Looking for Miniature Storage Advice

[TheAuldGrump]

Agreed, 100%!

Hey...those pistol cases- do they have plain foam rubber or is it that waffled stuff?

I ask because I just checked out the ones I got from CS: the foam within is the same type as in the Chessex boxes. Also similar to the Chessex boxes, the foam is pre-scored to make for convenient customization.

Unlike the Chessex, though, the foam is COMPLETELY pre-scored, as opposed to being formed into pre-selected shapes. So, if you have some kind of minotaur who is wielding a spear and has a wide-open stance, you can remove just enough blocks to make a nice hole for him and ONLY him.

Egg carton on one side of the foam, flat on the other. I put the egg carton side up on the lowest and middle layers, egg carton side down on the top layer - so each layer has something holding the minis in place.

Ogres and smaller giants go on the outside, with their bases hanging off of the foam, the big cases have very thick, squooshable (woo! new word!) foam, with a lot of give. The figures really don't do a lot of moving around once the box is closed.

Let me Google to find an open case....

Found one - and cheaper too! At a pet supply store of all things - Strictly Pet Supplies - $17.

A few years back I was carrying a case of miniatures back from a game, when I was stopped by a cop - wanting to know if I had any guns in the pistol case. I showed him the miniatures, and he made appreciative sounds. A couple of weeks later he stopped me again... he wanted me to show them to his partner. I ended up painting a giant for his partner, who was a gamer. Made me feel better about the whole world, right there.

The Auld Grump

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

You are now that cop's bitch.

That's kind of cool, meeting a fellow gamer under unusual circumstances and having a positive outcome.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

You are now that cop's bitch.

That's kind of cool, meeting a fellow gamer under unusual circumstances and having a positive outcome.

Heh, he paid me to paint the mini for him. Back then, I think I made more money painting miniatures than I did at my real job. (My paint for hire figs from that time all have either D13 or TAG on the bottom of the base and a date between '97 and '05. I also seem to have really liked painting stripes and checks back then.)

I don't really know why it surprised me - I had gamed with two cops and a policewoman before then.

The Auld Grump

 

[countgray]

I use clear plastic shoe boxes for all my plastic mins. You can usually get them for about 99 cents at various places. The Container store has some slightly nicer ones with clear plastic tops for only slightly more. I recommend these highly. They stack well, you can see what's inside. They hold tons of miniatures, and if you use your minis often it makes them easy to sort through.

I have found this is the best way to store plastic minis. I sort them into broad categories: fiends, elementals, humans & demi-humans, humanoids, beasts, dragons, celestials, giants, constructs, etc. Heroclix, Horrorclix, and Mage Knight have their own boxes.

Now if you want to store metal minis then use some of the tips above. I find fishing tackle boxes work great for my metal minis. Walmart has a wide selection at reasonable prices, but you can find them at any sporting goods store.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

I just bought another four pistol case at Walmart for $10 US.

I have known folks who use tackle boxes for their metal minis.... If you have even halfway decent paint jobs then try to avoid this method - it will chew the paint all to pieces unless you have the figure so gummed up with varnish that the shading goes away. (I used to paint minis for hire - I really, really hate to think what would happen to my hard work. )

The Auld Grump

 

[grodog]

At the end of September, I bought a tools case that I like to use for carting minis around to games, for $12.97 @ Home Depot (and it looks like, at least on the Home Depot web site, the price has dropped to $9.97):

I'm planning to use this just for transport to games/conventions (which means mostly flying for me), rather than long-term storage. I've looked around for awhile at different craft stores, Wal-Mart, etc., but didn't really find something that looked like what I wanted for transportation (something good for a number of smaller figures, but also sufficiently deep to manage dragons or other larger figures), and was really thinking that I'd just end up buying some Army Transport or Citadel pre-made cases, etc. But I really didn't want to spend that much. I did look at some of the other tool boxes @ HD quite a bit, in particular the cantilevered ones, but I didn't like the handles and closure claps as much on those (and they were more than twice as much as the one I bought).

I also bought two small crafts organizers like those pictured above @ Joann Fabrics, and 2" and 1" foam (they have 40%-50% off coupons/sales regularly). So, my total cost is ~$35 (the foam cost twice as much as the tool box), but I think I'll be happier since the tool box is pretty rugged, and has those two additional compartments on top, and a tray too. I may still need to buy another piece of 1" foam for the crafts boxes, but we'll see after I finish cutting and building the trays, since 99.999% all of my minis are lead or pewter, so they need the additional padding.

And @ frankthedm: thanks for the trays-building recipe: it's what made me decide to go home-grown vs. pre-made! ("You must spread some Experience Points around before giving it to frankthedm again").

 

[Shades of Green]

I now have two portable "organizer" cases with drawers (of the kind used to store screws, nails, craft supplies and so on). One is almost full, the other is still empty. They are simply excellent for my needs!

 

[buddhafrog]

I like the milky-translucent craft/bead/embroidery thread boxes available at craft stores for between $2 and 3.

These are what I use - the dividers can be removed to make more room for your larger race collections, they are easy to transport and to expand. These have solved my mini storage issues.

I also use a standard medium sized plastic tool box to keep my huge minis, dice boxes, markers, materials I use for every game, and the actual PC minis.

 

[Man in the Funny Hat]

I have, I believe it would be 7 of these:
Sears: Online department store featuring appliances, tools, fitness equipment and more
or something very much like them. I also use a rifle case for all the larger ones that would never fit in the drawers there.