they accumulated slowly, as I painted the figures
The other night as I was looking for a place to tuck my newly-painted German Great War Infantry into my Toy Room I stood looking at one of the many shelves packed with boxes of minis. They were packed away in their storage boxes; plastic shoe boxes mostly, that I had bought as need occurred. As I contemplated trying to wedge another box onto the already crowded shelf it occurred to me that the plastic shoe boxes were wasting a lot of valuable space, I mean a LOT of space.
see what I mean!
The manufacturing process demands that there be a taper to the side to allow the box to come out of the mold and then to stack neatly with it's mates for shipping and storage at the retailer. Fine for them, terrible for me. I have an ample, if finite, amount of room for storage but cannot afford to waste any of it. The dozens of plastic boxes were each wasting several inches of shelf space as well as lots of headroom as the minis rarely were tall enough to demand the amount of vertical space that exists in the box. A solution needed to be found!
recycled evidence boxes from the Police Department that I used to work for
Further along the shelf was my collection of Flames of War armies, they were stored in recycled evidence boxes from the Police Department that I used to work for (evidence laws in Michigan prohibit re-use of a container that held other evidence in the past to avoid cross-contamination). This was the answer! Square boxes. But I have been retired some time now and no longer can recover the boxes as the evidence is disposed after a case is closed. So that was a dead end. Retail establishments were of no help either, where could I turn?
Enter ULINE a company devoted to making boxes in every conceivable shape and size. A quick look through their website provided me with exactly the boxes I desired, vertical sides and just the right size to utilize my shelf-space and not waste any vertical space either. An easy online order and the next day I had my supply of boxes. At about $1.52 each (including shipping) these are far cheaper than plastic boxes too!
fifty each of the sizes I needed
U.S. standard letterhead size in two inch and four inch depths
flap closure ensures no accidental spills
the two inch depth will handle 15mm troops including cavalry
as well as most 28mm foot figures and vehicles
the four inch depth happily handles 28mm mounted figures
including standard-bearers, and most sailing ship models
ahhh, the sweet smell or organization
If you are stressed for space (who isn't?) who might want to take a look at Uline.
Thanks for the info...
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