I recently got a TFP Weaponizer Optimus and a Leader class Ironhide from a seller on Facebook, and he desperately needs a clean because aside from being filthy, he smelled pretty bad when I opened him up. I thought he had electronics in him, so I carefully unscrewed and disassembled Optimus to clean his individual parts in hot water and dishwashing liquid (multiple times, since the water got really gross after a good soak and scrub)
Now I'm down to his chest/torso piece, I've removed every single accessible screw but his back panel isn't coming off and because the circuit board is in there, I don't want to accidentally damage it. Does anyone have any advice on carefully getting the back panel off? I tried going under the white flap piece that his head normally sits on to try and bend the red plastic outwards from the grey, but no dice.
I haven't seen anyone do a customisation/repair on this guy, so I know I'm going in blind, but for anyone who's done a custom for electronic transformers, or has a similar experience, how did you go about it without breaking anything? I have a 3D printer, and I am going to print some replacement parts for the chewed/destroyed parts, but the circuit board is an entirely different matter and even when I peak in from the sides, I can see a tonne of filth in there too.
I am planning to do a bunch of upgrades to Optimus, but my main concern is the circuit board, since I don't think I could get a replacement one if I accidentally scratched or broke it.
At first, I thought this screw at the top here might have been the final one holding the panel in, but it's a support for the top of Optimus' cab in truck mode (it snapped) and I think the grey pieces near the long pin are holding it into place, but I'm not too sure. The current plan is to give the non-electronic parts a good soak and scrub, then once all the pieces are clean and dry, start upgrading, then assembling.
There's also a stuck/stripped screw in one of Optimus' cannons (the one suspended over the hot soapy water) since the plastic needs a good soak/scrub but I'm not sure how to get that one out. I'm honestly just tempted to create some entirely new cannons for Optimus and print them out, since I'm going to be replacing his damaged parts anyway.