I am in the process of documenting my collection, cross-referencing it between two major sources, and this afternoon I spent an hour or so playing with my ponies. To my dismay, I discovered a problem with my alabaster Lying Foal Unicorn (1985 - 1988.)
Those dates themselves are enough to dishearten me - that's part of the timeline when Breyer produced models with a type of plastic that breaks down over time, and many (not all) of the models produced during that time are shrinking, oozing liquid, or both.
Ick.
I have a couple of them, but not too many, at least that I know of yet. Today as I picked up this foal to document it, I noticed it had developed yellow spots on the side facing outward.
The side facing the back of the shelf shows none of the yellow spots (the marks are scuffs from whoever owned this piece before me. I found it at a flea market or antique shop.)
And, the yellow spots will rub off with my finger or with some water. I am going to give this piece a bath, but first I want to photograph it and study it, possibly even making some inquiries around the hobby to see if anyone else has had this occur to a piece in their collection.
Kristen Wellman recently wrote about these kinds of issues on her blog, Model Horse Collectibility, and I have cut and pasted part of what she said:
Breyer models that are beginning to disintegrate from a problem that seems to be akin to vinegar syndrome in film. Like some kinds of film, many Breyers were made of a kind of plastic called cellulose acetate, and they are likewise starting to break down on a molecular level. The problem has only cropped up in the last few years, and so far, the only models that seem to be affected are those that were produced from around 1987-1992. (It is certainly possible that models may crop up from outside that range of years, but let's hope not many.) Not all models from those years are affected though, and it stands to reason that the affected models were made from a defective batch (or batches) of plastic.
Symptoms of vinegar syndrome include shrinking of the model in height and width, warping, slow implosion of the body cavity, legs that warp inward, paint discoloration (it gets lighter), a whitish film on the model that feels like chalk dust or soft powder, a strong vinegar smell, liquid oozing from the plastic, yellowing of white plastic areas, and in extreme cases, bubbling and collapse of the model.
Unfortunately, at this time, there is no known method to stop vinegar syndrome. So far, models that have been kept out in the open air tend to just slowly shrink and warp without any of the uglier symptoms. But as this is a recent development for Breyers, we don't yet know exactly what will eventually happen. Models kept in storage and models exposed to heat and humidity are much more likely to ooze and frequently go through the full gamut of symptoms
