Storage Plan

How does the Bunkermeister store his collection?  This is how I store some of it.  These are Sterilite   boxes, that have been discontinued.  They still make a very similar box.

Often, I put loose times in the box, but sometimes I put smaller boxes inside or more commonly zip lock bags as shown here.

I like waterproof, insect proof bags for GI Joe items since they often include cloth and I want to protect the collection from damage.  Also some GI Joe items are made by rubbery plastics that can have a chemical reaction against hard plastic toys.

Over the last two weeks I have been re-stacking and re-sorting the boxes.  Each box gets a hand written 3 X 5 card taped to the inside of one end of the box describing the contents.  I have recently begun moving the card higher up on the box because it makes it easier to read.  Also, in the past I did not tape the cards to the inside of the box and many have slipped down making them hard to read.

The white tape with numbers on them is the weight of the box, so that I can put the heaviest boxes on the bottom.  Also stacking the boxes like this can put a lot of pressure on the lower boxes.  After storing them like this for 6 years I have never had a box collapse due to the weight of the boxes above, but it is possible and I check for it frequently.

I am hoping that by the end of this year I can build a rack to put these boxes on so that I can reach the lower boxes without having to move all the boxes above it.  This project has been in the queue for 6 years with the delay caused only by a lack of money, materials, skill, tools and labor.  Of course, if I had the money the other four would be easier to get!

It's not hoarding if the boxes are labelled. 
 

Horse Wagons and Storage

More wagon wheels.  The Imex Conestoga Wagon set is great for conversions.  The box of the Conestoga is perfect for a pontoon for a pontoon bridge.  That leaves the tentage to use for other wagons, or as canopies for building entrances.  The horses are large and great for artillery.  The figures are generic enough to work from the American Revolutionary War to World War One at least.  A quick head swap can help modify them to more modern troops.

I cut the wire mesh with wire cutters and kept all the little pieces.  In the past I have used them for various purposes requiring a short metal pin, often to do head swaps for 54mm figures.

New York Police Department, NYPD, van wagon, one horse type.

Here is the wire mesh, 1/2 inch mesh.  Any home improvement store should have it.  This piece has lasted over 10 years.

Most of my vehicles are stored in underbed storage boxes.  I line the box with bubble wrap so the vehicles don't slide around, and the bubble wrap is taped into place.  Each box holds about a battalion of tanks or other vehicles.  These are my two wargame tables each 40 x 7 feet long x wide and 40 inches tall, like a kitchen counter.  Each box is labelled on the end and sides with the nation, time period and specific contents in large letters.  Those on the left at this end of the storage are WWII Soviet Union vehicles and figures.  Next are Cold War Soviet Union and finally WWII German.  The right side is WWI, WWII US Army and at the far end a few boxes of JGSDF, Japanese Ground Self Defense Forces, and Danish Cold War Army, and two "fictional" African armies, one Zebra and the other Giraffe based on their camouflage types.  

These are two sided shelves with other armies and air forces and navies on the outsides of the tables.
 

Storage Plans

The collection is being unpacked.

My plan is to dispose of all the cardboard boxes and replace them with plastic boxes.  Fewer bugs, no mice, and no water damage.  Plastic boxes often stack better and higher than plastic.

Lots of models are being sorted and need to be packed, but I am on able to afford boxes right away.

I am getting work done nearly every day.

But I still have a ways to go!

Hobby Storage

MRS Bunkermeister and I visited the storage sheds today.

We have six 10 X 10 sheds.  This one is nearly all hobby items.

These are underbed storage boxes.  Stacked 12 high, 6 across, and 3 deep; that's 216 of them.

More storage tubs, mostly larger items, like GI Joe stuff.  The flak tower is in the big custom built cardboard box in the lower right corner.

This is a close up into the depths of one of the sheds, the one with the flak tower.

Storage

US Army self propelled guns.

Tanks and armored infantry.

Boley trucks.  These boxes stack.  On average they weigh about eight pounds, and can stack about eight high.

Storage

The blue lid reflecting light makes these green buildings look blue.

WWII US Army Coast Artillery.

Misc.  WWII US Army vehicles.

US Army modern, Roco and a few others.

Roco WWII US Army tank destroyers.

Vehicle Storage

My collection of vehicles is stored in plastic boxes.  They are lined with corduroy cloth to keep the vehicles from sliding around.  The cloth is held in place by a drawer liner.  Modern US Army, mostly Hot Wheels.

Modern US Army, Roco and Hot Wheels.  There is a white box like this one in every box.  I use it to store parts that have broken off or fallen off.

Roco and Lindberg modern US Army.

Roco M41 and M103.  These M41 fought Godzilla recently.

This is a scrapyard box.  It holds bits and misc. vehicles that are waiting for use in conversions and other special projects.

Storage Tip

This is a large church model that I got, it is ceramic and rather fragile.

Rather than just put it in a box, I have used black foamcore board to keep it in place.

These pieces are there to stabilize the building so it does not bounce around inside the box.

I cut notches out of the foamcore board to fit both the models and the box.

Then the box is labeled so that I can find the church in storage.

Building Storage

This is one of those Christmas buildings.  They can be fragile.

It store it inside a plastic box, with a lid to keep out the dust and bugs.

I also cut custom pieces of foamcore board to hold the building in place, so it does not rattle around.

I also lined the box with corduroy so the building does not slide around.

Storage

Over the last seven years I have been working on a major upgrade to my vehicle storage system.

All of the cardboard boxes are being replaced with underbed plastic storage boxes for vehicles and taller boxes for other items.

This is a temporary storage space while I sort items into boxes and take some inventory.  These are Sterilite boxes that I typically get at Target stores.

Storage

Since the remodeling of my living room is on hiatus right now I set up some tables and have been upgrading the storage of my collection.

Some of my collection is not properly stored in plastic boxes.  It is in peanut butter boxes, or copy paper boxes or even just laying about loose.

A few trips to Target and I got about 24 various types of plastic boxes and I have been lining their bottoms with corduroy cloth and drawer liners to keep it in place.  It costs about $10 for each box and another couple bucks for the cloth and liner.  Still, it's cheap insurance to save hundreds of dollars worth of buildings, vehicles, and troops.

More Storage

I use drawer lining material cut into small strips to hold the corduroy cloth in place.

Usually it runs the length of the box but only about 1/4 of the width.  It's really cheap, I get mine at Dollar Tree, one roll will do a half dozen boxes or more.

Then I line the box with corduroy cloth from the fabric store.  I use a cloth with deep ridges and run them length ways so the vehicles don't roll back and forth on their wheels.

Vehicles are then parked side by side inside the box.  They don't slide much and they look good.

I usually use green or tan for US vehicles, and red for Russian, dark brown for German and light blue for aircraft and dark blue for ships.  No reason for the colors particularly but I think it helps a bit with the recognition of each box.

About 100 vehicles and guns parked in a single box.

Each box also gets one of these little plastic boxes.  If a piece fall off, I put it in here for proper repair later.  It helps to keep broken parts from getting lost.