I was at a fleamarket this past weekend and for $5 i picked up the large Woody and Jessie pull string dolls that came as a set new, i think these are older and harder to find. The person i got them from said they have not worked for almost 10 years. Anyways i got home and put batteries in Jessie and she works great, she has a very weird yodel and says “there’s a snake in your boot!” like she’s talking to Woody. so i’m sure they came in a set.
Woody’s pull string was stuck hanging all the way out and when i shook him i heard rattling, so i pulled out the voice box and batterie pack. took apart the voice box, and the piece of plastic that holds the pull string to the winding mechanism was shattered…this was beyond repair. so i soon learned with a plastic handle screwdriver that when any metal on one side of the voice box touched a certain metal bar on the other side, Woody speaks.
so i took out the small rod in between the winding spring, drilled a hole through the side of the plastic box as close as i could get to the certain metal bar and looped the pull string through the hole and through the winding spring and tied it but left some slack. sure enough when i barely pulled the string, it pulled the spring to touch the metal bar and Woody now speaks everytime i barely pull his string. so i just put the voice box back in Woody and put the string back through his shirt and vest and tied the ring back on. he doesnt work just like new but he works great for being repaired like that. speaks everytime. What a steal for 5 bucks. anyone who reads this let me know if you have had any methods of your own for fixing these.
Wow, that’s pretty impressive, HisFavoriteDeputy! I’d have no clue where to begin with that sort of thing, but you were definitely persistent in fixing Woody. Have you done this with other toys before?
Thank you lizardgirl. I have just always done pretty well when it comes to fixing smaller electronics. i have fixed a few remote controlled cars and some game consoles, but never anything like woody’s pull string, he was different to fix, and i was very surprised that it was just two pieces of metal connecting to tell Woody to say the next phrase. it didnt have anything to do with the actual winding of the pull string.
Well actually I don’t think that the Woody and Jessie dolls came in a set. I know this because I got the same Woody doll a couple of years before Toy Story 2 came out. After it did come out, I got a Jessie doll and she still said “There’s a snake in your boot.” So the toy designers probably did that on purpose.
Wait, do you have the scary Jessie, or another one? I have an early Jessie by Thinkway, but she doesn’t have the “there’s a snake in your boot” phrase.
By the way, HisFavoriteDeputy, could you post some more in depth instructions on how you fixed him? Because I have a similar problem. His string still goes in and out, but he doesn’t speak. Maybe you could post a video or some pictures.
You inspired me to fix my first Woody, whose pull-string had a nasty habit of coming loose. That is, by the time I got into him, there was no voicebox to be found. Now I feel stupid, so I just superglued the pull-string to his back for looks.
I just joined because my son’s Woody doll has a broken voice box. The spring inside has broken and I was looking to either fix or replace the box. I don’t really want another doll because this was his first Woody and it has sentimental value to him. Can you draw a diagram of your fix? Or does anyone know where to get a new voice box?
Same!!! Ours the original Woody which my daughter (nearly 20!) owned as little girl. Its of great sentimental value - my sons friend broke it by pulliung the pull cord right out. I took it apart and spent hours trying to mend it. Will have another go but if anyone knows where to buy another voice box I would love to know! If I find out first, Ill post! Debi, Oxford, UK
Hi all!! Same here, we have the original Woody too, he is now on his third voice box!! Over the years I have already got 2 replacements from Thinkway toys in Canada, but this time i contacted them again (this last box has hardly been used and it’s broken already) they wrote and told me they are no longer available 
. Devastated!! So I did a google search and found this post on this forum. Yay!!! But not being very technical I don’t really “get” the fix, and I don’t want to go ahead and make the voice box worse. The cord is hanging out and nothing speaks. So a video on You tube would be really great if anyone is able to record this fix, it would be marvellous. Woody is over 15 years old - he still looks good. on other slight aside, I remember when we bought him he had wire legs, to pose and bend them, I took the wire out to make him more like the floppy woody in the movie. Has anyone else got a stiff legged Woody like this?
Lisbon Portugal xx
The Woody with the wire skeleton is the rare first release of Woody dolls. They took the wire out on later releases, I think because of safety reasons?
Yeah, I guess it’s not too rare, since there’s still a lot floating around out there (I have two in the box), but it’s not too often you can see woody stand on his own (with much balance, of course). They made a number of safety changes for that Woody; are his buttons still on? For some reason, they took away his spurs as well.
Sad that Thinkway stopped supporting older toys. I found a '95 Buzz that was new in the box, except his wing mechanism was broken. Thinkway knew what the problem was, and knew what part I needed, but they couldn’t provide it. Shame. I think my only option would be to take it from another Buzz.
To be fair though, it is a 16 year old toy, they can’t be expected to keep a large enough amount of spare parts to last forever.
Um, how many Thinkway Buzz Lightyears do you think are out there? Heck, they’re still putting out the original model of Buzz Lightyears in some places. You’ve got to consider how massively popular the original Buzz and Woody were (and still are).
Hi again, hubby just opened up Woody’s voice box and the plastic spool is completely shattered, I guess the plastic is biodegrading through the years, although this is his 3rd replacement box, it must be from the original batch!! Anyhow, upshot is it’s exactly the same problem as HisFavouriteDeputy’s!! But I just don’t understand the repair instructions. Can anybody elucidate?? (In plain English- explain better??). Nice to know he was one of the first Woody’s, although without his wires!! I really thought they made him strange compared to the film character, so they had to go!!
Thanks
Hi!
I have a BIG problem!! My Toy Story Collection Woody doll’s pull-string is broken. I want fix it. The sting is broken. The string stay in Woody’s back. I have removed the string through in the little hole, but now he’s just hanging.
The question is: Can i fix it? How can i disassemble it?
When it possible pleas help me. And foto send too.
P.S.: sorry form my bad english. I’m writing from Hungary.
hi all,just been reading all your comments and responses about repairing woody’s voice box.some great tips,but im trying to find where i can get hold of a replacement voice box,as mine seems to have mysteriously vanished(i asked my now 20 yr old son and his now 17 yr old brother if they know how this happend…they pleaded innocence/ignorance…so anyone out there who could help it would be most appreciated
many thanks x
We have a Jessie doll that talks by herself. This sounds cool until you hear at 3 am in my daughter’s room. Anyone know how to fix it?
That of scare the crap out of my girls in the middle of the night.