN Rehab. – Recovery. The ultimate goal of this exercise is to have it be the first entry in a much larger article, recording a running written documentation of his restoration. I will publish more completed tasks as we progress.

Let’s see how far we can complete this exercise before it comes to a grinding halt, shall we?

-windebieste.