Poester SF writes in:

“I’m a collector and I know you have a lot of experience with figures so I hope you can help me out. I’ve got a quick question about rubber parts used in toys. I am looking specifically at figures like Transformers Dark of the Moon Shockwave and McFarlane’s Call of Duty Marine Corps with Flamethrower figure when I ask this. Those figures have rubber hoses (at least Shockwave does) and I’m wondering if these rubber parts can become worn from taking them out of their sockets and re-inserting themtoo many times.  Have you had any experience with this?”

Thanks for the note, SF. While I don’t own either of the toys you specifically mention, I have had a number of toys over the years with rubber parts, and in general I have found that the durability of such hoses depends a lot on the design of the hose itself. For example, I have a Mutagen Man figure from the vintage Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line whose hoses are still tight and strong, but I’ve had other figures who tubes have been so thin as to be easily ripped.

If your question is whether removing and replacing the tubes frequently will weaken their ability to hold tight in the socket, my gut feeling is that the answer is no. Rubber is fairly flexible and will simply squeeze to fit the hole, rather than getting scratched away.

That said, if you’re really concerned about durability, it’s never a good idea to repeatedly remove and replace parts on a figure, especially if they’re made of rubber.

But since, again, I don’t own those two figures, I invite my readers to weigh in with their own experiences. Do you find rubber hoses to be durable or easily ruined?

If you’d like to ask Poe a toy-related question, send an email to poe@poeghostal.com. Please include “Poest Office” in the subject heading.