How to Care for Resin Figures: Cleaning, Display & Repair

Updated: October 2026 · By the Hobbyteka Workshop Team

How Strong Are Resin Figures?

The main body of a resin figure is sturdy enough to handle normally. The weak spots are thin parts: fingers, hair strands, blades, chains and wing tips.

We print with Anycubic resins, mixed to our own recipe: a rigid ABS-like resin that holds the fine detail and a flexible tough resin that makes thin parts less brittle. Getting the ratio right took us months and about 20 test mixes. Our test piece was a long, thin sword, printed over and over, because long, thin parts are the first to bend. Most figures are hollow where it makes sense, which cuts weight and the load on large parts.

We can't promise how a thin part will react to stress. Sometimes it bends, sometimes it snaps. That depends on how thin it is, the temperature and humidity in the room, and how much sun it gets.

Since we started printing in 2025, no customer has told us that a part broke over time on their shelf. Last year one customer reported that a few ultra-thin parts were slowly bending. Those parts were printed in our earlier resin. We reprinted them in our current blend about eight months ago and haven't heard of any problems since.

Want to see how the figures are printed and finished? Read how resin 3D-printed figures are made.

Where Should You Display a Resin Figure?

Out of direct sunlight. We tested this on purpose. A fully clear resin part, washed but with no paint or varnish, went into direct sun with nothing covering it. Within a few weeks it started to cloud and turned slightly yellow. Tinted clear resin can cloud too after long, bright sun, and yellowing is harder to spot because the resin is already colored. We haven't seen paint fade on any of our figures, but we can't rule it out over many years. So we keep every figure out of direct sun. Normal room lighting is fine.

Away from heat. Thin resin parts can bend when they get warm, and we've seen it happen. Don't put a figure:

• above or next to a radiator or heater
• on a sunny windowsill
• in a parked car
• next to electronics that run hot

On a shelf that can hold the weight. Even hollow, large figures get heavy. Our heaviest example is Malenia from Elden Ring, which we printed for our own shelf: we're big Elden Ring fans, and Tanuki's sculpt of her is beautiful. At 1/6 she weighs about 4 kg (8.8 lb), at 1/8 about 2 kg (4.4 lb). Our guide to 1/8 vs 1/6 scale figures explains the size difference.

With room around it. Leave enough space to lift the figure out without touching its neighbors. Wide wings, weapons and effect parts catch on each other easily. A closed display cabinet also means far less dusting.

Glow-in-the-Dark and Fluorescent Parts

Glow-in-the-dark parts charge from sunlight or UV light. Ordinary household bulbs usually charge them little or not at all. Fluorescent parts light up under UV light (a blacklight). To show off either effect without leaving the figure in a window, charge or light it with a UV flashlight for a short while. How long they glow afterward depends on how strong the flashlight is and how long you charge them. See what these parts look like in our post on transparent and glow resin effects.

How to Dust a Resin Figure

Use a soft duster or compressed air. Skip cloths, sponges and wipes. In our workshop they almost always damage something: they snag on thin parts, scuff the paint and can snap off a small detail.

• Soft duster. A Swiffer-style duster or a feather duster. Light strokes, no pressure.
• Compressed air. Short bursts. Hold the nozzle farther away from thin parts than from the body.

Dust when you see dust. A light pass now and then is safer than a heavy clean once a year.

Painted Figures: No Water, No Cleaners

We seal painted figures with a water-based acrylic varnish (Kaleido ColorWorks, matte or gloss depending on the figure). It protects the paint from handling, and it isn't made for scrubbing. Don't use water, isopropyl alcohol, acetone, glass cleaner or any household cleaner on a painted figure. They can cloud the varnish or lift the paint. Dry dusting is all a painted figure needs.

Unpainted Figures: Rinse Before You Prime

Unpainted figures arrive washed, fully cured and often already sanded, so you can prime them right away. If the figure sits for a while before you paint it, dust will settle on it. Rinse it under the tap:

• Plain water is enough. You don't need soap or special cleaners.
• Use lukewarm water that feels comfortable on your hands, no hotter than about 30 °C (86 °F). Hotter water can make thin parts bend while you wash them.
• Let the figure dry completely before priming.

How to Pick Up and Move a Figure

Hold it by the body or the base, with both hands for anything large. Never lift it by a weapon, wing, arm or hair. Clean, dry hands keep fingerprints off gloss and dark paint.

If your figure has magnetic parts, pull them straight off and support the area near the joint while you do.

When you move house or take a figure to an event:

1. Take off every detachable part.
2. Wrap each part separately.
3. Pack so nothing presses on thin details.
4. Fill the gaps in the box so nothing slides.

Keep the box your figure came in. It's the easiest way to pack it safely again.

How to Store a Figure Long-Term

Take off detachable parts, wrap them separately and store everything somewhere dark, dry and at room temperature. An attic or garage that heats up in summer is a bad spot. Make sure nothing presses on thin parts: a part held bent for months can stay bent.

What If a Part Bends or Breaks?

Don't force a bent part back while it's cold, and never heat a painted figure. Email us photos of the part first, and we'll tell you what we can do.

• It arrived broken. Contact us right away with photos of the damage and the packaging. We usually reprint the broken part and send it to you. The work is free; for some destinations, such as the US, we may ask you to cover shipping. Details are in our shipping policy.
• It's our mistake. If the problem is a defect on our side, we cover everything: the new part and the shipping.
• It bent over time. Gentle warmth and weight can sometimes straighten an unpainted part. In our experience, though, a part that bent once tends to bend again, so we'd rather reprint it.
• It broke at home. In many cases we can repair it. Send photos and we'll tell you what's possible. More in our FAQ.

What it costs. For a part that bent over time or broke at home, it depends on the part. A small, simple part like a thin sword we'll often reprint for free. A large or heavily detailed part takes real print time and material, so we'll give you a quote before we start. We only repair figures we made.

We'd like to show real repair photos here. Breakages are rare enough that we don't have good examples yet, so we'll add them as they come.

FAQ

Can I clean a painted resin figure with water? No. Use a soft duster or compressed air. Water is fine only for unpainted figures before priming.

Do resin figures turn yellow? Clear resin can cloud and yellow in direct sun. In our test, an uncoated clear part started changing within a few weeks. We haven't seen paint fade on our figures. Keep any figure out of direct sun.

Can I leave a resin figure in my car? No. A parked car gets hot enough to bend thin parts.

Is a feather duster safe for resin figures? Yes, with light strokes. A feather duster or a Swiffer-style duster is what we use and recommend.

Do you repair figures from other shops? No. We repair only figures we made.

Looking for your next figure? Browse the catalog, or check Custom Orders if the character you want isn't there yet.