It started out as Han's, now it's Lando's

January 31, 2021 5:29 AM

Want something nice and soothing for your Sunday viewing? Here's somebody lovingly cleaning and restoring a battered old, 1978 vintage Millennium Falcon. With bonus X-Wing episode.
posted by MartinWisse (29 comments total)

Given how grungy it generally looks, restoring a Millennium Falcon to gleaming white makes it look less like the cinematic version.
posted by zamboni at 5:57 AM on January 31, 2021 [4 favorites]

2005 me: covets sweet toy that I never had as a child
2021 me: covets mind-blowing purpose built retrobrighting tank
posted by phooky at 5:59 AM on January 31, 2021 [12 favorites]

Yeah, looked so much better when they started. Sheesh.
posted by rikschell at 6:04 AM on January 31, 2021

We had that exact model of the X-Wing when we were kids. We also had Vader's TIE Fighter.

Cool videos!
posted by SoberHighland at 6:13 AM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

To be clear, this is a perfectly lovely restoration video, and it looks shiny and new at the end.
posted by zamboni at 6:15 AM on January 31, 2021 [4 favorites]

Search for weathering Millennium Falcon on YouTube and you’ll find lots of good examples of the next step in the process.
posted by schoolgirl report at 6:18 AM on January 31, 2021 [3 favorites]

Oh man. When he turns the gun, and you hear the CLACK-CLACK-CLACK noise. Decades vanished.
posted by Capt. Renault at 7:36 AM on January 31, 2021 [3 favorites]

I'd never heard of retrobrightening. How "permanent" is the effect? Does the plastic remain clean for as long as if it was new, or does it reverse relatively quickly?
posted by Thorzdad at 7:57 AM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

It was interesting to watch the process and the care the person took with the project. Just personally, though, I thought the "before" version had more character, by showing its history of being played with and loved. I would have either not done the restoration at all, or maybe just some selective aspects.

There are similar conversations about how far restorations of items like classic cars or mechanical watches should go -- how much of the patina from use should be left, vs making it look like it came off of the production line?
posted by Dip Flash at 8:09 AM on January 31, 2021

The Retr0bright wikipedia article has a basic summary of the process. The effect isn't permanent - how long it takes to yellow again seems to depend on the extent of existing damage, and subsequent storage conditions.
posted by zamboni at 8:22 AM on January 31, 2021

Given how grungy it generally looks, restoring a Millennium Falcon to gleaming white makes it look less like the cinematic version.

It may be something changed in the 1997 Special Edition: Luke’s initial reaction upon seeing it used to be, “What a piece of junk!” Maybe Lucas has since changed to, “Sweet ride, man!”
posted by ricochet biscuit at 8:28 AM on January 31, 2021 [3 favorites]

Interesting the little dangly ball for the thing that shoots at Luke...I remember this being a little plastic ball on a molded armature on the one I played with. I'm guessing this is the 1978 design that got changed
posted by anazgnos at 8:38 AM on January 31, 2021

My brother and I had the 1978 version, by the look of it...it's still in my parents' basement along with assorted beaten-up action figures and (I think) the Snowspeeder. One of my nephews asked if we had the X-Wing (we did), and for whatever reason that's the only Star Wars toy he's interested in playing with.
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:13 AM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

This was pretty cool to watch with my kids over my shoulder, so I could say this was the. best. toy. EVER when I was a boy.

I'd heard of the UV+hydrogen peroxide method to re-whiten old ABS plastic, but not seen it in action. I was mulling over trying to refurb or just replacing my decade old PC case along with a guts rebuild, precisely because the white plastic front and top panel had gone a nasty shade of nicotine yellow in comparison to the painted metal. I decided I might as well upgrade - and seeing the required fish tank, amount of H202 and UV lights, I think it was probably the right call for a one-off. (plus much better airflow, so effectively silent fans in the new build)

Supposedly the process 'resets' the plastic to mostly its original state, so it will eventually re-yellow over time, as UV light exposure definitely is part of the problem. My PC case parts were a good shade darker on the side that faced the window.
posted by Absolutely No You-Know-What at 9:16 AM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

Detail the Millennium Falcon Already!

Man, just seeing those decals brought back memories.
posted by emelenjr at 9:23 AM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

I love videos like these. One of my favorite Youtube channels is a Swiss guy that restores super old tools to brand new condition. Sometimes you see him using one of those rehabbed tools when restoring others. It's so satisfying to watch. I make new one!
posted by NoMich at 9:31 AM on January 31, 2021 [4 favorites]

Maybe I'm just grouchy because I always coveted that toy as a kid. Built my own Millenium Falcon out of a cardboard box. Sure it wasn't so much round as square, but that was a little like Star Wars action figures not having any knees: the whole prospect of play required a lot of imagination.
posted by rikschell at 10:09 AM on January 31, 2021 [2 favorites]

I am flabbergasted by how much detail and tooling went into the design of this toy
posted by Jon_Evil at 10:41 AM on January 31, 2021 [3 favorites]

I think these were one of those toys my parents would have just chuckled if we had put them on the wish list.
posted by maxwelton at 11:05 AM on January 31, 2021 [3 favorites]

I am flabbergasted by how much detail and tooling went into the design of this toy

Yes, that was my thought as well. The care and delicacy with which everything in that Falcon and X-Wing fit together, especially the latter's wings were a surprise to me.

Never had either as a kid, the best I got was the B-Wing, which lost some of its guns on the way from the story to home already.
posted by MartinWisse at 12:20 PM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

Watching this on mute with soothing electronic/techno in the background...yes Sunday.
posted by dngrangl at 2:15 PM on January 31, 2021

I had this exact model, and one of the first things that happened was the gangway 'clip' hinge broke off so it fell to the bottom of the toybox and never returned, and not long after the cockpit cupola wouldn't stay on either, and then one of the rear landing gears wouldn't stay locked extended, and then...but I played the heck out of it. It's probably still in my parent's basement.
posted by AzraelBrown at 2:24 PM on January 31, 2021 [2 favorites]

I think these were one of those toys my parents would have just chuckled if we had put them on the wish list.

My recommendation is to do what I did: have parents who were divorced and neither of whom wanted to fall to #2 on the charts.

I had a Millennium Falcon.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 2:51 PM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

While admiring the skill and attention to detail involved in doing this, the big question on my mind was: Where did the restorer get the set of replacement stickers?

Is this something that can be bought on the collector's market, or did they have to figure out how to reproduce the originals themselves, and if so, what all was involved in that?
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 4:40 PM on January 31, 2021 [3 favorites]

That was really satisfying to watch. And the sticker question bugs me too, Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner .
posted by JawnBigboote at 5:55 PM on January 31, 2021

the big question on my mind was: Where did the restorer get the set of replacement stickers?

eBay, probably. Googling "1978 Kenner Millennium Falcon replacement stickers" gives a wide variety of choices.
posted by zamboni at 6:39 PM on January 31, 2021 [1 favorite]

I know we've seen it, but for the idle curious: Haynes Manual is a fun read.
posted by ovvl at 7:01 PM on January 31, 2021

I enjoy Rescue & Restore a lot. His goal seems to be "make an old item like new" which often means that at the end of a video he has an item that looks like it just came from the store. Still, his attention to detail and his methodical process is a joy to watch.
posted by jazon at 7:11 PM on January 31, 2021

Thanks, zamboni! TIL that replacement stickers for vintage toys are a thing.
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 8:25 PM on January 31, 2021