My hair has not arrived yet so Lyla’s Christmas grumpy baby will have to be bald for now . I really don’t want to give her to her un assembled. If I go ahead and assemble her am I going to be able to take the head off to root her after the hair comes.
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I want to double check that you are referring to Ping’s Grumpy Grace, and if so… nope, don’t do it! There aren’t spare assembly parts, that I know of. In fact, I am paranoid about losing the parts for the head, in the head, I tie one of the strings that come in some bodies on the “J” that is attached to the elastic, just in case… I have assembled many of Ping’s toddlers and I would never attempt to temporarily “put it together”. But I can offer you a sure-fire way to guarantee a strong head to neck connection. This is something I use in all the “same type of kit” assemblies, it is called a cardboard socket and drop into the torso and guide it into the neck, so that the “O” in the socket and neck line up. You might need to make the green hook tool a little smaller/tighter to pass through the socket. Using the cardboard socket ensures that the neck will be firm and support the head. That had been a problem in the initial kits; I think the vinyl was a bit too thin and some of the kits had a lazy neck. Anyway, this is the only place I have found that supplies them, order 50mm for Ping’s kit, and this size has worked for me in other kits, too, including the new Corteria/Zelda BJD (neck only) at MacPherson’s (the stupid plastic tube popped through the neck without the socket.) The site is www.dollspartsupply.com and search for “cardboard sockets”.
Yes I am referring to Grumpy Grace. This is the piece I have for the head. Do I need the other piece you are talking about or is this it? I have never put one of these together before so I am sort of lost. Thank you so much for your help.
That’s the whole thing. The white disk and gray bowl shaped piece go inside the head. Then you put the hook through the neck and through the white tube, and while holding the tube in the center of the neck piece, pull for all you’re worth to get the hook over the edge of the tube. Then, take a break, swear a little and try again. 
I hope this makes sense. Do you heat your heads for rooting? The opening in the head wasn’t very big on Cammi. She had this type of connector.
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I personally prefer to learn by watching and this is a good video: How to assemble Grace Reborn Vinyl Toddler doll kit by Ping Lau painted by me - YouTube
The cardboard socket is the half dome that is above the silver hook, and I buy the 50mm ones from dollspart.com to fit inside the neck, otherwise the only thing inside is the plastic tube that you will pull the elastic/hook through and catch the hook on the rim of the bottom of the tube. It takes some muscle and finessing to free the green tool you should have received (I hope!) after getting the silver hook latched on the tube. I highly recommend buying the cardboard sockets (sold in packs of five, but there is a minimum order $ to spend) as I experience the plastic tube finding its way out of the neck. The socket stops that from happening. You will need to cut a larger opening on the bottom of the torso to fit your hand inside. I used to cut out a nice sized opening but now I cut “pie slices” in so the vinyl falls back into place after the head is attached. I start by making cuts that look like a plus sign +, then cut out an X shape, I do not cut a big hole, only those shapes. You will still be able to stuff the torso, I just like keeping the vinyl intact as possible. Keep the opening just large enough to get your hand in, do not go edge to edge.
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Oh my goodness now I understand why toddlers cost so much. And no, I did not get the hook with her. 
Thanks ladies for the help I will see how it goes.
I got the hook but it bent. It just wasn’t strong enough. I used a long crochet hook.
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Great idea! Thanks.
When you get the first arm on and pull the elastic through the tube to the other side, put the hook through the loop and rest it on the arm opening to hold it in place and keep it from snapping back inside the body. Then you have both hands free to attach the second arm. Once you get the hook in the loop, slide the hook out and you’re done. Do the same with the legs. Its really hard to do it while you’re trying to keep the tube in the right position with one hand.
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Oh my it seems so complicated. My legs just have zip ties though so that I know I can do.
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Oh, yeah. Cammi had that, too, She has a full cloth body so it was just the head and neck that needed to have the connecter to attach it to the chest plate. It was Ilse that had connectors for head, arms and legs. She’s full bodied and was an absolute beast to put together. It took me three days of frustration and tears to do it. (Not exaggerating) I never want to do another full bodied, ball jointed doll. Cammi was much easier.
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She does have the connectors on her arms and half a torso. Just the bottom half is cloth.
It should be easier with just the head and arm connectors. When you’re attaching the head, you can look through the armhole to see what you’re doing.
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irresistables.com has all kinds of connectors if anybody needs them.
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