jbopp15

Legos become brittle after storage

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I have some lego sets such as the star wars B wing, and A wing, and also the Malevolence, that have been sitting on a shelf for around 4 years. Whats weird is they have become very fragile, just touching them they fall apart and i don't know why or how to fix it. Anyone know?

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Do you mean the build falls apart, or that the bricks are falling apart?

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A built LEGO set that is subject to temperature fluctuations will "unbuild" itself slowly - the pieces will start to disconnect.

However having actual pieces break is very rare (though I do know the original Star Destroyer would deform pieces if left on its own over time).

If the plastic is becoming brittle that's very strange - not much reacts with ABS (though it can be damaged by sunlight, that usually just results in yellowing). Were the sets stored built in direct sunlight? Do you have some pictures?

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I don't know about storage but from what I've observed, brown, gold and clear transparent pieces tend to be very brittle, or at least more brittle than other colors.

https://scontent.fmnl17-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/31820572_2139503396063273_8285406932378845184_n.jpg?_nc_cat=0&_nc_eui2=v1%3AAeFgDRAMm4JnVAR4LBq3XjddzSq5hEjvBYIVzqmvDz3PGremsVwJElpe9OXcl5BdWgfsMQps12r_VtERGQFY45FLIxaI4xtuc3cT0AJYLYpEfQ&oh=e4ba20b1c9dcd55a8ace2679868afcaa&oe=5B578159

 

31564252_1963406630398679_434327854843428864_n.jpg

Edited by Ghost Onyx

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I have had problems with old lego pieces going brittle and snapping. This is only on bricks with clips on them though. They had become so brittle that just pressing them lightly caused the clips to snap off.

I started a topic about this a couple of months ago which has more information.

 

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I have one of the original release X-Wing sets that was left (partially assembled) in an attic for 15+ years. None of the pieces seemed brittle but the pieces don't have quite the same "snap" when connecting bricks that a brand new set still has.

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I bought a 4563 train set off Ebay and basically all the pcs fall apart if you look at them wrong. There is little to no clutch power left.

Edited by SuperChiefer84

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This (very old) thread may have some useful information.  I didn't realise this, but apparently Lego bricks can shrink very slightly if exposed to high temperatures.

I've noticed that bricks can lose some clutch power if they are repeatedly connected and disconnected, not enough to cause the bricks to fall apart but enough to feel just a little looser than connecting factory-fresh bricks.

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On 5/5/2018 at 10:34 AM, Boettner Builds said:

New dark red and new reddish brown are the ones that are brittle for me.

Yes... I just got out a handful of 2x2 round plates in reddish brown.  They were fine when I was connecting them, but whenever I used a brick separator to try to take one off, it cracked.  I'm not brutal or ham-fisted when it comes to these things - when it's only one color, and everything else is fine, it's not me, it's the part.

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I think it was Reddit where I read that "Reddish Brown" is a bit more brittle than other colours I've not any problems in the last decade with any colours.

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