Miniature Storage and Transport

[Hammers]

Direct question since I don't think there is a thread for it:

what doo you use or recommend for miniature storage and transport?
I have...
one Crystal Caste Battle Hive which I like very much
one Army Transport which is good but very expensive
a number of nylon plastic boxes which are fairly cheap but not very practical and not optimally kind to the minis
a number of cardboard archive boxes, dirt cheap but they wear out rather quickly, IMO

[Westfalia Chris]

Direct question since I don't think there is a thread for it:

what doo you use or recommend for miniature storage and transport?
I have...
one Crystal Caste Battle Hive which I like very much
one Army Transport which is good but very expensive
a number of nylon plastic boxes which are fairly cheap but not very practical and not optimally kind to the minis
a number of cardboard archive boxes, dirt cheap but they wear out rather quickly, IMO

I own three of the GW 108 figure cases which I bought years ago. Those do work ok, although nowadays I´d prefer a case which lets me stow the foam layers horizontally and doesn´t have an embarrassing logo on it. If I have to log around vehicles as well, I usually sub-pack them in smaller boxes with some padding and place them and the individual foam layers in a traveling bag or sports bag.

I think I´ll look into getting one of those comparatively neutral cloth cases sometime in the future, or an aluminium case if I find one the right size. Much better suited to my current needs, although those GW cases were, for a change, a good investment indeed. Rugged and stable, but nowadays I´m just embarassed by the logo when taking the case outdoors (this is NOT to be a GW-bash, mind you). I´d still buy those cases if they came "neutral".

[former user]

for figures I use flat sorting boxes that come with 10 or 12 separate subdivisions and clear lid (electronic stuff storage), with a foam cushion if painted

this way I have units separately and can stuff them in whichever position I want seperately anywhere

cavalry is difficult - whichever box fits the size, with selfmade foam subdivisions, figures upright.

vehicles in clear soft plastic lid boxes you get in any hardware shop in any size for storage, usually no padding

whatever is bigger - well there are suppliers of harboard boxes, padding selfmade, but I also use wooden boxes or whatever fits the size

copy paper cartons usually for scenery

[fastolfrus]

nowadays I´m just embarassed by the logo when taking the case outdoors (this is NOT to be a GW-bash, mind you). I´d still buy those cases if they came "neutral".

have you looked at KR Multicases ?

They have a wide range of styles - including plain brown cardboard boxes, but also aluminium cases and nylon carrying cases

www.krmulticase.co.uk

They will negotiate club discounts too (I think they said for orders of 10 or more boxes/cases)

[Westfalia Chris]

have you looked at KR Multicases ?

They have a wide range of styles - including plain brown cardboard boxes, but also aluminium cases and nylon carrying cases

www.krmulticase.co.uk

They will negotiate club discounts too (I think they said for orders of 10 or more boxes/cases)

Yes, I´ve seen those, but thanks anyway. I´ll probably buy anything that´s decent value for money, once an opportunity arises - it´s not too pressing, though, and my not having bought any yet was mainly down to lazyness.

[Drunkendwarf]

For storage I converted a cupboard to hold some trays. The trays are 31cm x 55cm and can hold an army or gamesystem, this way I can keep all related miniatures together and when I want to know what I have I just pull out the specific tray (unfortunately not all miniatures are stored this way, some are kept in boxes). I made them at my work and they are made of 6 (bottom) and 8mm MDF.

Here is my tray with a 2250 pts. Warhammer Orcs & Goblin army:


The shelf with the black bag and boxes just above the middle should be empty, it is made to hold my paintstation:


For transportation I have 2 cardboard boxes and 1 aluminum case from "KaiserRushforth".

DJ

[OSHIROmodels]

Second vote for Kaiser here (figures anyway) bigger stuff tends to go in a box that fits with a bit of padding.

cheers

James

[Captain Blood]

I've got a big Figures In Comfort carry case with various foam trays. Works well. Wasn't cheap, but does the job. Doesn't seem to me to be much difference between the FiC product and the Kaiser Rushforth product. You pays your money and takes your choice...

[Hammers]

have you looked at KR Multicases ?

They have a wide range of styles - including plain brown cardboard boxes, but also aluminium cases and nylon carrying cases

www.krmulticase.co.uk

They will negotiate club discounts too (I think they said for orders of 10 or more boxes/cases)

Oooh, you should *not* have showed me those KR aluminum cases. I am a sucker for all think which I think makes me look like a professional hitman/burgler.

[nomadik]

what doo you use or recommend for miniature storage and transport?

I used to use these quite a bit, but they didn't hold enough miniatures for me without needing several:

They are craft boxes that you can pick up at Fabric/craft stores, even Walmart has them. I just line the compartments with foam.

Now I use these:

Larger rifle cases and shotgun cases are good for armies, while hand gun cases are good for small collections of minis for skirmishes. The plastic cases are usually pretty cheap. I first saw someone do this about 10 years ago at a gaming convention. There are also large multiple handgun cases that have several layers.

[Wirelizard]

I use the same plastic compartmented cases as nomadik, lined with foam I pick up from a local foam store. Works nicely, but I'm up to two and a half of the things full already with 28mm pulp figures, plus a slightly smaller similar case for markers, vehicles and small scenery.

My 15mm stuff is in a variety of smaller containers, some of them in the boxes they arrived in with foam surrounds.

I don't game at home, it's all at other people's houses or the weekend gaming club up at the University, so transportability is important. Cases small enough to tuck into my backpack are a bonus.

A friend uses a rifle case for some stuff, but taking that on a bus or walking across campus with it might get people excited...

[warrenpeace]

Mostly various cardboard boxes and clear plastic containers.  I've got a mass of clear plastic shoe box size that I intend to line with magnetic material, because most of my stuff has steel bases.  Each of these shoe box size should hold 60 to 66 individually based 28m figures.

[Aaron]

A few years ago I started converting over to the trays carried in the states by Dave's Baggage Train. I have since learned that they are merely jeweler's display cases and can be had easily online also. As almost all of my figure bases are steel I just line the trays with magnet sheet (they do make foam inserts also). They stack up nicely on my shelving and I can just grab the trays I need for an "away" game, pop them in one of the cases and off I go.

[Froggy the Great]

I second what Nomadik says about the gun cases.  That's primarily what I use - particularly the single-weapon pistol cases.

Another thing I like to do is get an old hard-shell briefcase and line it with eggcrate foam, the sort you'd get on a mattress pad.  It's only economical when you have some old briefcases laying around, but I did, and it was.

[Dan]

My 28mm WW1 , WW2 , Pulp and Cowboys are in Metal tool cases with magnetic sheet stuck inside . I mounted the figures on steel washers .
My Zombies are on GW bases so I used plastic fishing tackle boxes with the lids removed which are then incased in archive boxes.
My FOW figures are in plastic fishing boxes. (different make from above)
Not sure how I will store my upcoming Vietnam project but suspect metal tool boxes again.