MMC Bovis elbow fix/prevention guide

The best option is to lube the right elbow (and possibly sand the ridge/pawl just a tiny bit) BEFORE it is ever transformed/posed----then you can ensure the elbow will never have any issue in the first place. Just a few minutes of work will ensure your elbows don't get any "frayed teeth" and stay looking smooth and shiny.

But either way, how to disassemble the elbow and lube it:

Lots of words here, but maybe 10 minutes work (most of which is removing and reinserting pins). I will do the same to my Fortis when it arrives. So far so good, no visible damage at all to the teeth, and it's "clickier" than the smooshed one was.

If you've already transformed your Bovis a few times and the "teeth" on the upper elbow are fine--you don't have to worry, it's not going to happen in the future. If it's going to ever happen to yours, it'll happen the first time you transform it.

Note: DO NOT BEND A REPLACEMENT ELBOW (or a fresh-from-the-box figure's). Not until you've disassembled it etc. Bending it just once "as is" may possibly "smoosh" the teeth. You need a perfectly flawless elbow to start with. I'm not going to move my Fortis' elbow even 1mm after I open him up, it's going straight to disassembly.

1. First, remove the original elbow+forearm from your Bovis/Fortis. It just slides off to the side.

2. Ok, on the upper part of the elbow joint---the "geared" part with the teeth. About "3 teeth down" from the top on the front side (referencing the "factory" joint positions).

There will be a little protruding square of plastic inbetween the teeth. Slice it off:




3. Comparing my "smooshed" elbow to a brand-new one, there was no difference at all on the grey part of the elbow---the very slight offset "mashing" on the ridges on the grey piece seem to be how it comes out of the mold, or is assembled by the factory, so I saw no point in doing anything to the lower elbow joint.

4. Next, remove the pins from the elbow. No hammer etc needed. Just push them out with another pin, a nail punch, small round needle file, etc. Could probably even use a ball-point pen. Get them out about half way, then use needle-nose pliers to grab the exposed ends and twist them all the way out. You technically don't need to remove both pins and totally disassemble it, but I find it easier to work on this way. If you have no experience with pins, these are about as easy as it comes and would be a good "first try".



5. So, once you've got everything apart, you should have the center piece of the elbow by itself. While I believe it's perfectly symmetrical top/bottom and front/back, the factory alignment is: The small sprue scar on the very end is on the top/outside, the 2 small circular ejector pin marks in the center, are on the front.

6. The "inner workings" of this piece are simply a flat expanse with a ridge down the middle, on either side. The ridge is the "pawl" of the elbow's ratchet. I've photographed at an angle so the ridge catches the light, and "from behind" so you can see both ridges protruding out on either side of the center "bar". You only need to work on one, and remember to make that one the upper one.




7. I used a very thin sanding stick (320 grit?) and sanded this ridge down SLIGHTLY. It sanded down faster than I expected, so like 5-10 swipes will be more than enough. I also applied the tiniest little bit of lube to the ridge. I used moly lube as it was on hand (and is black), and I wanted a grease rather than an oil. A tiny blob about 1mm x 1mm, spread across the bar. (and I really only used about half of that blob) It's a geared joint, the lube is going to be squished down to a microscopically thin layer when the parts move together, so any excess is just going to be squeezed out and attract dirt/dust/lint etc. You need a paper-thin coating over that ridge, nothing more. Do not "oil" the joint like you would the Tin Woodman. You'll just end up with an oily Bovis.

8. Reassemble! Just go slow with the pins, checking them each step of the way to make sure they're going in right---from the outside: entering the black centerpiece, then going into the geared part, then entering the centerpiece from the inside(exiting the geared piece). I pushed the pins in most of the way by hand, them finished pushing them in flush with a needle-nose pliers used end-on. Reattach the arm and you should be good to go.

So here's my Bovis with his new lubed elbow:

 

If your Bovis' elbow already has some frayed/smooshed teeth on the elbow, and you want them looking nice again, try taking a Gundam inking pen/Pigma Micron etc (NOT a Sharpie!) and just ink in over the smooshed gears---it will make them "deeper black" and shiny again, and it will look a bit better)

Original "smooshed" elbow, with a little bit of slicing/scraping/filing away at the teeth to try to restore their shape, and then inked in:



Most of the look is the inking, it was more effective than trying to re-shape the teeth. (sorry, didn't take any pics after reshaping the teeth but prior to inking---but it looked pretty "rough and grey" comparatively)

If you want to try to re-shape the teeth a bit---a knife-type needle file is very useful for getting in between the teeth etc. One like this:


Also, after shaping etc, and before inking---try to "burnish" the teeth/grooves. I just used a toothpick. Try to smooth out the plastic a bit. It'll all help a little. Won't be as flawless-looking as a new/lubed elbow, but it'll be a noticeable improvement.

 

Thanks for creating this David.

 

Did you disassemble the left arm too? Were there any differences between the two? Still trying to figure out why this is a right arm issue 

 

Much appreciated! I will definitely follow this when I get my Bovis!

 

No, no one's ever had problems with the left arm AFAIK. It must just be a .001mm difference in the molds.

 

So far, I've seen two people say that just lubricating it solves the problem and nobody saying that it doesn't. It's a small sample size, but you should put some sort of disclaimer saying that, "It might just be the grease. MMC recommends the application of water-based lube." People might see this and get the false impression that you went to all this trouble as a last resort and that there was no simple way to prevent the problem.

I know you were skeptical of the lube-only approach because POM plastic is "self-lubricating", but my internet research shows that POM parts still benefit greatly from lube.

I'd be interested to see if someone was brave enough to try this without the grease. Sanding down the contacting surface seems like it has to work. The unresolved issue is how much to sand off. It could be that you didn't sand enough off to make it work without lubrication.

You know, I kind of wish I already had my Bovis in-hand and that his elbow was already mashed so that I could judge how insignificant it is. Not having him (he's in my BBTS PoL), I don't have the correct context for how big that gear is and the pictures of the problem are probably waaaaaaay more harshly illustrative than I would be able to make out or notice in person.

 

I never tried it without lube. I only have the one spare. So I did everything possible to ensure it'd be enough. I wasn't going to try the minimum, find out it wasn't enough, and have 2 smooshed right elbows. The gears will get stripped the FIRST time you move the elbow---you only get one chance to "do what you're gonna do".

As for lube-only procedure: I'd still disassemble it, to apply the lube directly to the ridge/pawl. Packing the joint full of lube from the outside is going to lead to a messy dirt-filled elbow over time. (unlike say Herc's hips, this joint is exposed)

 

thanks for the guide! maybe could use this guide as a reference later in future because mine is still ok..

 

My bovis' right elbow also suffered damage. I can't seem to push the pin out though to fix it.

 

Is this inherent to all Bovis figures?

 

Evidently not, as mine has had no issue with it. It does seem relatively common though.

 

Best method I found was to use a round needle file. Could always try "traditional" pin-removal methods like punch+hammer to loosen it up first.

If not---there's always my second post. Still clicky and looks good, just AS clicky or good-looking.

 

So a few questions regarding the fix:

When sanding down the ridge, are we referring to the top of the ridge?
Regarding the center post, what area is that referring to?
Is lube needed for just the ridge area? Or would lube be spread over the post too?

Thanks for the guide!

 

Kinda feel sorry for the guys over at MMC... especially since a lot of them frequent this site. It's gotta hurt to come here and see this thread...

Not that it shouldn't exist... it's a good service you're doing people to protect their investment on the toy... just man, gotta sting a bit. Hope the next figure is flawless! Should be, considering it's almost the same toy. If Fortis has this same issue (seeing as how it's the same identical part), are people going to be as forgiving? Wonder if they had to fix the mold or something...

 

I wasn't even aware this was a thing? Now I gotta check mine out.

 

I thought MMC already said this problem may continue still with Fortis.

 

Yep I remember that's what they said as well.

 

I've had to modify every 3P combiner I've ever bought. Herc? Yep? Uranos? Mmm Hmm. Now Feral Rex? Ah well, seems like an easy fix. Pushing pins out aren't any big deal. I fully expect some maintenance and fiddling will have to be done with Warbotron too. That's pretty much par for the course from what I can tell.