How do you organize and store your figures? (post pics)

[Moonglum_]

From keeping certain armies together to separating by marque to tagging the make and sculptor of a figure to hiding them all away in shelves marked by theme, army etc. How are you managing it all?

Bonus if you can share photos with us. I've recently moved to a new country and am approaching how to sort things out as I begin a new collection here and would love some inspiration as I am in a small space and will need to get creative.

[Ran The Cid]

Most of the time, I need to transport my figures to where the game is played.  I have plastic storage containers (roughly 12 inches wide, 24 inches long and 6 inches deep) with rubberized kitchen cabinet liner.  Painted figures are placed on unit trays, then loaded into the storage containers.  Figures are grouped by army ie Rome + Punics, Saxon + Normans, Crusaders + Saracens.  I have shelving space for new units which have not traveled yet.

[dadlamassu]

My figures span from my Airfix Infantry Combat Group and WW2 German infantry of 1960 to current 28mm figures.  There are literally thousands of them.  They are stored in metal Bisley drawer units that I acquired for next to nothing when a local office closed down.  Each drawer is dedicated to an army - Colonial British, Zulus, Goblins, Churhill tanks, German half-tracks, Amazons, Pulp, Zombies, Post Apoc, Romans, Celts, Arthurians, and many more.  In addition a boxes with compartments for figures than are more generic - clergy, civilians, animals, baggage etc.  Each drawer contains the figures in unit boxes. 

And of  course tubs of unpainted figures, boxes of unbuilt kits, shelves and boxes of terrain.

[mikedemana]

Unlike my terrain (which is laid out display like on shelves), my figures are grouped in plastic boxes with metal bottoms by army or period. My bases are magnetized to protect them in transport. The plastic boxes that I use snap together, so I have a stack of SciFi, Saga armies, F&IW troops, etc.

I would send a picture but I am on vacation at the moment….

Mike Demana

[Daeothar]

The largest games I play are around 30 miniatures and some vehicles these days, and most of those games are played right here, in my hobby room. So I can take them out of the display case whenever I need them.

There's quite a few gaps on the shelves of the display cases right now, since my army case is packed for a game btw...

When I do have an away game , I still rely on my old GW transport case; it comfortably holds more than 100 minis (or quite a bit less, with room for vehicles). But most of the time I'll be playing small skirmishes, with max 10 minis a side, so I use a smaller Feldherr transport case, which will hold over 30 miniatures.

And this is all I have been needing for the past five years at least

[carlos marighela]

Plastic storage containers with twelve internal divided compartments. I base most of my figures on steel washers, so magnetic tape is placed in each compartment to hold them in place. Admittedly I haven't got around to doing that with everyone of the boxes, as I have loads of the damn things. Each space holds eight figures so a smidge under 100 figures to a box. For support weapons on largers bases, I have bigger plastic storage boxes of a similar type.

For modern stuff it's typically a couple of platoon's worth to each box. Typically that's a unit themed box. So German paras in one Norwegians in another. Occasionally it's a case of platoon plus their opposition for smaller forces.

Multiple based figures are currently in a bit of amuddle at present in everything from

My wife was kind enough to buy me some industrial type shelving last year.

[vodkafan]

No organisation and half-hearted attempts at proper storage.... That's my trouble 

[fred]

My figures are mainly smaller scales (10mm and 6mm)

I have both drawers and boxes. A lot of my figures are multi-based with magnetic sheet on the bottom, this is for attaching them to metal drawers or box files with steel paper in. This is good for transport. But over the last few years I seem to be hosting more games and travelling less, so seem to have stopped adding magnetic sheet to figure bases. 

With boxes I prefer Really Useful Boxes either 4L or 9L and in these use MDF trays from Commission Figurines which come in a wide variety of depths. For WWI and WWII figures who don’t have tall flags and spears the 20mm depth trays work well - which lets you get a lot of figures in a box. The 9L boxes can get heavy when full of metal tanks.

I organise each box by force or if I have two smaller forces for the same theatre then they will go in the same box.

Older storage uses box files with steel paper to store fantasy figures. In several of these I’ve added a tray for a second layer of figures - sometimes only 2/3 the length of the box to allow for taller models

6mm Sci Fi is all in foam travel cases - too many oddly shaped models to be good for transport otherwise.

But ultimately it’s the terrain that takes up way more space than the figures

[zemjw]

Another Bisley user here, although I also have a metal filing cabinet from Ikea for taller figures (internal drawer depth of 90mm).

Figures are roughly grouped by genre, but only roughly, as I’m running low on free space, so can't be too OCD about it.

Unpainted stuff is crammed in a wardrobe, again vaguely grouped by genre.

Scenery is in a multitude of boxes and really needs reorganised, as any grouping that was there is long gone.

[JollyBob]

DIY organiser boxes, the kind of things you'd normally keep screws in. Various sizes and makes from whatever shop has them in stock.

Also, shoe boxes, as in our house there seems to be an inexhaustible supply.

[modelwarrior]

Mine are strategically placed around the house and shed(terrain kept in shed). I have an office where everything I am working on is kept and anything else is hidden in various locations around the house until the mrs finds it and returns to the office/lead pile. I try and keep everything in sealed clear handy boxes that have lables on them

[nozza_uk]

A few years back, I bought the older version of the Ikea Helmer units to store my figures. Got five units and could use another one, but going to Ikea is oh so dangerous.

[Tom Dulski]

Those IKEA drawers are great but not fun to put together

[Tom Dulski]

 If you live near a Hobby Lobby store I would recommend getting these they are ideal for mini storage

[nozza_uk]

Those IKEA drawers are great but not fun to put together

That should be the basis for a new Ikea marketing campaign