The Energon Pub

News Credits: 65 · by **Wolfman Jake** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 1:58 am

I recently bought a used Alternators Nemesis prime from eBay. The price was right, and the shipping cost was very reasonable. However, upon opening my latest Alternators acquisition, I found the whole of it, the box, the figure itself, the instruction sheet, all of it, had that distinct "smoker's home" reek about it. It's not so bad that it's stinking up my house, but I loath to handle the figure because the smell tends to come off on my hands. Is this tobacco smoke smell something that will fade with time in cleaner air, or are there some tricks to remove the smell that work well without damaging the figure? Would something like a little Febreeze be safe and/or effective? Thanks in advance for any advice.

by **Shadowstream** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 2:37 am

I've had this problem, but oddly enough it was with a copy of an MGS2 disc. It was rank with the stench of beer like some ass had used it as a coaster before I had it. The smell eventually faded enough that I stopped noticing it when I handled the thing.

Still think it's disgusting that people who handle these things leave their bad smells on em. :-(

News Credits: 9 · by **Mykltron** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 5:05 am

Logically, if exposure to smoke has given it a smokey smell then the smell will fade in time with exposure to fresh air. Maybe you could stand it near one of those air fresheners that give off a smell constantly rather than spraying something so there's no chemical contact. Or stand it near an open window (out of direct sunlight) now summer's on the way.

News Credits: 402 · by **Mkall** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 8:21 am

Febreeze?

News Credits: 5749 · by **El Duque** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 8:37 am

It will fade in time. I bought a complete set of Alternators on Ebay a couple of years ago, and as soon as I opened the box the smell of smoke hit me in the face. I just opened them up as much as possible, doors, trunks, hoods, etc. and let them sit. The smell subsided after a few months. They also had that sort of sticky feel to them you get from exposure to cigarette smoke. Luckily a light washing with warm water took care of that.

News Credits: 9 · by **Hip-Hoptimus Rime** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 11:05 am

Similar experience here- bought a smoke-smelling TF on eBay, but a few weeks on a shelf in my non-smoking home and it was fine. Didn't have any sticky residue tho, thankfully.

News Credits: 2 · by **Convotron** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 1:54 pm

As others have suggested, simply airing the figure out, basically exposing it to fresh air can get rid of the smell. I had a similar situation with some Alternators figures I bought and I just left them out for a few days in a well ventilated room.

by **videriant** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 3:56 pm

Outside in a covered area on a windy day and a light washing. If you just put them on display the STRONG smell will fade in a little while but it'll still have a lingering scent when you pick it up which will cling to your hands.

by **michellatron** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 4:51 pm

I would think just having them opened up in the clean air would help the smell to diminish over time. I probably wouldn't spray anything on them, don't know what it would do to the finish. That smoke smell that gets impregnated into houshold items is nasty!

News Credits: 2 · by **Sid Burn** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 5:38 pm

I once had good luck with baking soda, I won a set of MISB takara collection reissues that I planned to keep sealed.

They smelled pretty bad, pot smell. I didnt use the baking soda directly on them of course, I opened a few boxes around them in a ventilated area, and it got rid of the smell after a week or two.

also had a fan on near them for the first little while, that helped as well.

might take some time but the smell will come out.

by **WolfDawg** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 5:44 pm

The smell goes away with time. I had a Transmetal 2 Megatron and Tigerhawk that I got from a seller and it absolutely reeked of tobacco. The smell was so foul that I hated going near them and I even thought about throwing them away and chalking it up as a loss. However, after a few months the smell left and now it's totally gone. Just bear with it and the smell will eventually leave.

News Credits: 3 · by **Kibble** » Mon Apr 19, 2010 6:25 pm

Sid Burn wrote:They smelled pretty bad, pot smell.

That was going to be my suggestion if the OP was a burn out...to just smoke a lot of weed near them and then they'd smell like weed instead of tobacco. :lol:

News Credits: 65 · by **Wolfman Jake** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 1:23 am

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I'll just continue to let the figure air out. I do like the idea of putting a box of baking soda next to it for a while. I should have paid more attention to the auction description. Now I understand why so many sellers make it a point to advertise their merchandise as coming from a "smoke-free" environment.

News Credits: 2 · by **Sid Burn** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 7:07 am

Wolfman Jake wrote: Now I understand why so many sellers make it a point to advertise their merchandise as coming from a "smoke-free" environment.

Its true, good thing is you will never buy from a seller without asking again. I know I always ask if it isnt in the description.

just not worth the hassle.

News Credits: 273 · by **Delicon** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 4:42 pm

I recently ran into the same problem with a used computer my neighbor was giving away. It's getting better now that it's in my place.

News Credits: 668 · by **Autobot032** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 6:56 pm

1.) The smell will fade over time, as long as you keep it out in the open in fresh air.
2.) Unless the seller explicitly says "Comes from smoke free/pet free home!", expect that it could have a scent, because that's the gamble you play when you buy second hand.

A seller may live in a smoke free/pet free home and you'll most likely end up with something that's fine, but you cannot assume that will always be the case, because some of our fellow collectors smoke (we've even seen a collector's picture of Unicron holding a cigarette!).

Would it be great if we didn't have to deal with smoke? Sure. Is it unreasonable to expect every collectible to be smoke/scent free? Yes.

If you think it's going to be all wine and roses, as they say, well...you're sadly mistaken.

But, as it was mentioned earlier, ask the seller (politely, I might add...) if it's going to be smoked upon. You might just get a nice surprise.

And, if the seller sends you an item with a stench to it even though they said it wouldn't have one, NEG 'em and get PayPal involved.

And you have to remember, a smoker doesn't really have an idea as to how much it permeates the stuff around them, because they've been doing it for so long, and have become used to the scent of tobacco smoke.

Just be reasonable, but sensible.

News Credits: 65 · by **Wolfman Jake** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 11:11 am

An update for anyone interested:

The smokey smell on the Alternators Nemesis Prime I bought has already faded drastically after just a few days! It's still there if you get your nose right up next to it and take a good sniff, but it's definitely not "stinkin' up the place." So far, it doesn't seem to have any sticky residue on it either, so I guess I've lucked out in that aspect as well. Thanks again for the advice, everyone

News Credits: 767 · by **Dead Metal** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 11:32 am

You know what's worse than tobacco smell? Blooming mould smell, I have a chest which I used to put my TFs in for a while now I find out that it's been moulding and the bloody smell went over into the TFs. :SICK: